By David Nygren
Imagine snorkeling during the school day and seeing sharks, sting rays, among other fish during class time. The 7th graders from Santa Lucia Middle School had just that opportunity when they went to Catalina Island Marine Institute last month for three days. They travelled by bus, leaving at 2:30 a.m. to Long Beach Harbor, then took a ferry over to Catalina Island, while the dolphins raced the boat and whales breached and spouted in the distance.
When they finally arrived at Foxen Camp on the Island, they carried all their bedding and luggage from the ferry and made their way to their cabins, which were right on the ocean. On the students’ first day, they worked the high ropes course, which included strapping into a swing that raised them forty feet in the air. The swing dropped them when they pulled the cord, and they swung out over the island taking in the beautiful view. That night they sang songs, performed skits, and made S’ mores around the campfire.
On the second day, the students learned how to put on a three-piece wetsuit and headed out into the water to go snorkeling. It was the first time doing this activity for many of them, and they were delighted to see the Garibaldi fish, rock sharks, sting rays, and schools of little fish. In the afternoon, they attended classes to learn about the fish, invertebrates, and plant life under the sea. They had opportunities to touch sharks, sponges, and sea anemones, among other sea creatures. That night, they went snorkeling again to observe bioluminescence–glowing plankton, lobsters, and starfish. On the final day, they went kayaking in groups of two going way out into the ocean to see additional sea life on and around the rocks.
A few weeks after returning from CIMI, 7th and 8th graders participated with 20 staff and caring adults on November 7, Challenge Day, an all-day event in the gym. Challenge Day was popularized by Oprah Winfrey in the 90s when she said that every school in America needed to experience it, and it is a powerful day of realizing that we are all more similar than we are different. The two Challenge Day facilitators led the group of 100 participants through a series of activities and exercises that brought out a lot of emotions and challenged students to be authentic and kind to everyone around them. There were a lot of tears, hugs, and apologies that happened during the workshop and our school community feels closer because of it.
Both these activities were funded by the generous donations from the Cambria Curriculum Council, the Cambria Rotary, and private citizens in addition to the contribution of families for their students. Students and staff are very thankful at this time of year to live in a community that believes in giving generously to its youth so they can explore learning experiences like these.
