An environmental education intervention was implemented during the European Researchers’ Night in a coastal region with an important fisheries sector to improve public understanding of sharks and rays through hands-on activities. The instructional sequence combined games, biological samples (including egg cases), and guided discussions. Participants (N=51; mean age = 9.93 ± 5.97; 54.90% female), who were mainly primary school students (78.43%), completed pre- and post-questionnaires to assess prior knowledge and learning outcomes. The questionnaire included 4 demographic and 10 questions combining drawings (eggs and adults), Likert-scale, and open-ended responses addressing elasmobranch biology, ecology, and threats. Data were analyzed using descriptive statistics and pre-post comparisons to identify changes in knowledge, perceptions, and attitudes. Initial drawings showed that most participants could accurately depict adult sharks and rays, but representations of eggs were often inaccurate, consistent with limited prior exposure. After the intervention, drawings of egg cases became notably more precise. Most respondents identified sharks and rays as fish, but fewer recognized them as vertebrates, particularly rays. Species knowledge was scarce and strongly biased towards well-known shark species, whereas awareness of ray diversity was limited even after the intervention. Perceived threats to sharks and rays were already high at pre-test, especially pollution, habitat destruction, and overfishing, and generally values increased after post-intervention. Participants justified protection mainly in terms of biodiversity and ecosystem roles. Pro-environmental intentions shifted from a general focus on pollution toward more specific actions such as avoiding overfishing and habitat destruction. Attitudes toward citizen science showed substantial gains, with strong post-test increases in willingness to report sightings, search for egg cases, disseminate conservation information, and enroll in educational projects like The.Shark-Ray.Map. Overall, results indicate that short, interactive outreach activities integrating real biological samples and participatory science can effectively enhance marine literacy and foster engagement with conservation actions among younger audiences.