Back with a bang, bigger and better!

After being closed for two years due to the pandemic, Sci-Enza is making science fun again. Children of all ages were stimulated to experiment. Some parents were less enthusiastic about the explosive results …

Since opening its doors to the public on 19 July 2022 after being closed for two years due to the pandemic, Sci-Enza has been buzzing with visitors and experiments. Judging from the range of visitors – learners, teachers, parents, students – people have been yearning to once again experience the fun and interactive science that Sci-Enza provides.

Besides individual requests and school visits, the centre has successfully hosted two holiday programmes, both sold-out hits, with requests for future events.

Another highlight was the visits from Australia’s Deputy High Commissioner, David Geyer, and Dr Graham Walker from the Australian National University. Dr Walker presented Science Circus shows for which tickets were sold out, and which left Sci-Enza visitors mesmerised. Some parents found the show inspiring and named it “a fantastic show” while others stated that their children were so excited that they could not stop talking about the great time they had. A few mentioned that they even tried some of the easier experiments at home, but they ended up having to clean the mess off their ceilings.

Sci-Enza staff had been waiting for two years in anticipation of once again opening the centre’s doors. “We never thought there would be a day where we missed the laughter and cheerful chattering of our visitors,” said Ms Puleng Tsie, the centre’s manager. “However, we used that time to prepare for a time when we would open.”

It has been quite a shift opening to the public. Moremi Melato, an intern at SciEnza, who started working here during the pandemic when the centre was still closed to the public, said: “When the centre opened it was intimidating because we were only used to presenting to senior staff with no crowds. The workload also increased, but with enough practice while the centre was closed, we were able to present programmes to the visitors with confidence.”

Presenting in front of the crowds has built my confidence and improved my skills of communicating science to other people.

Moremi Melato, intern

We learn new things every day, and interact with different people with a goal of making science accessible in a fun and entertaining way.

Precious Makau, intern

Precious Makau, also an intern at Sci-Enza, added: “It has been quite a learning journey; not a smooth one, but a worthwhile one. We learn new things every day, and interact with different people with a goal of making science accessible in a fun and entertaining way. I am definitely becoming a better person."

What’s next on the agenda for the SciEnza science centre? Busisiwe Hadebe, a senior staff member, says “even bigger and more exciting holiday programmes, hosting more special science shows and talks by renowned experts, and launching the UP research showcase exhibition in the centre.”

Fast Fact

Sci-Enza is the oldest interactive science centre in South Africa and situated in the grounds of the University of Pretoria.