Writing and editing
Jenny has experience writing and editing science show scripts, television scripts, teacher resources, online content, instructional booklets, advertising copy and student worksheets to support science shows. In 2014-2015 she was the science content consultant for 2 series of the Disney XD television program, “Kim and Courtney’s Theory of Awesomeness“. In 2014, she edited and re-wrote television scripts for a series of twenty, 2 minute science segments called “Excited Particles“. The series was produced by the ABC in collaboration with Questacon and was broadcast in several countries in South-East Asia.
In 2015, Jenny designed 3 science kits for the Wild! Science brand for Tree Toys, developing the concepts and writing the instructional booklets, advertising copy and voice-over scripts for promotional videos: Lava Lamp Factory, Cake of Soap Factory, Wacky Sound Workshop.
As an employee of Questacon, between 2003 and 2008 Jenny wrote segments for the children’s television shows ‘The Big Arvo’ and ‘It’s Academic’ on Channel 7, both as a regular guest and for other presenters. She has written and edited promotional material for brochures and websites, created visitor feedback forms and evaluation reports, and produced high quality reports for stakeholders such as Government officials and commercial sponsors.
Training and professional development
In 2015, Jenny developed and delivered a hands on workshop for early childhood educators: ‘Physics for Early Childhood Educators’.
As an employee of Questacon from 2001 to 2009, Jenny delivered training and professional development workshops to post-graduate students and professional science communicators and was responsible for the training and professional development of the team of science communicators based in Sydney. She completed a Certificate IV in Vocational Training and Assessment in 2013 and has designed and delivered training in:
- Science show presenting
- Voice for performance
- Script writing for science show presenters
- Science for early childhood educators
- Introduction to acting skills
- Public service processes and procedures
- Safe handling of liquid nitrogen
- Travelling and working in remote locations
Science outreach
When employed by Questacon, Jenny worked on a variety of science outreach projects that used hands-on science workshops and science shows to reach school students and the general public. She has produced content for science exhibitions including Science in the City at the Australian Museum, Warringah Council World Environment Day Youth Expo, Science Exposed at New South Wales Parliament House, and The Big Science and Technology Day Out at the University of Western Sydney. She managed outreach programs that toured metropolitan Sydney and regional and remote areas of every state and territory in Australia.
Science Shows
(Photographs are shown courtesy of Questacon.)
Jenny’s interest in writing and presenting science shows began in 2000 when she was a presenter in the Shell Questacon Science Circus. She went on to write and present many science shows for the Questacon Science Squad before taking on a supervisory role, training and mentoring science communicators in her team to create high quality science shows for schools, science festivals, shopping centres and special events.
Jenny has written and presented science shows for a diverse range of audiences including preschool children, school students, teachers, parents and the general public. Drawing on her creative talents in music, drawing, and prop making, Jenny wrote original songs, made costumes and created props for Science Squad shows. Most recently, Jenny developed a series of demonstrations for a science show on the topic of chemistry, with links to the Australian Curriculum for Years 5 and 6.
Slime Show – Two comical witches, Gunkamena and Murkella, talking in rhyming couplets and speaking of slug slime and snot to the amusement and revulsion of thousands of school children. Using a set of existing science demonstrations, Jenny’s 2001 script came alive with physical comedy contributed by Eugenia O’Brien, co-creator and performer of this very popular show. Jenny re-wrote the show in 2003 so she could perform it solo and it was subsequently performed by many talented Questacon Science Squad presenters from 2004 to 2013.
Glutinous glue, green gunk and gum,
Slippery slime is splendidly fun!
Senses Show – Written while studying for her Graduate Diploma in Science Communication, Jenny created a musical science show for children aged 5 to 8 years. The Senses Show featured a number of animal characters, original music, audience participation and fun science demonstrations. This two-handed show was performed for thousands of school children from 2000 to 2006.
My name is Pat, and I’m a bat. I live in a dark, dingy cave.
I like to eat moths for tea. It’s so dark in the cave that I can’t see.
Electricity Show – Catering to upper primary school students, the Electricity Show set audience members against each other in two teams, the ‘Electros’ and the ‘Magnetos’, as they tried to win the Electricity Quiz. With novel demonstrations designed by Jenny and lots of audience participation, this exciting science show gave students a fun shared experience. The Electricity Show reached thousands of school students from 2004 to 2013.
Greenhouse Effect Show – In 2001, with funding from the New South Wales Government, Jenny wrote this show together with environmental scientist, Eugenia O’Brien. Jenny designed highly visual demonstrations and audience participation to communicate this challenging topic. Adapted to a workshop format in 2003, the Greenhouse Effect Show and Workshop were presented at environment fairs, a shopping centre and in hundreds of schools.
Photonics Show – In 2002, the Photonics Institute provided funding for the Questacon Science Squad to perform the Photonics Show for secondary school students in Years 9 to 12. Jenny re-wrote the Photonics Show to align it with the New South Wales Science and Physics Syllabuses and the show was performed for thousands of secondary school students.
Extreme Energy Show – The different forms of energy were explored with spectacular science demonstrations and a multimedia presentation in this one-hour show for secondary school students. Jenny designed the science demonstration content and structure of the show, before others in her team wrote the final script and designed the multimedia presentation.
Super Science Show – The Questacon Science Squad presented this large-scale show in shopping centres from 2005 to 2013. Jenny designed the science demonstrations and props, structured the show, and worked with two presenters who wrote the final script.
Christmas Science Show – This very popular show was offered to Sydney primary schools at the end of each school year from 2006 to 2012. The Christmas Science Show featured all the best demonstrations from the Questacon Science Squad’s suite of shows and provided schools with a fun experience to end the school year. Jenny had a great time writing this script, designing Christmas-themed demonstrations and working Christmas stories and songs into the show.
Other science shows written and/or performed by Jenny include: Freaky Forces, Sound Effects, Liquid Nitrogen, Bubbles, Balloons, Collisions, Structures, Energy and Einstein, and presentations in a Starlab portable planetarium.
Educational resources
Surface tension activity – dripping water onto a coin. Illustration by Jenny Lynch, image used courtesy of Questacon
Jenny has written, edited and illustrated educational resources for preschools, primary and secondary school students and teachers. She co-wrote and illustrated resources to support the thirteen different science shows presented by the Questacon Science Squad in 2001 and worked on resources for new shows as they were developed. She edited the Questacon Science Play booklet of science activities for preschool children in 2007 and in 2008 she wrote teacher notes and a worksheet for students and parents to support the NRMA RoadZone Show (an in-school show about the science of road safety). A large number of hands-on science activities were tested and instructions written by the Questacon Science Squad team over the years and these were published on the program website, in quarterly newsletters and in science teaching journals. Much of this large body of work is now available in the ‘Activities’ and ‘Videos’ sections of the Shell Questacon Science Circus website.
Project management
Jenny worked for six years in an Australian Government management role in which she was responsible for managing a number of science awareness projects, from design and planning through to budgeting, staff recruitment, training, implementation, reporting and evaluation. In 2009, Jenny was honoured with an Australian Government Department of Innovation, Industry, Science and Research Leadership Award for, “Consistently providing an exemplary level of public service leadership through nurturing of Questacon’s Sydney-based projects.”