Sparking interest in natural sciences among Vietnam’s next generation
Increase to seven online local language experiments to help kids learn about chemistry, anytime, anywhere
Donated 20 computers to Dương Văn Lịch Primary School to give students in remote area of Ho Chi Minh City access to technology
Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam – December 14, 2020 – BASF, the world’s leading chemical company, today introduced two additional chemistry experiments in Vietnamese in its BASF Virtual Lab (http://thinghiemvui.basf.com), an online platform that allows children to do a variety of interactive chemistry experiments. In partnership with Ho Chi Minh City Department of Education and Training, BASF hosted a training workshop for the teachers and students from Dương Văn Lịch Primary School, Nhà Bè District, to help them familiarize with the fascinating experiments and learn what chemistry means to their daily lives. The company also donated 20 computer sets to the school allowing teachers and students access to computer science and technology.
For the two newly launched experiments, the “Energy from the Sun” experiment helps the kids discover how a solar cell works and how it converts as much sunlight as possible into environmentally friendly energy sources. Meanwhile, in the “Foaming Beads” experiment, the students will examine what makes insulating materials and their differences before they learn to make the insulating materials themselves.
BASF Virtual Lab, an extension of BASF’s global hands-on chemistry education program Kids’ Lab, provides a wide range of interactive experiments online. Children can experience the joy of chemistry anytime and anywhere. Each step of every experiment contains easy-to-understand explanations from the animated Kids’ Lab mascot Dr. Bubbles. New experiments are continuously added. The five experiments that are already available in Vietnamese include “Looking for the sender”, “Chemistry Lab Bakery”, “Bubbling Refreshment”, “Water Purification” and “Red Stain Devil”. The young scientists aged 8 to 12 can choose from a vast array of interactive experiments in the Virtual Lab and learn things like how to filter and clean dirty water, why laundry gets discolored, and how solar energy and photosynthesis work. The Virtual Lab is also available in German, English, and many other languages, such as Spanish, Korean, Japanese, and Chinese.
BASF Kids’ Lab is a global program that aims to develop children’s interests in natural sciences from an early age. In partnership with the Department of Education and Training, BASF has implemented this annual program in Vietnam since 2011, which attracted almost 5,000 primary students in the city.
“This year, due to the pandemic, we cannot host physical Kids’ Lab sessions. Instead, we offer our future scientists two more online games in Vietnamese in the BASF Virtual Lab. They can explore the amazing world of chemistry from the comfort of their school or home,” said Erick Contreras, Managing Director, BASF Vietnam. “Nevertheless, Nha Be District is located in an outskirt area of the city where access to technology is relatively limited to many people, especially those immigrants working for nearby industrial parks. That is why we offer the required computers to support schoolchildren and teachers in their science education. This is one of the ways we are contributing to the education development of Vietnam, one of our key markets in the region.”
BASF Vietnam has been active in multiple community projects, including the partnership with Saigon Children’s Charity to renovate schools and to provide scholarships to disadvantaged university students. Additionally, BASF constructed four public playgrounds which are accessible to more than 12,000 children to promote a sense of exploration, inspire creativity, and build a variety of skills that are important to a child’s development
