Running from October 20 to October 25, 2026, the Space Knowledge Centre in Cēsis is hosting a specialized autumn school break program designed to solve a modern logistical puzzle: keeping children engaged while parents maintain their work schedules during the school holidays.
The Bottom Line
- The Dual Solution: Children aged 7 to 13 participate in hands-on morning astronaut workshops, while parents utilize “Space Office,” a free on-site remote workspace with internet and electricity.
- The Schedule: Core astronaut workshops run daily from October 20 to October 23, with science shows, STEM days, and lunar landing sessions extending through October 25.
- The Costs: Workshops are priced at 15 euros per session or 45 euros for a four-day pass, which includes all-day admission to the centre’s main exhibits.
Balancing School Holidays with the Working Week
For most households, the autumn school break introduces a scheduling conflict. While children look forward to a week away from formal classrooms, working parents rarely receive matching time off from their employers.
To bridge this gap, the Space Knowledge Centre in Cēsis has structured its holiday timetable around the realities of the modern workforce. “Children want adventures during the holidays, but parents don’t always have the opportunity to take vacation,” says Katrīna Bērziņa, head of the Kosmosa izziņas centrs, as noted in reports by LV Portāls. “We want to show that these needs can be combined. While parents work, children can build, experiment, and search for answers to questions.”
Four Days of Mission-Based Learning
The core of the children’s program focuses on rotating space professions. Held daily from 10:00 to 12:00 in the centre’s educational rooms, these two-hour workshops are led by the facility’s educational guides, known as edunauts. Children aged 7 to 13 work independently while building foundational skills in physics and engineering.
The curriculum shifts focus with each passing day of the week:
- Tuesday, October 20: Participants act as communication operators, building custom audio devices, experimenting with sound waves, and transmitting coded messages.
- Wednesday, October 21: Students take on the role of atmospheric specialists, constructing parachutes to test safe descent mechanics for returning space hardware.
- Thursday, October 22: Future resource researchers examine rock samples and material properties to determine which elements could sustain long-term off-world missions.
- Friday, October 23: Aspiring rocket engineers design, build, and launch their own propulsion models to analyze aerodynamic performance.
Integrated Literacy and Practical Access
Beyond traditional STEM concepts, the facility’s designers have embedded applied reading comprehension directly into the daily missions. Completing an objective requires participants to decipher technical instructions, locate specific documentation, and evaluate operational data.
According to program outlines detailed by LV Portāls, reading transforms from an isolated academic requirement into an operational tool necessary for mission success. This hands-on approach ensures that children absorb technical concepts naturally.
For working adults accompanying their families to Cīrulīšu iela 63, the “Space Office” provides a dedicated plug-and-play workspace overlooking the main exhibition floor. No prior reservation is required for the remote work area, allowing families to arrive together, split into their respective work and learning zones, and reconvene once science shows begin.
