|
What is volunteering for LTS all about?
| 1) Traditional Partnerships |
|
a. Get an educator partner within the Fredericton area whose needs match your research and teaching interests.
b. You contact the educator and then together decide on an activity plan.
c. You visit the school and present the activity.
d. All volunteers are fully supported by the coordinator - activity ideas, supplies, education training and more!
|
|
|
| 2) Access Initiative trips |
|
a. A group of volunteers spends a day travelling and presenting to an entire school in rural New Brunswick.
b. We work as a team to develop activities that are suitable and adjustable for all age ranges in the school.
c. We set up in one room of the school and all of the classes rotate through during the course of the day and we present the activity to each class.
d. Special this year! If enough interest is generated, we will visit the beautiful and tranquil Grand Manan Island. |
|
|
|
3) Leading UNB Tours and Activities. |
|
a. Prefer to stay close to home? Volunteer to host a group of students at UNB.
b. Lead visiting students in lab hands-on activities.
c. Invite students to visit your research lab for a tour. |
|
|
|
4) Mentorship |
|
a. Get involved in working one on one with students in a lab setting or to help them with science fair or extra credit projects. |
|
Choose any of these ways to volunteer, or several of them - it's up to you!
|
Benefits to volunteering:
|
1) Teaching experience. Gain experience speaking about your research and scientific concepts. Learn to present your research in lay terms. |
2) Boost your resume. National scholarship boards (e.g. NSERC) are familiar with the work of the Let's Talk Science Partnership Program, and strongly favor candidates with community teaching and volunteering experience
|
| 3) Have Fun! Our volunteers often travel in groups to areas all over New Brunswick, working as a team and getting to know each other and the youth they work with. Our road trips are a blast, and are all expenses paid! Here is what one volunteer had to say: “I did an AI [Access Initiative] trip to an elementary school (K-5), talking about food webs, and it was a blast. Seeing the faces of the students light up when we showed them the mounted birds of prey was incredible. The only thing better was their faces when they came up to actually touch them!" -Alex Bond, 2006. |
What is involved:
| 1) Attend the information session or contact the coordinator to register. |
|
2) Attend the training session. Planned for a time when most new volunteers are available, usually during an evening. Free pizza and pop provided. |
|
3) Commit to at least one activity during the year. The time commitment is very flexible. You (along with your educator partner) decide when to schedule your activity. |
|
4) Volunteer recognition. At the end of each year, we celebrate our accomplishments with a barbeque and get-together.
|
Support provided by the LTS coordinator:
| 1) We supply a budget for travel and supplies and volunteers have access to the LTS equipment sign out. |
| 2) An in-depth training session gets you started in science outreach and education. Each participant receives a certificate after training. |
3) The coordinator is always available to help with activity ideas and plans.
|
|
