Researcher's Forum prep — visual aid creation + oral-presentation script + Q&A rehearsal

Quick-write: 'What is the SINGLE most surprising finding from your research?' One sentence.

• Listen for surprise = the hook for the presentation
• Note: salient = the thing that stands out, that matters most
• Tee up: today we build a presentation around the most salient finding

M-7-F-SPK-19-C Video Physical / non-image

MG-35 video: Grade-7 student stands at podium with tri-fold poster, delivers 75-second presentation matching MG-31 script. Three findings, each orally cited. Audience asks 2 Q&A questions during follow-up. Multicultural classroom. Caption track on.

MG-31 Chart

Researcher's Forum presentation script template: 1-page script card. SECTION 1 — HOOK (10-15 sec): an opening line that engages — a question, a striking fact, a quote. SECTION 2 — RESEARCH QUESTION + THESIS (15-20 sec): name your question + state your answer. SECTION 3 — KEY FINDINGS (30-45 sec): 3 findings, each with a source attribution ('According to Nakate...' / 'Aronson and Budhos document...'). SECTION 4 — SO-WHAT (10-15 sec): why does this matter. SECTION 5 — Q&A PREP (separate notes): 3 likely audience questions with prepared answers. TOTAL: 60-90 seconds. NOTES: oral citation = name the author and source ('Vanessa Nakate, in her book A Bigger Picture...'). Print-ready 8.5x11.

MG-35 Video Physical / non-image

5:00 model of a Grade-7 Researcher's Forum oral presentation. Student stands at a podium with a tri-fold poster behind her (matching MG-30 option A). She delivers a 75-second presentation following MG-31 script template. Hook: 'Most people know Hidden Figures the movie. Fewer know there were dozens more Black women at NASA.' Question + thesis. Three findings, each orally cited ('According to Shetterly...' / 'In an interview with NPR, Mae Jemison said...' / 'The NASA historical archive documents...'). So-what. Audience asks 2 questions during Q&A — student handles confidently. Multicultural classroom. Caption track on.

Today we PRESENT. The Researcher's Forum is a 60-90 second oral presentation with a visual aid. SL.7.4 — emphasize salient points; appropriate eye contact, adequate volume, clear pronunciation. SL.7.5 — multimedia component / visual display. SL.7.6 — adapt speech to audience. The VISUAL AID (MG-30): 3 options. OPTION A POSTER: title + research question + 3-4 findings + quoted lines + images + mini-Works Cited. Tri-fold board. OPTION B SLIDES: 5-8 slides max. OPTION C INFOGRAPHIC: single-page visual with citations integrated. The visual SUPPORTS the oral presentation; it doesn't replace it. The SCRIPT (MG-31): SECTION 1 HOOK (10-15 sec) — engaging opener. SECTION 2 RESEARCH QUESTION + THESIS (15-20 sec) — your question and answer. SECTION 3 KEY FINDINGS (30-45 sec) — 3 findings with ORAL SOURCE ATTRIBUTION ('According to Nakate...' / 'Aronson and Budhos document...'). SECTION 4 SO-WHAT (10-15 sec). Q&A PREP (separate) — 3 likely audience questions with prepared answers. Total: 60-90 seconds. ORAL CITATION = name the author and source aloud, not just in writing.

• Hook = a single sentence that engages. Not the thesis.

  model 'Five hundred years before Galileo, Maya astronomers were tracking Venus with mathematical precision that survives in their carved calendars today.' Hook engages by historical comparison and concrete image.

  prompt Build SECTION 1 HOOK for the Maya astronomy paper.
• Oral citation names the author and tells the audience where the evidence came from.

  model 'Three findings stand out. First, according to archaeoastronomer Anthony Aveni, the Maya calendar tracked three interlocking cycles — 260, 365, and the Long Count. Second, Robert Sharer documents that the El Castillo pyramid at Chichen Itza shows shadow patterns at the equinox that suggest deliberate alignment. Third, archaeologists confirm the Caracol observatory windows align to Venus's extreme positions.' Three findings, three sources, oral attribution.

  prompt Build SECTION 3 KEY FINDINGS with oral source attribution.
• So-what is what makes the presentation memorable.

  model 'This integration matters because it challenges the modern assumption that science and culture are separate. The Maya saw celestial movement as inseparable from daily life — a perspective that reframes how we think about whose knowledge counts as science.' So-what links findings to a broader claim about knowledge itself.

  prompt Build the SO-WHAT.

• Pair-share: rehearse your hook for partner. Time it (10-15 sec target).
• Cold Call: what's the rule for oral source attribution?
• Thumbs: ready to build script (up) / need re-explanation (down)

M-7-F-SPK-19-A Chart Physical / non-image

MG-30 anchor: 3-option card. Poster / slides / infographic with specific criteria for each. Bottom rule: 'Visual aid SUPPORTS the argument — does not REPLACE the oral presentation.' Print-ready 11x17.

MG-30 Chart Physical / non-image

Researcher's Forum visual-aid criteria anchor: 3-option card. OPTION A — POSTER: title + research question + 3-4 key findings as bullets / quoted lines / image(s) / Works Cited mini-list. Tri-fold board. 24x36. OPTION B — SLIDE DECK: 5-8 slides max (title / question / 3-4 finding slides / conclusion / Works Cited). 16:9 ratio. Plain background. Sans-serif font 32pt+. Image per slide allowed. OPTION C — INFOGRAPHIC: single-page visual representation of the research findings with citations integrated. 11x17. Bottom rule: 'The visual aid SUPPORTS the argument — it does not REPLACE the oral presentation. The audience listens to YOU; the visual reinforces.' Print-ready 11x17.

M-7-F-SPK-19-B Chart

MG-31 template: 1-page script card with 5 sections (hook / question+thesis / 3 findings / so-what / Q&A prep) and timing per section. Print-ready 8.5x11.

MG-31 Chart

Researcher's Forum presentation script template: 1-page script card. SECTION 1 — HOOK (10-15 sec): an opening line that engages — a question, a striking fact, a quote. SECTION 2 — RESEARCH QUESTION + THESIS (15-20 sec): name your question + state your answer. SECTION 3 — KEY FINDINGS (30-45 sec): 3 findings, each with a source attribution ('According to Nakate...' / 'Aronson and Budhos document...'). SECTION 4 — SO-WHAT (10-15 sec): why does this matter. SECTION 5 — Q&A PREP (separate notes): 3 likely audience questions with prepared answers. TOTAL: 60-90 seconds. NOTES: oral citation = name the author and source ('Vanessa Nakate, in her book A Bigger Picture...'). Print-ready 8.5x11.

• Build VISUAL AID — choose poster / slides / infographic. Apply MG-30 criteria. Include title, question, 3-4 findings, images, mini-Works Cited.

  scaffold MG-30 anchor; poster/slide/infographic materials; teacher conferencing every 8 minutes
• Draft PRESENTATION SCRIPT using MG-31 template. Time each section.

  scaffold MG-31 template; timer for each section
• Rehearse with partner. Get feedback on volume, eye contact, pronunciation, time.

  scaffold Rehearsal mirror; timer with 60-90 second target

• Hand in your visual aid and script. Note where you feel ready and where you need more rehearsal.

• Restate: visual aid SUPPORTS oral; oral citation names the source
• Preview: Researcher's Forum tomorrow

• Rehearse 5+ times. Refine visual aid. Prepare 3 likely Q&A answers. Bring everything tomorrow for the Forum.