Just before the July 4th holiday and fireworks our students presented their mid-summer progress report to their peer group, faculty mentors and visitors. This is a very important milestone for the REU students to make sure that they stay on track, but also give them a chance to practice their science communication skills and share their progress. This presentation also allowed us to learn about progress everyone on their initial research questions and if any new questions (or hurdles) had emerged. We frame these presentations similar to a talk at a professional conference with limited time and short questions. The student had just completed an “acting for scientist” workshop the previous week where they learned about setting their talk for a target audience. This presentation showed everyone what they have learned so far, what samples they have collected and results and plans for synthesis. The presentations all went very well, and with a little more practice the students will get even better at conveying their message.
