The Education Programme in 2024

Bookings/requests of the education programme are possible for dates until 19 July 2024.

COVID-19 Precautions: We still ask you, not to visit ESO Supernova if you're tested positiv for COVID-19, feel unwell or have been in close contact with someone with COVID-19.

Please find more information below on how to book a planetarium show and/or a guided tour and/or a workshop for your pre-school group and school class.

ESO Supernova's education programme.

Astronomy education is about one of the oldest natural and cultural sciences. It is using the most modern and overwhelming technologies trying to unravel some of the oldest questions like "How did this all began - will it ever end?" or "Are we alone?". In terms of science education in general astronomy can act as a gateway science opening the door for all STEM fields. ESO Supernova's educational programme, teacher trainings and resources are set up to foster the fascination and joy of science, to encourage discovery and self-directed learning in teams and to share ESO Supernova's passion for our universe with everyone.

Trainings for Teachers & Educators

Reach up for the stars

Science and society is a rapidly evolving field and such is science education. ESO Supernova supports teachers and educators in keeping them up to date with recent developments and discoveries in astronomy and engineering by providing hands-on teacher trainings on those topics. Educators K-13 will not only learn the latest from current research, but also discover how this can be transferred into the classroom in a contemporary and sustainable way. If you would like to visit us as part of a training programme for your department or internal teacher training, please send an email to education@eso.org. You can also obtain information about upcoming full-day or multi-day training courses by subscribing to our education newsletter.

Programme for School- and Kindergarten Groups

Every year, more than 10 000 pupils (K-13) and more than 1000 teachers and education specialists take part in our education programme. ESO Supernova's cost-free educational programme is designed for Kindergartens and schools that would like to take advantage of our offer as part of their lesson plan or educational work in Kindergarten. If your institution belongs to the elementary, primary, secondary I or II level (no after-school care, music- or language school, adult education centre or holiday programme), you will find information on how to book the education programme here.

Bildungsprogramm
The three pillars of the educational programme: Guided tours, planetarium shows, workshops. Credit: ESO/M. Zamani/P. Horálek

What does the Education Programme include?

The educational programme includes:

  • age-appropriate guided tours of the exhibition that ranges 2200 square metres and covers all facets of astronomy and ground-based telescope technology (30 min for Kindergartens, 60 min for schools) or a tour of ESO Headquarters (60 min for participants aged 10 and over and a maximum of 25 people).
  • Planetarium shows including an explanation of the current night sky (45 min for Kindergartens, 60 min for schools).
  • age-appropriate workshops in which pupils experiment in small groups on scientific topics (45 min for Kindergarten, 60 - 90 min for schools).

When planning your visit, please take into account the duration of the activities and the need for breaks between activities. It is also possible to book parts of the educational programme (e.g. only a visit to a planetarium show).

Limitations

  • The educational programme is only offered from Wednesday to Friday, but not on public holidays.
  • Workshops and guided tours are limited to a maximum group size of 32 people (ESO Headquarters: max. 25 people). We can only offer one workshop and one guided tour per day.
  • The visit of a planetarium show depends on the number of free seats. For safety reasons, we can only admit as many people to the planetarium as there are free seats available.
  • In order to fulfil compulsory supervision, also in the planetarium, you are required to bring at least 1 accompanying person for every 10 children/pupil.

Costs

  • Wednesday to Friday: All parts of the educational programme as well as the entrance to the ESO Supernova are free of charge. Donations are very welcome.
  • Weekend: It is only possible to visit a planetarium show for 6.50 Euros per person. Entry to the ESO Supernova and a visit to the exhibition is free of charge.

How to make a Booking?

  • Planetarium Show:

    Please check the ESO Supernova Online-Calendar to see if there is a planetarium show with enough free seats on your preferred date. If there is no show scheduled on that date, we can usually schedule a show at 9:30am, 11:00am, 2:00pm or 3:30pm. However, if a Planetraium show is exceptionally scheduled at 12:00, no show can take place at 11:00. Use the booking form below to book this Planertarium show for your group. By sepcifying date and time of your visit we'll know, which show you would like to attend or if we would need to schedule another show. The maximum number of participants of your group is determined by the maximum number of free seats for this show.

  • Guided Tours:

    We can only offer you a guided tour on the day of your visit if no other guided tour is scheduled for that day. Otherwise, we can usually schedule a one-hour guided tour for your group at 9.30 am, 11.00 am, 2.00 pm or 3.30 pm (the number of participants should not exceed 30, ESO Headquarters: max. 25 people). Use the booking form below to book a guided tour for your group.
Buchungsoptionen für Führungen
On Wednesday, an additional planetarium show at 11.00 am and a guided tour at either 9.30 am, 11.00 am, 2.00 pm or 3.30 pm would be possible. On Thursday there is already a guided tour scheduled, so you can not have an additional tour, an additional planetarium show at 11:00 or 14:00 would be possible. On Friday, a guided tour would be possible at either 9.30 am, 11.00 am, 2.00 pm or 3.30 pm.

  • Workshops:

    Workshops are only available on the dates listed below for Kindergarten & Primary Schools or for Secondary Schools starting from grade 5. Dates that cannot be found in the corresponding date list cannot be booked. This also applies to dates further in the future. As soon as these dates are released, this will be published in the education newsletter. If you would like to book a planetarium show and/or an exhibition tour in addition to a workshop, please make sure that there are enough places available in the planetarium or that we can offer a guided tour on that day (see previous points above). The number of participants in a workshop should not exceed 30. We cannot offer parallel workshops, nor can we host them back to back. Use the booking form below to book the appropriate activities for your group.

 

Important Information:

  • Our exhibition area is very large covering 2200 square metres and the planetarium shows are not only visited by your class/group. In order to be able to comply with the supervision obligation, we therefore expect one accompanying person for every 10 children/teenagers.
  • Please plan sufficient breaks for all activities.
  • We are only a small team handling approximately 10 000 pupils per year. We try to process your request as quickly as possible. Nevertheless, it may take up to a week before we can send you a response.