Scientist
in the
Spotlight
Free, online events for school children
Meet scientists and researchers working in
Science, Technology, Engineering and Maths
Meet scientists and researchers working in
Science, Technology, Engineering and Maths
These free, online events run on an approximately monthly basis, specifically for school children from Year 4 upwards.
We invite a different scientist / STEM researcher each time to give a short, interactive presentation about their work followed by time for questions and answers with the children.
Children will discover a wide range of STEM fields, broadening their aspirations, gaining insight into the life and work of STEM research professionals, and hopefully sparking a long-term interest in STEM!
We invite a different scientist / STEM researcher each time to give a short, interactive presentation about their work followed by time for questions and answers with the children.
Children will discover a wide range of STEM fields, broadening their aspirations, gaining insight into the life and work of STEM research professionals, and hopefully sparking a long-term interest in STEM!
Coming up next...
Join
Lucy Handford
University of York, Department of Archaeology
to find out more about primate chewing systems
Lucy Handford
University of York, Department of Archaeology
to find out more about primate chewing systems
When
Thursday 19th March 2026
Time: 11.15am to 12 noon (GMT, Online via Zoom link)
Lucy Handford is a PhD researcher at the University of York.
Lucy’s research explores how different parts of the human chewing system, including the jaws, muscles and teeth, change as we grow, and how these changes affect how we bite and break down food.
Her work links to important stages of development, such as the transition from milk to solid foods early in life, as well as broader questions about how human diets have changed over time and how modern diets may be influencing our facial and jaw anatomy today.
Thursday 19th March 2026
Time: 11.15am to 12 noon (GMT, Online via Zoom link)
Lucy Handford is a PhD researcher at the University of York.
Lucy’s research explores how different parts of the human chewing system, including the jaws, muscles and teeth, change as we grow, and how these changes affect how we bite and break down food.
Her work links to important stages of development, such as the transition from milk to solid foods early in life, as well as broader questions about how human diets have changed over time and how modern diets may be influencing our facial and jaw anatomy today.
This session has now been allocated to a school
If you would like to be notified of future opportunities to join Scientist In The Spotlight sessions,
please complete this form.
What does it cost?
These events are free of charge as we want to help as children as possible to see the possible pathways that STEM may take them, and meet a diverse range of STEM role models.
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These events are free of charge as we want to help as children as possible to see the possible pathways that STEM may take them, and meet a diverse range of STEM role models.
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Who are the scientists?
The scientists you'll meet are mostly Postgraduate Researchers carrying out research in a wide range of fields from a range of UK Universities and research organisations. You can see the details of the scientist in each event here.
Your students are welcome to prepare questions in advance if they wish, or can watch the presentation and ask questions afterwards.
We ask that you please coordinate student's questions so that the scientist can hear them clearly, thank you. This could be by hands upon by students coming up to the microphone / camera to ask their questions if they wish.
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The scientists you'll meet are mostly Postgraduate Researchers carrying out research in a wide range of fields from a range of UK Universities and research organisations. You can see the details of the scientist in each event here.
Your students are welcome to prepare questions in advance if they wish, or can watch the presentation and ask questions afterwards.
We ask that you please coordinate student's questions so that the scientist can hear them clearly, thank you. This could be by hands upon by students coming up to the microphone / camera to ask their questions if they wish.
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When and where?
Scientist In The Spotlight events are online on Zoom, so you can join from anywhere.
All you need is an internet connection, microphone and camera
(please note that small headset microphones rarely give adequate sound quality for this to work smoothly).
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Scientist In The Spotlight events are online on Zoom, so you can join from anywhere.
All you need is an internet connection, microphone and camera
(please note that small headset microphones rarely give adequate sound quality for this to work smoothly).
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How does it work?
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- We will send out an email to all schools who have completed this form, in advance of each new session, with details of the scientist and their research topic; the session date and time and the year groups for which the session is most likely to be suitable.
- You'll be asked to complete a quick response form to let us know if you would like to attend the event.
- We will offer the place to a school as fairly as possible to allow as many as possible to benefit from this experience.
- We'll then send joining instructions and confirmation to the allocated school.
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Can we attend more than one session?
Yes absolutely! You're welcome to apply to join as many times as you wish.
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Yes absolutely! You're welcome to apply to join as many times as you wish.
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What if we need to cancel?
Please let us know with as much notice as possible if you have registered for a session but find you are then unable to attend. This will allow us to reallocate your place.
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Please let us know with as much notice as possible if you have registered for a session but find you are then unable to attend. This will allow us to reallocate your place.
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Do you / can we record sessions?
These school sessions are not recorded by Sparking STEM, so you don't need to worry about photo permissions.
We ask that you check with Sparking STEM before capturing images of the session please, as the scientist may not have granted photo consent.
Sparking STEM may post images of the scientist (if they have grated consent) in the session on Facebook, Instagram and LinkedIn which you will be able to see and share.
Thank you for respecting privacy and refraining from capturing images of others.
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These school sessions are not recorded by Sparking STEM, so you don't need to worry about photo permissions.
We ask that you check with Sparking STEM before capturing images of the session please, as the scientist may not have granted photo consent.
Sparking STEM may post images of the scientist (if they have grated consent) in the session on Facebook, Instagram and LinkedIn which you will be able to see and share.
Thank you for respecting privacy and refraining from capturing images of others.
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What do you do with my data?
We'll need your email address to notify you of new opportunities to meet scientists.
Any data you provide will be stored securely and will not be shared.
You can ask for your data to be removed from our records at any time.
(Please see the privacy policy for full details, your details won't be shared).
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We'll need your email address to notify you of new opportunities to meet scientists.
Any data you provide will be stored securely and will not be shared.
You can ask for your data to be removed from our records at any time.
(Please see the privacy policy for full details, your details won't be shared).
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