About the kindergarten and school project of Ost colliery

 

The basic objectives


The basic objectives have been mentionned on the page with the photos' small versions, yet, but now I want to go into them further than before.

The project has the intention to make it possible for the children to get an impression of the German hard coal mining industry. The first topic that has to be mentionned is the technology. Especially the impressioning and strong machines used in the mining industry and the miners' very special working conditions fascinate the children in the kindergartens and the schools - and the adults, as well. Additionally the hard coal mining industry in the Ruhr and the Saar region has a very long tradition. The coal mining in these areas started several centuries ago. The development in this very long period of time - from the very simple mining at the surface until to today's high-tech coal production - has to be shown to the children, as well, in order to give them more pieces of information about the region they live in or - if they do not live in the Ruhr or the Saar region - for that they get a certain knowledge about one of the few domestic energy reserves that Germany has.

The project's main objective, however, is another: The intention is to show the children from the kindergartens or the schools at a young age how important a domestic energy resource can be and that all the things that are important for the children are based on the fact that there is a constant supply of energy. This knowledge is required for sensitizing the children for the situation of the German hard coal mining industry.

As a summary it can be said that the kindergarten and school project has two very interesting objectives: The children learn something about the history and the actual state of the German hard coal mining industry in a way that corresponds to their age and by that to their ability to understand and to process the information received. In that way and in addition to that the importance of the mining industry for a safe energy supply is shown to them. The reason for the project is the fact that today's children are tomorrow's decision-makers and because of that it is very important to create a positive attitude towards the German hard coal mining industry at a young age, yet.

It is very important to point out that the kindergarten and school project is not a "publicity event" for the German hard coal mining industry, but the description of the project's content that can be found below will show this, as well. Instead of that the children taking part will get various pieces of information about the German hard coal mining industry, its history, the technology used etc. - and I can underline that the children really enjoy participating. Additionally the children can see how important a domestic energy resource can be and how the German hard coal can help to guarantee a safe energy supply.

 

Description of the sequence of events


The sequence of events of the kindergarten and the school project is determined by the different age of the children taking part in it.

The kindergarten project is a bit more simple structured than the school project so that the children can learn while playing. Real miners visit the children in the kindergarten and tell them about their job. Additionally the children who frequently have relatives working or having worked in the mining industry can take different things to the kindergartens like miner's lamps or helmets that are integrated into what the miners tell to the children. During these visits the children have the opportunity to experience a colliery with a large mock-up where they can make the pit cages move up and down a "shaft", drive mine cars through the "tunnels" and by that see what is necessary to produce hard coal. Additionally the underground fire brigade visits the children and builds a course the children have to climb and crawl through in order to show them how the members of the brigade are trained. For their pleasure the children can search for coal in the kindergarten's sandpit. At the last day of the project the children visit Ost colliery. During the guided tour they can experience the colliery and its machines, houses etc. at the surface with a lot of explanations by real miners. A large collection of photos of one of these visits can be found on these pages.

The school project is a bit more demanding but still corresponding to the abilities of the young pupils. The entire project takes two weeks, as well, and every day two lessons are used for telling and showing something about the German hard coal mining industry. After basic knowledge like how the hard coal developped and the history of the German hard coal mining industry, a real miner shows how in earlier times the coal has been produced in a very simple way and another miner how the coal is extracted in our high-tech times. After different exercises that have to be solved in groups of a few pupils and after looking at the same mock-up like in the kindergarten project some videos are used for demonstrating the children the machines that are required underground for extracting the coal and how the coal can be used for the generation of energy. In that way a good relation to the pupils' day-to-day life is created. The final elements of the project are formed by the visit of the underground fire brigade at the school and the two hours trip to Ost colliery, as well.
 

 

If you want to take part in the project

 


If you are interested in taking part in the project with a group of children from a kindergarten or a primary school, please ask the employees of Ost colliery of the Deutsche Steinkohle AG. The corresponding data can be found if you choose the "DSK collieries" button in the menu bar on the left.