It’s been a busy winter for CREW training hence the lack of blogging but it has been enjoyable. First was the Science Museum we have been training their staff for a long time now but still enjoy the atmosphere and fun they generate. This year saw CREW for the first time train the Deaf presenters team at the Science Museum the energy and enthusiasm was infectious.
Travelling to different locations in the British Isles is always enjoyable and the turn of the year saw us at Newquay Zoo, Techniquest and National Marine Aquarium all of which you can read below.
Adam Senior, MD
Museum of London – Visitor engagement opportunities Nov 2011
CREW training had a wonderful week working at the Museum of London with the Docklands and London Wall team. We were looking at developing the museums visitor engagement experience by exploring interactive opportunities whereby the staff could engage with visitors to inform and educate them about the museums collections and historical points of interest in a variety of ways.
The team came up with a fantastic range of ideas of how to engage with the public, and were brave and creative with their approaches. We also investigated up-selling opportunities throughout the museum concentrating particularly on their guidebooks, the proceeds of which go directly towards supporting the museum. The enthusiasm and ideas the teams brought to the training was really inspiring and we are sure that the museums visitor engagement experience will go from strength to strength.
Though provoking ideas at MOL
Science Museum – “up bubbles up!” Nov 2011
We spent a week with the Explainer team at the science Museum training them in furthering presentation skills and abilities. The new teams of presenters were focusing on a fantastic science show all about the wonders of bubbles. We worked alongside the group to develop and push each individual’s presentation skills and also looked at how to create exciting volunteer opportunities throughout the show in order to engage directly with the audience. Another area we concentrated on was control within the show. As the bubble show is so popular and creates so much excitement we needed to work with the presenters to show them different ways to control their audience in a playful and engaging manner without diffusing the enthusiasm. We were thrilled with the results from the team. Every member of staff put 100% effort into using the new techniques without loosing their individual style and finesse, which resulted in a run of effective and successful shows. Great work!
Bright new stars in the Science Museum team
Newquay Zoo – Visitor Engagement and Presentation Skills Dec 2011
CREW training completed a brilliant week in Newquay working with the outreach and education team at Newquay Zoo to develop their presentation skills and visitor engagement provision. Throughout the week we covered a range of different aspects of visitor engagement and presentation skills including volunteer interaction, vocal and physical performance range, interaction techniques and information interpretation. All the training was designed to help the staff deliver very important conservation messages in an exciting and engaging way so as to inform and educate the public in a playful and entertaining manner. We are very pleased with the results that the team has delivered. They are all working extremely hard to produce excellent animal talks and visitor engagement initiatives and in particular we are all looking forward to their future successes in generating support and donations for the Zoo.
Enjoying the otter enclosure at Newquay Zoo
Science Museum – Presentation Skills for Deaf Presenters and Interpreters Jan 2012
CREW has been privileged enough to work in a new area of training with the Science Museum in helping their Deaf presenters and interpreters develop their presentation skills. As this was new ground for CREW we were grateful to work with such an understanding and passionate group, who not only inspired us but also developed our understanding of effective presentation delivery to a mixed ability group. During the one-day presentation skills course we looked at how to work effectively with an audience who may not be used to watching a science workshop run by a deaf presenter, in British Sign Language. The main challenge for us was how to effectively deliver a presentation that not only catered to the needs of a non-hearing audience but also to a hearing audience. We investigated how to effectively use volunteers throughout a show and engage with an audience in a clear and practical way. We wanted to encourage the use of British sign language as well as vocal interactions and worked closely with the deaf presenters to gain an understanding of how the two worlds of hearing and non hearing could merge to create an educational and effective science show. We were thrilled with the results and are looking forward to heading back to the Science Museum in March to evaluate progress so far and work with such a fantastic team again.
The SIGNtific team
Techniquest Cardiff Jan 2012
The CREW team had a great evening at Techniquest, where we worked with their staff and delivered ‘Inspiration’ our Customer Care Challenge. Right from the beginning this vibrant team of science interpreters proved that they had the skills to deliver effective customer care and visitor engagements in the science centre environment. The competition was thick and fast as teams competed to prove that they were better than each other at delivering flexible, friendly, adaptable customer service to meet the specific needs of different visitor groups. Not only were they able to adapt the centre’s information and services to suit the needs of different visitors but they were able to offer knowledge and advice in accessible and engaging ways. Well done Techniquest we really enjoyed your enthusiasm and energy.
National Marine Aquarium Dive in! Feb 2012
We completed a fantastic week with the team at National Marine Aquarium in Plymouth. We were working with the education team and in house hosts to develop their presentation skills and enhance their existing shows, as well as ensuring that crucial conservation issues were made clear to the public. The team already had a great range of presenting skills and experience of working with their visitors, so we encouraged them to push the boundaries of their current presenting techniques and really explore their own abilities. We also gave them a variety of interactive and entertaining vocal and physical tools so that they could further enhance their visitor engagement experience. It was a pleasure working with the team, as they were so enthusiastic and engaged, and all participants made an effort to meet and exceed their own capabilities. We looked at ways in which the teams could enhance their existing shows by use of audience participation, props and interactions. And we looked at their approach to visitor engagement and how to best use the facilities and space to make their visitors’ experiences memorable ones. So many ideas were explored during our visit and we are excited to see what the future holds for the education and host team at the aquarium.
National Marine Aquarium team in control
“After the five day course, the team were exhausted and yet energised and inspired. The impact has been immediate; they have more confidence to try new things, a range of new techniques and a sound set of principles for developing their show programme. After a week of putting the methods into action, one of our most experienced hosts described the audience control methods as “like magic…it just works every time”. Thanks Crew for a great week and for raising our game”.
Paul Cox, Head of Science and Learning, National Marine Aquarium
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