During my time as the FAO Schwarz Fellow at the Museum of Science in Boston, I have learned that no two days are ever the same. It is something I quite enjoy about working within an informal education setting. There is an exhilarating energy of finding out if I will be facilitating my favorite hands-on activities or if the Museum will be hosting a dance battle competition (which has happened)! The overview that follows is just one of many combinations of what my day as the FAO Schwarz Fellow can look like at the Museum of Science. 

Early morning (9:00 – 9:30):

Morning check-ins are crucial, on a personal and professional level. Just like breakfast is an important meal of the day, our team’s morning check-ins are just as important. Not just because it helps us know who is out for the day, but because it gives us time to connect as we chat about what we did after work the day before or express what we are excited about for the day!

Morning (9:30 – 12:30): 

As part of my direct service, I am regularly scheduled to do live presentations and facilitate hands-on activities throughout the Museum to engage and educate visitors. On this specific day, I was on the schedule for the morning In-Gallery Learning shift which consists of conducting hands-on activities in three of our gallery spaces. We usually start the shift off with a check-in meeting with our weekly volunteers and a fun question of the week! (This week was: “What’s your favorite type of donut?”) From there I spent my first hour in our Hall of Human Life encouraging visitors to use their knowledge of the human body and how their joints work to put together a mystery skeleton. My second hour of the shift was in our Engineering Design Workshop where visitors were challenged to make a miniature trampoline that makes a golf ball bounce as high or as low as possible.

Midday (1:00 – 1:30):

Lunch, of course! 

Afternoon (2:00 – 3:30):

Another part of my direct service is working with our partners at Fenway High School to host a cohort of Juniors who volunteer for an hour and a half every week at the Museum. This year, our students have been focused on exploring different careers within a museum setting. Additionally, they are involved in a volunteer project that is related to one of my special projects, High School Science Series (HSSS). This is a series of STEM related events throughout the school year that are free for high schools to attend. We are working with our Fenway High School volunteers to plan the Environmental Science HSSS in April 2025 so that there is youth influence and feedback involved in the process. This day the students worked to compile an extensive list of organizations that they thought would be a good fit and wanted to invite to the event in April.  

Late Afternoon (4:00 – 5:00):

Throughout the day, I like to take advantage of any open time I have in my schedule to complete any urgent tasks, this was one of those times. This can range from replying to emails, updating my current live presentation shows, clerical work related to upcoming projects or events, and more.

Overall, my day was quite exhilarating! I feel grateful for days like these as they feel productive and impactful in several ways, whether that is in one-off experiences with visitors or with the youth that come in seeking exciting opportunities every week.