When I think about the impact I want my externship experience to have on my students, a lot of things come to mind.  I want them to learn about the reality of genetic research and how it is being applied to benefit natural and human life.  I want them to get a sense of what it means to be a researcher.  I want them to come in contact with some of the awesome stuff I learned this summer (like that it takes 800 millileters of bacteria culture to yield 5 microliters of protein).

More than anything, though, I want my students to open up to the idea that just because they are good at one thing, doesn’t mean they can’t be interested in everything.  I’ve been thinking back to my earlier ideas about crossroads thinkers who can combine scientific and artistic knowledge.  Writing my curriculum proved to me just how difficult that can be!  While we can’t all be geniuses in the way of Divinci or Lovelace, we can all cultivate our curiosity and become Renaissance thinkers.   By sharing my internship experience, I can introduce students to the novel idea that an English teacher can also be interested (and successful!) in science.  As a high school student, I remember signing up for classes and wanted to take classes like physics and AP Chemistry and anatomy, but I lacked the confidence in my own abilities.

I want all my students to feel confident enough to do anything.  I also want them to know that just because they don’t look like, or have the same experiences as others, doesn’t mean they can’t do what they do.  I can’t wait to tell my students and my colleagues how I spent this summer.  I hope to inspire future Fellows, and future Renaissance thinkers!