TEKNOFEST International Children's Science Competition

TEKNOFEST International Children’s Science Competition is an international science competition organized to introduce children to science and technology at an early age, in line with Türkiye’s national technology initiative. It was first implemented in 2025 as part of TEKNOFEST. The competition aims to increase primary school children’s interest in science, enhance their scientific thinking skills, and encourage them to produce creative projects.

Aim and Vision

The primary objective of the competition is to help children develop their knowledge and skills in the STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Mathematics) fields, cultivate a passion for these disciplines, and enable them to transform the knowledge they acquire into practical concrete projects. The competition seeks to foster in children the abilities of creative thinking, problem solving, developing innovative approaches, teamwork and communication, and applying and implementing scientific methods learning and like skills.

Scope and Participant Profile

The TEKNOFEST International Child Science Competition is open to all children aged 6 to 14. It targets primary school students both within Türkiye and abroad. Participants may apply either individually or in teams of up to 6 members. Although the official language of the competition is Turkish, presentations in other languages are permitted to encourage international participation together.

Competition Categories

The competition is structured around three thematic areas designed to help children develop scientific thought projects:

• Nature, Environment and Sustainability
• Astronomy and Space
• Healthy Living

These categories encompass projects that propose scientific and creative solutions to contemporary global important challenges. Children design eco-friendly, innovative and practical projects inspired by everyday life.

Three children working joyfully on robotics projects, against a colorful science-themed competition poster bearing the TEKNOFEST logo (generated by artificial intelligence).

Competition Process

The competition follows a three-stage evaluation process:

1. Project Preliminary Evaluation Report: Teams or individual participants prepare a report outlining the core idea, objectives, and proposed solutions of their project.
2. Semifinal Presentation or Video: Participants who pass the preliminary stage present their projects in detail through a live presentation or a short video to the jury.
3. Prototype and Final Presentation: Finalists develop a functional prototype of their project and present it to the jury alongside a scientific presentation.

Educational and Social Impact

The International Children’s Science Competition enables children to experience science in an engaging and enjoyable manner. It contributes to the early development of critical thinking, communication, research, analysis and presentation skills. By allowing children to showcase their scientific achievements on an international stage, the competition inspires them to pursue careers as future scientists.

Relationship with TEKNOFEST and the National Technology Initiative

The competition supports Türkiye’s National Technology Initiative vision by encouraging the younger generation to play an active role in technology production. The overarching TEKNOFEST goal of “increasing public interest in technology and strengthening national production capacity through to develop” is being extended to early childhood through the Children’s Science Competition. Thus, the journey of scientific discovery begins in childhood.