Mariam Rashid

This poster details Outreach work from before and during lockdown, and gives some information about a post-lockdown project in the works. Firstly, I was involved with a handful of projects before lockdown, but my favorite was sewing the Particle Crew. This is a set of toys representing the Standard Model, to be used as a teaching tool with young students. The original concept comes from the Particle Zoo, a similar set which is commercially available. The big difference with the set I've designed and created is that mine are fully tactile. As I'd been working with the the Tactile Collider team that summer, inclusivity for blind and partially sighted students was at the front of my mind. As described in tables 1 and 2 of the poster, each particle can be differentiated by touch and weight alone. This is done through various means, including use of a range of textured fabrics, raised embroidery for the particle symbols, different fillings for varying weights and humps incorporated into the design to indicate what generation the particle is from. I loved making these and the Particle Zoo team loved them too. They live with The University of Manchester's outreach team. Secondly, during lockdown. COVID-19 has brought along a unique set of challenges for us all. In the outreach community, many of our events were cancelled and we were no longer able to visit schools. Widening Participation Fellows at The University of Manchester have been working to create online sessions which can be delivered in schools. These include workshops exploring specific topics about your subject, as well as more general 'Why Study' talks, highlighting the benefits of University. As a WPF, I have had the opportunity to develop such talks - 'Illuminating Dark Matter' and 'Why Study Physics'. I did the design work, recorded and edited these talks. When designing an online workshop as opposed to an in-person one, there are new challenges to overcome - it's harder to remain engaging and impossible to read the room. We received some advice in one of our training sessions, which was to remember 'you have to be more engaging than that cat video on TikTok'! I think I achieved this, as my Illuminating Dark Matter workshop has now been booked and tried by a Year 12 group and the feedback was humbling to say the least After lockdown, should activities return to some semblance of normal, I have had an engagement activity in the works for some time. Funded by the Ogden Trust, I am developing a Physics themed escape room. The Room will be set in a school's library, using a range of props that can easily be hidden in any library. The puzzles will be adaptable for different skill levels and age groups. The design work for the puzzles has been completed, I look forward to debuting this, when health and safety allows.