How We Turned Curiosity into Action at the Book Fair

For the second year in a row, Thinking Oasis participated in the Amman International Book Fair, one of Jordan’s most anticipated cultural events that welcomes thousands of visitors every year.

Our booth, located at the Children’s Corner in partnership with the Abd Al-Hameed Shoman Foundation, stood out as a space designed for thinking, exploring, and learning through play.

But the main question was: Could a booth at a fair make people think, play, and wonder?

Is there really a journey designed to make every moment fun and meaningful? A station where curiosity meets creativity, and every visitor, child or adult, becomes an active learner.

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Curious to solve a Puzzle?

One of the booth highlights was the puzzle corner, where visitors of all ages gathered to solve shape challenges. What began as a simple game quickly turned into focused exploration; some stayed hours trying to find solutions!

These puzzles blended fun with critical thinking, encouraging logic, pattern recognition, and problem-solving through play.

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Visual Thinking Challenge

We ran a visual logic activity where participants connected four children to their pets using a set of clues.

It was fascinating to watch families collaborate, discussing, debating, and reasoning together to reach the correct matches.

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Hands-on Challenge: Fix the Circuit!

Another interactive corner featured Snap Circuits, where participants faced a small electrical mystery:
Three components (a motor, LED, and a diode LED) were supposed to work, but something in the circuit was wrong.

The challenge? Find the issue and fix it.
This simple but powerful activity encouraged learners to observe, test, and reason, building both curiosity and confidence.

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Three Technical Workshops

During the fair, we held three interactive workshops that encouraged children and young teens to explore topics from the world of technology in a fun and hands-on way:

In the first workshop, the children explored the world of electricity using Snap Circuits, taking on challenges such as: could they light a bulb and run a motor at the same time?
In the second workshop, the children learned the art of 3D printing using 3D pens, enjoyed designing creative glasses, and gained a simple understanding of how a 3D printer works.
The third workshop focused on our educational robot, where the children programmed it to move along a designated path on the floor, giving them a practical and enjoyable experience in programming and controlling robots.

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Innovation on Display: project by our young innovators

Our walls were filled with photos and highlights from the Young Innovators Lab (now in its 9th edition in Jordan and launching its 1st edition in Qatar). We showcased student projects that demonstrate real impact, for example, the Smart Waste Bin, an AI-powered bin built by students to classify waste by type.

Want to know more about the lab? Read this article.

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A space that thinks with you

At the conclusion of our participation in the Amman International Book Fair, at the Children’s Corner and in partnership with the Abd Al-Hameed Shoman Foundation, we experienced amazing moments of curiosity, laughter, collaboration, and deep focus, all coming together in one place.
The goal was not merely a passing activity, but an invitation for people to pause, ask questions, experiment, and think.

It was a space that thinks with everyone, reminding us that curiosity is the first step toward learning, and play is the truest path to understanding.

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