Home start competition

Changes to the StarT-programme

The current school year will bring some changes to the StarT-programme. Due to lesser resources, the StarT-competition will not be organized during this school year 2022-2023. This also means that neither the StarT Gala nor public voting will be organized. 

We however encourage you to continue carrying out project-based learning in schools and elsewhere. For help and ideas, you may turn to our material bank as well as our guidelines for organizing a successful StarT day within your learning community.

For support on the project-based teaching at a national level, you can also contact the local representatives of StarT partner countries.

For European STEM-teachers, we are organizing the Science on Stage festival 2024 in Turku, Finland. The application process for the festival takes place during 2023. If you are interested in presenting your teaching practice in the festival, please contact your national Science on Stage steering committee for further information.

Picture of a former StarT-winners

The StarT competition has begun!

The registration for the StarT competition has begun and will continue until 7th of March 2022. The theme of the competition is My LUMA which refers to natural sciences, mathematics and/or technology. The two series you can participate in are the StarT projects and good educational practices.

Register for the competition!

The theme for the 2022 competition is My LUMA. The word LUMA refers to natural sciences, mathematics and technology and the interaction and cooperation between these disciplines. The aim of My LUMA theme is that all projects are interdisciplinary, have a link to science, mathematics and/or technology and promote the ideas, interests and knowhow of children and youth. The projects should be about any interdisciplinary topic including natural sciences, mathematics and/or technology. A good approach to this theme is through students own interests or phenomena related to everyday life. First, brainstorm a topic that inspires your team and dive into the worlds of learning and discovery through your project. Then report the results of your work and enter the StarT-competition. For inspiration, you can visit our material bank where we have collected some of the best projects and educational practices from earlier years.

You can sign up for the competition through the registration form. Tell us about your team of students and your project, or your good educational practice. The registration period for the competition started in the beginning of January and will continues until the 7th of March 2022. 

StarT project

Teams of children and adolescents should carry out the StarT project.  It is important that the project is a product of the students’ work, supported by the teacher on a suitable level. We will assess the projects on how creative and innovative they are. We also appreciate projects that are linked to the theme of My LUMA. The students’ active role in the project is important as is collaboration and the visibility of students’ enthusiasm. The project can include cooperation within the teacher community and with other actors outside of the learning community such as researchers and companies.

An example of a My LUMA themed project from 2021

Best practice

A best practice is an educational practice or a model that the learning community has tried and found useful in implementing interdisciplinary and phenomenon-based learning. The best practice should also have a link to science, technology and/or mathematics. In the assessment of best practices, we will look at how the best practice demonstrates links to curriculum and cooperation. We will also be looking for innovative approaches for carrying out inquiry-based and/or phenomenon-based learning.

An example of a best practice from 2021

Read more:

StarT competition
Awards and assesment
StarT projects

The registration for the International StarT Competition begins in early January 2022!

The year is about to end so it is time to think about wonderful time for learning together: the International StarT Competition 2022 is soon here! Participate in the competition with a good teaching practice or a project that deals with natural sciences, mathematics and/or technology.

The registration for the annual International StarT Competition begins on the 3rd of January 2022 and closes on 1st of March. The theme of the year is My LUMA that refers to natural sciences, mathematics and/or tehchnology and the the interaction and cooperation between these disciplines. The aim is that all projects are interdisciplinary and they have a link to the mentioned disciplines.

My LUMA celebrates the creativity and ideas of children and youth. It highlights the multidisciplinarity of daily life and LUMA (STEM/STEAM) phenomena.

Outi Haatainen, StarT Project Manager

Note to the ones that would have been interested in participating Nord StarT Climate Competition but could not participate: Did you already create a climate change themed project to participate in Nord StarT? No worries! Because the My LUMA theme makes many kinds of projects possible, you can participate with a climate change themed project for example.

Are you participating from one of our partner countries (Albania, Azerbaijan, China, Jordan, Kazakhstan, Lithuania, Montenegro, Serbia, Turkey, Ukraine and Vietnam)? Note that our partner countries might have their own national selection and therefore all participants should report directly to their national StarT office. You can find the partners’ contact information here.

Read more about the International StarT Competition here. Learn together and share your ideas. The best projects and practices will be rewarded!

The StarT team wishes you all merry Christmas and a happy New Year! We will be back in January.