Internship #7

Site: Birch Aquarium

Department: Education Department

Project Title: Volunteer Training Manual

Description: I am updating a manual for volunteers that explains the set-up and lesson plans for school classes that are taught daily.

Learning: I am learning a lot just by attending the classes, as well as working on the descriptions.

Organization: The Aquarium needs new volunteers to understand how to set up classrooms and handle animals. The advantage to remaking the manual in a digital format is that instead of having only one binder, now volunteers will be able to access the information from anywhere.

Schedule: I am on my own schedule, as there are only 2-3 classes per day it will take a while before I see all of them, or at least enough for the manual.

After the first week at the Aquarium I got to see all kinds of animals, dissect a squid, and meet all kinds of people. I didn't expect for so many people to ask me about the shark feedings, but I guess that comes with the volunteer shirt. All in all I really just kept my head down and did my best to learn how everything worked.

Internship #6

During the interview I'd like to learn what kinds of things I can do towards a career in this field. I want to know what steps I have to take in order to be successful. I would ask my mentor what she did, and what choices she made to end up where she is today.

Internship #5

Description: I am updating a training book for Aquarium Volunteers. The book is centered on training for classes that are held daily for school kids. I am making each of the individual lesson plans into a powerpoint presentation, so instead of having only one binder, anyone can access the information at any time.

Each day a different class is being held. I plan on attending as many as I can over the course of my internship to gather information.

All of my work is saved into individual folders for easy access and organization. When this is over I should be able to present a fully updated training manual.

Internship #4

Some academic skills that are useful for this kind of project are basic collaberation and experience with Powerpoint.

I would have to be able to split up the work evenly and work effeciently with multiple people.

I will be able to use my skills in powerpoint, and with a camera, in order to document the activities.

I can learn everything that is being taught in the classes, and anything else that I pick up around the aquarium.

To share my work, I'll be posting the new lesson plans online, and I will also be showing them to volunteers.

This will help the Aquarium because now people will be able to access this information instantly from anywhere, instead of needing the binder.

Internship #3

I'd like to learn a lot more about fish and ocean sciences, and learn how to assist aquarium techs and teachers. I like working here because I like studying the ocean. When I'm working here I get hands on experience with both animals and researchers. My mentor needs help updating a volunteer training manual. The manual would be about the school classes that are held almost every day. I would be attending those classes, photographing the lesson and writing summaries about them.

Internship #2

To actively start out on the right foot, I was sure to be polite and on time with my mentor and the others that I work with. I think this is going to be a good experience for me, as I find myself taking on any extra work or opportunities that come my way. To help my site progress, I'm taking on a large project that will be quite useful for new volunteers at the aquarium. I plan to work hard in order to make sure everything is as good as it should be.

Internship #1

On the first day of internship I woke up to a broken alarm clock an hour late. I ended up skipping breakfast and running out the door. I made it to the Aquarium about half an hour ahead of time. Over the course of the day, I got a tour of the building and 2 volunteer shirts. For lunch I had some bacon cheddar potato skins and a grape soda. My afternoon was cut short do to a power shortage. I'm excited about working in a field where I learn new things about marine science every day.