Project Day 1

Today the students began developing their research projects. They reviewed the scientific method and learned some field sampling techniques used in the marine studies.  Then we set them free to come up with a question to test based on their own observations and curiosities. While we often complete labs at school, this type of project development was new for most students.  With a small amount of assistance each of the groups have come up with a question, hypothesis, and methods to test it.

This afternoon we went for a snorkel just off the island for students to make some preliminary observations and tweak their data collection methods.  The slow pace of the snorkel helped students see new creatures and hone in on some interesting behaviors of the reef inhabitants.  Many of the students also got to see a nurse shark, which was exciting!

We're having another movie night tonight to save up our brain energy for tomorrow when we will be carrying out the projects. Stay tuned for some interesting results!