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EA ODYSSEY ADVENTURESanta Cruz Yacht Harbor
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S EA ODYSSEY ADVENTURESanta Cruz Yacht Harbor |
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Riley, a fifth-grade student, reminds his mother to put her breakfast scraps in the compost pile, next to the recycling bin. His mother is impressed at Riley's enthusiasm towards reducing solid waste, something he learned through involvement in his school's Life Lab Science Program. Riley is anxious to get to school this morning. He and his classmates have been working in a local stream, collecting fungus and other damaging species, trying to help local scientists preserve the community watershed. In addition, the students have been collecting recyclables and earning money for a special field trip ... a cruise on Team O'Neill's 65-foot catamaran. This will be Riley's first time on the ocean! Riley's teacher wanted her students to participate in a "hands-on" activity to enrich their ecological stewardship. While searching the Internet, she discovered the Team O'Neill website at https://members.tripod.com/~teamoneill and was excited to learn about the O'Neill Sea Odyssey program. She submitted her application and ideas for a community service project right then and there, through the website. In less than a week, she received an affirmative reply and a specially-designed curriculum to prepare her class for the adventure. Riley and his classmates are amazed at the view of the Santa Cruz Yacht Harbor and Beach Boardwalk as the boat sails to its first station. As they travel, they listen to presentations from crew members about local history, ocean safety and riptides. At the first station, "Sailing and Navigation", classmates learn about and operate modern tools while discussing directions and reading navigational charts. The second station, "Marine Biology," is where they drop a plankton net into the living sea, collecting samples for identification. Using microscopes and a live-feed to an on-board television, they observe fine details while identifying species of zooplankton and phytoplankton on charts. At the final station, Riley and his classmates talk about the Monterey Bay National Marine Sanctuary and their role in preserving it. They are reminded that the community service project they have completed is just the beginning, and that all life is affected by the living sea. On the way back to the dock, a small school of dolphin chase the boat! Walking home, Riley remembers something that someone once told him. "For in the end we will conserve only what we love. We will love only what we understand. We will understand only what we are taught." Of course! |
