CHM 112

General Chemistry II

Spring 2017

Its Elemental.. Informational Poster Assignment

Overview
As a professional in your chosen career it will be important to effectively and efficiently communicate accurate information
through papers, reports, presentations or other methods. Specifically, you will need to communicate technical information and
data to other professionals and perhaps the general public. The purpose of this project is to develop your ability to locate,
synthesize and present technical information while exploring a topic of interest. For this assignment remember that your grade
will be based on the content and overall presentation.
Instructions:
For this project you will produce an informational poster presentation that educates the general public on the application of
chemistry in our daily lives. You will have complete autonomy to create your poster and present your topic in any way you see
fit. Although you have a significant amount of control over your project there are a few constraints. All posters:
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must include at least 1 graph and 1 image. This is a minimum requirement. You may need to include multiple images
and tables or diagrams in addition to graphs.
must include proper citations for any material (including photos, graphics, intellectual property, etc.) obtained from an
external source
must follow the orientation and size constraints given on/in the template given in class and available on myCourses.
must be your own individual work

Your project will be graded on the following: content, originality, writing quality and presentation. The quality of presentation
will be a big portion of your grade. The top posters identified by a number of individuals including (but not limited to) myself,
other professions and students will be put on display within Rogers Hall. This project has multiple deadlines and due dates.
Topic & Outline Due Friday, January 27 (submitted via myCourses, 30 points)
Submit a topic and outline of your poster presentation (no more than 1 page). Good topics focus on specific products,
materials, processes or events we encounter in our daily lives. Additionally, a visual presentation (with a good mixture of text,
graphs, images, etc.) using basic chemistry will provide a fundamental yet complete explanation (i.e. the how and/or why) of
the phenomena. You should have at least 1 reliable source on your topic. Approved topics will be returned by Wednesday,
February 1st .
Graphs and Images Due Friday, February 17th (by 5:00 pm, via myCourses, 30 points)
Submit a graph, you constructed via MS Excel or another program and at least 1 image (diagram, photo, etc.). Please include
the figure caption for both items. You will receive feedback regarding the quality of the graph, labels and figure captions. For
the graph you may create one via data pooled together from your sources or you may recreate a graph found in one of your
sources. If you recreate a graph you must state and cite this in your figure caption (i.e. This graph is modified from ).
Approved graphs and images will be returned by Wednesday, February 22nd.
Complete Draft Due Monday, March 17 (by 5:00 pm, via myCourses, 70 points)
Using the PowerPoint template provided you will design a formal poster presentation on your topic. Please submit a complete
draft of your poster (that includes at least 4-5 reliable sources) for peer review. Your poster must be submitted as a PowerPoint
file. You may create the poster in other programs (but keep in mind, it MUST follow the size guidelines provided in the
PowerPoint template). If you create the poster in another program like Keynote or Adobe Illustrator please save the file as a
PowerPoint compatible file. If you wish to use other programs such as Adobe Creative Suite or MS Publisher please speak
with me in advance for approval. Please submit TWO copies of your poster. One with, and one without, your name on the
poster.
Poster Review Due Friday, March 24th (by 5:00 pm, 20 points)
All posters (with names removed) will be uploaded to myCourses by Monday, March 20th. Please review each poster and
provide the author with feedback to improve the layout, design and/or content. The poster review process will be completed
using Google Forms.
Revised 01/12/2016

CHM 112

General Chemistry II

Spring 2017

Final Poster Due Monday, April 10 (by 5:00 pm, 150 points)
Feedback from the poster review process will be available by Wednesday, March 29th. Please consider the suggestions
provided and make all appropriate changes to your poster. Final drafts will need to be submitted (again, as a .ppt file) no later
than Monday, April 7th at 5:00 pm. During the week of April 7th your fellow students, supplemental instructors and faculty will
evaluate posters and vote for the best posters. Judging criteria will focus equally on content and presentation. The top 4
posters will be printed and put on display in Rogers Hall.
The entire poster project is worth 300 points. Please keep in mind that missing deadlines or turning in late assignments will
impact your final project grade.
Tips and Suggestions
There are a number of ways you can approach this project. You could explain the origins behind a common product we use
every day (i.e. tires,) or the chemistry that drives our water treatment process. Perhaps you want to focus on how often we use
a relatively uncommon element. Regardless of the angle you choose you want to make sure that everything you present is
accurate and professional. A few additional tips:
1.

Title: You should include a short, descriptive and catchy title. Make sure that it is easy to read (large font) and visible
from a distance. Include your name and major beneath it. The location of the title is up to you but somewhere near
the top is perhaps the most common.

2.

Graphics: Posters that include all text are boring and extremely difficult to read. You will want to add some color and
graphics (photos, graphs, diagrams, etc.) to your poster to break up the necessary text and help the reader visualize
your topic. All graphics should include a one-two sentence descriptive caption and a reference (if this isnt your
work/property). Please remember that smaller images found online are often not good for posters. They will often
appear fuzzy and out of focus. Make sure any image you use is properly sized for your poster. Dont forget that you
can incorporate your own photos, graphs and graphics in this poster. Examples of well-designed posters and other
useful resources will be provided on myCourses (or you can see the best from last year on display on the 3 rd floor of
Rogers). A good starting point is a poster tutorial website set-up by Graphicsland, a graphic design firm
(http://www.makesigns.com/tutorials/). This website provides a wealth of useful design information. Since you will
be designing an informational poster and this website focuses on research posters the tips and suggestions around
planning and writing content may not be useful.

3.

References Cited: You MUST include proper citations (in-text and end-of-text) for your poster for any material in
your poster that is not your own (including pictures and graphs). You are welcome to use any format (MLA, APA,
etc.) as long as you are consistent. A good poster will have at least 4-5 sources.

4.

Credible Sources: Please make sure you use only credible sources in your poster. Your sources can be found in print
or online but make sure you do not rely solely on one source for all of your research. Always be critical of sources
obtained online. Please see me if you are uncertain about selecting credible sources or how to cite unusual sources.

5.

Font Size: Since this PowerPoint document is going to be larger than a typical paper the font size needs to be
proportionally larger as well. Please note the font size of all text found on the template and refer to the font
suggestions found on the website by Graphicsland provided above. Typically, the font size should not be any smaller
than 20pt font (except for the notes and citations).

6.

On Tuesday, February 21st (5:00 pm) I will offer a poster design help session (Rogers 112). Please consider attending
this session. We will discuss basic design elements that will help you to design a professional and visually appealing
poster.

Revised 01/12/2016