TEACHING MATERIALS
One of the most important skills in science communication is the ability to think outside the box to explain dense and complicated subjects. To teach effectively is to know a subject to such an expert degree that you can manipulate it and simplify it into digestible language for any type of learner.
In each of these projects, I take a topic in neuroscience and break it down creatively and effectively for different learners.
Teaching Hormone Pathways to ADHD students
This project discusses teaching Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) learners about how the hypothalamus and pituitary gland work to send hormones around the brain and body. I created a visual aid for a teacher setting up the lesson, as well as a detailed analysis of the disorder. I developed my methods based on successful and positive learning strategies for ADHD students.
Using Metaphors, Analogies, and Schemata
The most relatable way to reach a lay audience, especially in dense technical science topics, is through metaphors, analogies, and schemata. They create imagery and draw connections to the person's life or learning modality. Here, I teach neural connections and processes, as well as the mechanisms of drugs and sleep, using rhetorical devices to highlight aspects of the brain that are difficult to visualize on their own.
The Drug Approval Process: Monopoly Version
Play is an integral tool for learning. Often, quantitative subjects are the most difficult to teach because numbers can feel abstract and daunting, but they provide important information for the bigger picture in science and health. Here, I artistically express quantitative data by creating an interactive board game modeled after Monopoly. Through play, I teach my audience the quantitative timeline of the Food and Drug Administration's drug approval and research process.