Fran swimming with the "gentle giant" whale sharks at the Georgia Aquarium.
Baiting crab pots with the Chesapeake Bay Foundation on the James River.
For me personally, this has been a “magical” summer. It hasn’t been so much about learning as about living.
My summer “vacation” began two days after school let out. I participated in a three day technology conference offered by the Math, Science Information Center in Richmond, Virginia. Each day mini classes were offered that provided teachers with hands on activities to encourage kids (of all ages) to explore a variety of math and science concepts, from nanotechnology to raising trout as a classroom project.
The conference ended on Friday but Sunday was the day I waited for with breathless anticipation and wonder. Sunday was the day I visited the Georgia Aquarium and I got to swim with whale sharks – “Gentle Giants”, measuring over 41 feet and weighing up to 26,000 tons.
It was inspirational and totally exhilarating. I can’t help getting psyched and excited every time I remember the experience. What I also took away from the Georgia Aquarium was a passion. The passion passed on to me by everyone I met there who cared for and worked with their sea world family.
I doubted that my next adventure could “measure up”, but after three days of participating in the Chesapeake Bay Foundation’s, outdoor field course, entitled “Chesapeake Bay Classroom” I once more experienced that strong sense of dedication, caring and “passion”. It was obvious how each presenter felt about the Chesapeake Bay- the wildlife, the land, its past, present and future.
There were Chuck’s stories about the Atlantic Sturgeon coming back; Mike’s Mussels and the efforts ongoing to bring back native species to Virginia, as well as updates on the shad and herring populations; baiting crab pots with Ken on the James River and Cathy’s Prothonotary Warbler project that had all of us making birdhouses and excited about getting our students involved in a global effort to help this particularly beautiful little yellow bird.
Take a good look at the world around you – the people, the geography, the diversity of life beneath the sea and in the air – there is so much “magic”! And you know what? It’s even better than Disneyland!
Think you might be interested in Chesapeake Classrooms trainings? Check out this quick three and a half minute video.
