Bay Area Kids Experiencing the Sea around Them

I teach a 7th/8th grade Special Day Class at A.P. Giannini middle school in the Sunset district of San Francisco. Special Day Class is for students with learning disabilities that are mild to moderate and prevent my students from participating in the general education curriculum. Most of them need a small, structured learning environment to succeed academically. My class mirrors the demographics of most urban special education classes. Eighty five percent of my students are male, 75% are African American, and almost all are eligible for free lunch. My students pose both academic and behavior challenges. Because of this, they are often left out of school activities. I hope to change that this spring by offering my students a field trip opportunity. I hope to take my students to the Marine Mammal Center in Sausalito, CA as the culmination of a marine mammal unit we will be doing. In January, I was given calendars from the Marine Mammal Center to distribute to my class through a friend of mine. My students were completely enthralled with the calendars and began asking many questions about marine mammals, most of which I could not answer on the spot. A.P. Giannini is located just blocks from the ocean. Because of the proximity of the beach, I was surprised at the dearth of knowledge my students had regarding the land around them. Thus, my marine mammal unit was born! I teach a Reading Support class and I will incorporate the marine mammal unit into that class's curriculum. The marine mammal unit will be three pronged. Most of my students read between a 2nd and 5th grade reading level. We will begin the unit by reading several texts that are at their instructional reading level to have them learn about various marine mammals and the habitat in which they live. I will incorporate information on pollution and the environment, and how marine mammals (and humans!) are affected. The second prong will be experiential in nature. We will conduct a beach clean-up, as our school is only blocks from the beach. After spending a morning collecting trash from the beach, we will have the opportunity to practice writing skills by documenting what we found and what effect the garbage could have on the environment. The third prong is a field trip to the Marine Mammal Center in Sausalito. While my students live in city of San Francisco, only one of them has been across the Golden Gate Bridge and spent time in Marin County. I believe this experience will be a wonderful opportunity to broaden my students' horizons, exposing them to new and different experiences. The Marine Mammal Center has a Call to the Rescue program that simulates a rescue of a stranded/wounded marine mammal. The Center has a fund that I have applied to which will cover the cost of the program. I am looking for funding to cover the transportation costs to get my students to Sausalito. Because I work in a public school, there is little funding for field trips. San Francisco Unified District can provide us with a bus and a driver. I have a total of 24 students. Because of their disabilities, I could not take them all at once. I am planning to make two trips to the Marine Mammal Center, one on May 16th and the other on May 30th. I believe that this a valuable experience that my students will remember for years. Exposing inner city children to experiences that are outside of their usual life is an important piece in showing children the choices they have in life, regardless of where they live and grow up. This may be one small experience, however, I believe it will touch all of my children on many different levels. From driving over the Golden Gate Bridge, to picnicing on Rodeo Beach, to experiencing the Call to the Rescue Program and learning about the Marine Mammal Center, I believe there are many valuable lessons my students will be exposed to throughout the day. Please help me make this dream a reality by funding the transportation costs of this trip.