The ULL promotes interest in Chemistry among students throughout the Canary Islands with a series of workshops.

The University of La Laguna will hold its 21st annual "Get Closer to Chemistry" event from January 20th to 28th, 2025. This activity has become a leading science outreach initiative at the university. 452 high school students from Tenerife, Gran Canaria, La Palma, Fuerteventura, and Lanzarote, accompanied by 50 teachers, will visit the Chemistry Department of the Faculty of Sciences to participate in a program of hands-on experiments designed to spark their interest in chemistry and showcase its potential.

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The activity seeks to encourage vocations for STEM degrees (Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics) among the youngest students and offer them a first contact with the university environment, bringing them closer to their possible academic future.

Each day, students will carry out various practical exercises in the Chemistry Department laboratories—the same ones used by current university students—under the supervision of faculty from five different areas of chemistry. They will also be directly supervised by doctoral students in Chemistry, students in the Master's Program in Teacher Training, and fourth-year undergraduate students in Chemistry enrolled in the External Internship course.

The practical sessions cover diverse areas such as organic, inorganic, and analytical chemistry, physics, and chemical engineering. Highlighted experiments include the preparation of aspirin, the creation of nylon, oscillating reactions, the production of colored fire, and the construction of eco-friendly batteries using potatoes, lemons, and oranges.

Immersive educational experience

Yapci Remedies, The predoctoral researcher in charge of the Physical Chemistry practicals explained how these activities capture the students' attention. “What we do is guide the students so they can carry out the experiments themselves. For example, in the reaction of magnesium with hydrochloric acid, we add dyes so they can observe how pressure is generated and how the magnesium oxidizes, forming magnesium chloride. By directly handling the materials, they not only understand the concepts of oxidation and reduction, but they also feel part of the scientific process,” he noted.

Furthermore, she highlighted the visual impact of these practices: “We use vibrant dyes, such as yellow or red, to make the chemical changes more striking. This approach not only reinforces learning but also motivates students to explore chemistry.”.