Sonnenschein day care centre in Korbach becomes the first Geopark day care centre in Hesse

After a one-year trial period, the Sonnenschein day-care centre in Korbach is the first day-care centre in Hesse to become a Geopark day-care centre. The certificate from the GrenzWelten Geopark was presented at a small ceremony. In the future, the day-care centre will continue to work on topics from geology and contemporary history with the children at pre-school age - in a playful and child-friendly way.

The aim is to teach children about environmental issues at a young age as part of education for sustainable development. For this reason, the GrenzWelten Geopark of the district has initiated the certification as a Geopark day-care centre. "An important aspect of the Geopark's work is environmental education," says District Administrator Jürgen van der Horst. "The project aims to create a holistic understanding of earth history, nature and culture - starting with the youngest children."

Acquaintance with the "Korbacher Dackel"
The starting signal for the certification was the visit of the Kita Sonnenschein of the Korbacher Spalte in September 2021. Since this excursion with the pre-school group, which also made acquaintance with the "Korbacher Dackel", a mammal-like reptile that lived there about 250 million years ago, the educators of the Kita have been working regularly on projects around the topics of the Geopark. "For example, there was already a party under the Geopark motto," reports director Anja Köhler-Schotte. "For this, volcanoes were made, gemstones were searched for and the topic of climate and water was addressed." For all projects and topics, the day-care centre is in close contact with the Geopark GrenzWelten and uses materials provided by the Geopark.

Playful approach and flexible work
"The special thing about this concept, especially compared to working with schools, is the much greater flexibility," says Geopark Director Kim Peis. "Kitas don't have to follow a strict curriculum and can thus work much more freely and flexibly. The subject areas are also very open." Especially in this very young age group, it is more about playfully introducing and awakening interest in nature topics in general - and about creating a connection to the region at an early stage. This also pleases the mayor of Korbach, Klaus Friedrich: "By dealing with Geopark topics and associated visits, for example to the Korbacher Spalte, even the youngest children develop a connection to the region. Many parents and families are also introduced to the topics through their children.

In the future, there will be many more projects and excursions at the Sonnenschein day-care centre on the topics of geology, geological and contemporary history and culture. Dr. Ute Richter will be assisting the Korbach day-care centre. She is a tour guide for the city of Korbach and is now also a Geopark guide specifically for environmental education and education for sustainable development.

Background
The GrenzWelten National Geopark covers an area of 3,700 square kilometres. This includes the entire district of Waldeck-Frankenberg and parts of the neighbouring districts of Marburg-Biedenkopf, Kassel, Schwalm-Eder and Hochsauerlandkreis (NRW). Geoparks are designated areas that stand out from other regions due to their special geological and scenic features. In order to make these special features accessible, geoparks create a geotourism infrastructure, strive for sustainable regional development, are involved in environmental and geotope protection and provide interested parties with information through education and public relations work.

Keywords:

Geopark GrenzWelten Education for Sustainable Development Specialist Service Environment and Climate Protection