News

Science studies prompt aquatic makerover, exploration

  • Published
  • By Sue Sapp
  • 78th Air Base Wing Public Affairs
ROBINS AIR FORCE BASE, Ga. --  Walking along the 5th and 6th grade hallway at Robins Elementary, you enter an underwater world where you feel you could get attacked by a shark or stung by a jelly fish. The students have transformed the area into a 3-D marina display showing land, beach, ocean and the ecology around a coral reef as part of their science studies.

Michael Osborne, 5th grade teacher, said the project allowed the kids to not only work on their design skills, but their research skills as well.

"All the kids had to make a fish (to go in the marina) and do research on their fish," he said. "Actually the whole school was involved with students from all grades making sea creatures or plant life to add to the display."

The 5th and 6th grade classes had the opportunity to go to Jekyll Island 4-H Center, a University of Georgia Cooperative Extension educational program, April 22-24. They participated in classes on sharks, Herpetology (the study of reptiles and amphibians) a dock study, took a night walk on the beach, visited a forest and a local shrimper who showed them his boat and talked about how he makes his living. The group also visited historical Fort Frederica.

"The trip tied in with our life science standard and gave us the opportunity to get hands on experience while serving as an extension of what we've learned in class," said Brenda Craw, 6th grade teacher. "It was three days packed full of learning adventure, a wonderful education experience."

Getting to hold a live non-venomous snake was a hit with the students. Salaam Goins also enjoyed the shark class. "I was surprised how big sharks can get. The whale shark can be 46-feet long," he said.

Greg Kingsley, a 5th grader, caught a fish during the dock study.

"We went to the dock, lay on our stomachs and dipped nets in the water and caught fish, crab and it seems like about 2,000 shrimp," he said.

5th grade student Jianna Salas said the best part of the beach walk was seeing jelly fish on the shore, putting their feet in the water and looking for stuff in the water.

Students were able to use all their senses on the night walk to experience their surroundings. Kelsey Badgett said, "It was neat. We learned what animals come out at night. It's important to study animals and plants because everything connects in the food chain and we need to protect the ecology."