-Overview -Contact Us |
|
-School Groups -Classroom Presenters -Exhibitors -Volunteers -Stage Shows |
|
-Teacher's Guide -Links |
|
-Thank you! |
|
|
CLASSROOM PRESENTERS:
Your presentation must fit 25 total minutes and captivate an audience of up to thirty 4th and 5th-grade students. Anywhere from five to seven different school groups rotate in and out of your classroom throughout the day. We promote the Festival as being highly interactive, so we discourage the use of audio-visual equipment.
How to create an effective presentation:
Students follow a pre-determined schedule that allows them time to attend three or four different classroom presentations. As a presenter, it is important to spend some time and effort insuring that your presentation will or can relate to the audience. Some important points to consider are:
- Involvement: Kids need to understand how this topic
may relate to them. You must make this connection early and often or
you will lose their attention. Ways to do this include:
- Soliciting questions and answers. This helps learners understand their relationship to the topic.
- Using volunteers to “assist” with the process.
- Providing opportunities to “reconnect” to the topic at least every three minutes.
- Using games or competitions to get your message across; this helps to maintain involvement every time.
- Hands-on learning/using the 5 senses: For many people,
and kids especially, information only makes sense when you involve the
senses in the learning process. To do this, use 3-dimensional models,
something kids can get their hands around; use demonstrations that the
kids can feel, create or modify; incorporate sounds, tastes, and smells
to get the kids interacting with you.
- Discovery: If at all possible, try to encourage the
learner to discover something in the short time you have to spend with
her. It builds confidence, develops critical thinking skills, encourages
further investigation, and reveals the joy of learning.
- Change: Kids can only listen to one speaker for about
five minutes. When switching speakers, it is best for the first speaker
to physically hand off something to the new one. This way, the object
of attention moves to the next speaker.
- Movement: Face it: kids can’t sit still on a field trip! Solution: have them move about periodically as part of the display. Allowing them to move, change positions and scurry closer helps prevent further squirming during the presentation.
Remember: the more you interact with the students, the more energized the students will be to protect water resources throughout their lifetime. This is your chance to educate and inspire the next generation!
(Back to Top)
