Explora (Children's Science Museum Of New Mexico) Week One

How Has My Internship Been Going So Far?

   My internship so far has been interesting. The museum I am in right now is an interactive science museum for children,which is called "Explora". When I started my internship for the 2016 Young Ambassador Program (YAP), it wasn't hard for me to adapt to the work environment  at that museum. It wasn't hard for me because I had been working for Explora already 3 years before the  2016 YAP. I started working for Explora my sophomore year of high school all the way through the end of my senior year of high school as a youth intern. So going into this museum was less intimidating , because I practically already knew what I would be doing.

Tuesday July 5th, 2016- Friday July 8th, 2016 (First Week)

  
 This whole week every morning at 9 am I would have to start/open exhibits and then from 10 am - 12 pm I had a group to show around Explora. By group's what I mean is like schools, and day-cares who come to Explora for a field trip. When I was a youth intern I never got the opportunity to get a group and  show them around the museum. Showing the groups around the exhibits was usually floor staff's job, not an intern's. So the first two days I had to shadow someone from the floor who usually does groups.
  
 Then, Thursday was my first experience taking a group all on my own.... How I wish there was someone there to still help me. The group I received had children who were fighting with each other, not very cooperative, and the chaperones didn't really help. I managed to still keep a smile on my face and try to facilitate and encourage kids to use the material correctly. But kids will be kids right.. ha ha..

  So then, every afternoon from 12:30 pm to 5pm I would either be out on an outreach or be doing prep-work. The first day of my internship in the afternoon was just cutting papers for  one of the educators. But then Wednesday afternoon I had to restock a whole kit on my own, and my word did I make a mess... The kit was called  Pigments of Imagination. Now for all of you who don't know what this kit contains, Pigments of Imagination is practically learning how to make your own paint with sand,  chalk and different things to make your own paint. Anyways while I was  restocking the sand I accidentally dropped all the sand because I didn't know the other side of the bag had  a hole in it.. Then Thursday afternoon I went on an outreach  with two educators and the Pigments of Imagination kit. And now today, Friday July 8th, I get to go on another outreach at 3:30pm.

  Now working here at Explora with all these new responsibilities it is kinda amazing of how a museum works. My knowledge about the inner-workings of a museum have increased. I never really knew who assembled all the kits or how much training there had to be for someone to take a group out on to the floor. Doing this from a different program and having a new point of view was kinda hard. I was so use to just being the intern who helped out with camps/campers or doing prep work. But now coming back to Explora with different view is much rather exciting.

 Becoming a Latina leader for my community I believe I have been doing pretty great. I have introduced so many young children  to the science world and showed them that science isnt all about just books and going to outer space. I have shown them what science is really like and that they are also scientist by being creative  in the things we give them.

  Thank you all for reading my interesting week at Explora, I miss you all so very much!