Two design essay's were written: one at the beginning of the semester and one at the end. The purpose of the essay was to design an exhibit that kids could learn from. By the end of project 3, we actually had experience teaching kids thus making us more equipped to answer the essay. In wtiting the final essay, I realized that I learned a lot about teaching kids and how they learned. I also learned a lot about selecting a proper team and the role of experience.
Here are some of the main points I learned about kids...
There are a number of things that need to be taken in to consideration prior
to designing the experiment to properly reach the kids. It seems like a good
idea to keep the project to relatively simple concepts. It is very important
to be on the same level as the
children since they tend to have a short attention span by nature. This project
can be made to be equally attractive to both genders since there are so many
options upon how to present it as will be discussed below. Another very important
aspect about kids and many people is that they do not read directions. People
in general seem to follow much better when being led by example rather than
trying to read detailed directions. This concept is even more critical when
dealing with children. Having people around to
demonstrate the exhibit and walk the kids through it may make a huge difference
in results. It will increase the tructure/organization of the exhibit and
ensure the children are actually learning. Time is another factor. If the
exhibit is too long, kids may get bored and
not pay attention. The proper dynamics / time of the way the exhibit is made
and presented must be considered to prevent this.