Marine Biology: Bringing the Ocean to the Classroom
My students need a salt water aquarium system, including crushed coral, a marine invertebrate set, and brine shrimp eggs, in our Marine Biology classroom to conduct a variety of scientific investigations.
Do you remember the first time you saw the ocean or Gulf of Mexico? The marine environment is extremely important to Louisiana's economy and way of life, yet the majority of my students have never seen an ocean or the Gulf Coast. This project will enable me to introduce my students to ocean life.
We are a Louisiana high school located in a rural area with a high poverty level.
There are 887 students in our high school (grades 9-12). Of these, 64% of students qualify for free lunch and 9% qualify for reduced lunch. A small percentage of our students will go on to attend college with fewer than 8% actually completing a college degree.
My Project
My students need a salt water aquarium system, including crushed coral, a marine invertebrate set, and brine shrimp eggs, in our Marine Biology classroom to conduct a variety of scientific investigations. The aquarium will allow all students to become acquainted with marine invertebrates and learn about them. We will be able to conduct a variety of laboratory experiments using the aquarium, including physical characteristics of salt water ecosystems, life cycles of various invertebrates such as sea urchins and star fish, ecology of oceanic systems, and so much more. The students will be able to design their own inquiry experiments and conduct them using the salt water tank, thus improving their understanding of not only the marine biology curriculum, but also the scientific method.
This project will have a huge impact on our students.
It will be used for investigations by over 145 students each year and will be available to all students in our science classes. Since the aquarium project has a one-time cost, it will be used for years to come, thus impacting hundreds or several thousand students. It will allow students the all important hands-on experience in science class. Any and all donations for this project will be greatly appreciated.
DonorsChoose is the most trusted classroom funding site for teachers.
As a teacher-founded nonprofit, we're trusted by thousands of teachers and supporters across the country. This classroom request for funding was created by Ms. Seals and reviewed by the DonorsChoose team.