Journal
We seek to connect curious minds to the experts and information that will motivate them to ask informed and critical questions about real science throughout their lives. By working directly with scientists, we ensure that our content is of the highest quality. By working directly with kids, we help foster curiosity both in and out of the classroom and engage the next generation of citizens and scientists.
What do we do?
Frontiers for Young Minds believes that the best way to make cutting-edge science discoveries available to younger audiences is to enable young people and scientists to work together to create articles that are both accurate and exciting.
That is why distinguished scientists are invited to write about their cutting-edge discoveries in a language that is accessible for young readers, and it is then up to the kids themselves – with the help of a science mentor – to provide feedback and explain to the authors how to best improve the articles before publication.
As a result, Frontiers for Young Minds provides a collection of freely available scientific articles by distinguished scientists that are shaped for younger audiences by the input of their own young peers. Even before the publication of our first 50 articles, the quality of Frontiers for Young Minds was recognized as one of the American Library Association’s 2014 Great Websites for Kids.
Numbers
Videos
How does it work?
What can you find?
We publish articles that are either about new research on the cutting edge (New Discovery) or explain a key idea that is fundamental for understanding a scientific field (Core Concept). We are still expanding into new subject areas, but you can find articles in the following areas right now:
Who can get involved?
Young Reviewers
Kids and teens between the ages of 8-15 work with their classrooms or friends to provide feedback to the authors about how to make the best-possible articles for readers their own age, with the help of their Science Mentor.
Science Mentors
Young (or young at heart) researchers with experience in science outreach or in the peer review process introduce their Young Reviewers to the idea of a life in science, the basics of science publishing, and encourage them to provide the authors with an honest and constructive review.
Chief Editors
Recognized experts who build teams of Associate Editors, provide an initial check on all new submissions, and make sure that each manuscript ends up in the right hands.
Associate Editors
Experienced researchers who build teams of Science Mentors, oversee the review process to make sure all of the Young Reviewer feedback is put into place, and keep an eye out for new discoveries that would be interesting or important for young readers.
Participating Organizations
Publishers, journals, and research societies who support the Frontiers for Young Minds mission and suggest recent articles from their publications to be turned into Young Minds versions.
Frontiers Team
Journal Team
Emma Clayton
Emma joined the Young Minds team in June 2016 and is based in our Swiss headquarters. After her MRes in Ecology and Environmental management, she worked on assessing extinction levels of various animal species, worked on wildlife conservation methods in Africa and spent some time teaching in the Swiss alps. Now she is excited to be involved in making new scientific discoveries open to our Young Minds audience and working with our scientists in supporting them to communicate their research.
Hedwig Ens
Hedwig overcame her fear of creepy-crawlies during her Biology studies. She now thinks insects, and especially parasitic wasps, are among the most amazing creatures on Earth. Hedwig has shortly worked as a scientist before she realized she’d rather spread existing science stories than help discovering new ones. She is now exploring the different media she can use for it: classic storytelling, writing, improvisation theater, and perhaps even music. Applying this passion of sharing stories to a professional career has led her to Frontiers for Young Minds. In this team, Hedwig enthusiastically contributes towards making science truly open and accessible for all.
Galia Zer Kavod
Galia is an enthusiastic science educator from Israel. Following her MSc in biotechnology and molecular biology, she pursued her passion for education and completed her PhD in science education at the Weizmann Institute, where she researched the use of scientific texts for enhancing scientific literacy and writing skills of high-school students. She is also a high-school biology teacher and an in-service teachers' educator. Now she is excited to bring Young Minds to Israel, to inspire Israeli scientists to communicate their research, and to make cutting-edge science accessible to kids.
Technology Team
Lukasz Urzedowski
Lukasz is a dedicated team player. After completing his Masters in Computer Science, Software Design and Implementation, he developed his career in IT with large international companies. Lukasz joined Frontiers in 2014 and has since worked in Team Young Minds. As Senior Software Engineer he is taking care of technical side of the website. Lukasz always stays up to date with the latest trends in software development to excel the growth of the Young Minds.
Diana Barreto
Diana joined Frontiers two years ago and has been working in making our visual identity stronger. She has a powerful visual culture and she is always available to take on new challenges. Young Minds is close to her heart, she has always loved science as a child, so making other kids appreciate science is a rewarding experience for her.
Production Team
Michael Boitard
Michael is an urban kid from Paris, who has always been fascinated by nature and its ability to evolve and overcome challenges. Following his PhD in Neurosciences filming migrating neurons with a microscope, he used scientific writing, exhibitions and activities in a zoological institution to inspire the public and engage their curiosity to discover and learn more about threatened species. Now at Frontiers, he is pursuing his passion of improving research distribution and impact at international level. He is responsible for transforming science articles into an attractive and comprehensive way for everyone to access knowledge, including our younger readers, through Frontiers for Young Minds.
Maarten Vandijck
Maarten is a young man from Belgium, where he studied Japanese, Swedish and other languages. Now he lives in Switzerland and works at Frontiers, hoping to make a difference in gathering knowledge, and making it available for everyone, including you. Besides studying languages, he is really fond of travelling, taking pictures and outgoing activities. During summer he likes driving a motorcycle or planning ahead to jump out of a plane. However, as soon as the snow arrives he can be found on his snowboard. Wherever you see a dog, Maarten is probably petting it already, they are his favourite.