NOAA Teacher at Sea Program Highlights

 The NOAA Teacher at Sea Program is a great opportunity for teachers to get real-world exposure to current research in oceanography & marine biology.  Open the links below to get more information, read the news article & listen to the NOAA Podcast interview.  This program inspired me to include my students in similar experiences like... 

*GA Aquarium: Students go behind the scenes, tour the aquarium & see the dolphin or sea lion show.  They learn about possible careers related to marine life through the Instructor Led Program.  The programs are called Alien Extremes, Animal Behaviors, Oceanic Occupations & Oceanography.  https://www.georgiaaquarium.org/school-programs/

*UGA Marine Extension: Math & Science students will visit the University of Georgia Marine Extension in Skidaway Island to explore marine biology through interactive classes, demonstrations, laboratory experiences, field studies & an estuary trawl. Students will examine coastal reptiles, fish, invertebrate lab, marine debris, plankton, tour the aquarium, dissect fish, and explore the estuary. They will learn about possible careers & behind the scenes at the aquarium. https://gacoast.uga.edu/education/schools-and-groups/planning-a-visit/

*Chattahoochee River Clean Up: Students volunteer to help clean the waterways in Atlanta.  They remove tons of waste from creeks that lead to the Chattahoochee River.  These opportunities are monthly & depend on weather conditions. https://chattahoochee.org/volunteer/

*Keep Dekalb Beautiful:  Students organize campus cleanup days where they beautify McNair High School.  Dekalb County Sanitation Department provides all the supplies needed for the student volunteers to clean their environment within a 1 mile radius of the school.  They plant flowers, paint rocks, collect trash & remove discarded tires from the premises. https://www.dekalbcountyga.gov/beautification/keep-dekalb-beautiful

*Math & Science Projects:  Each semester students complete Math & Science project presentations related to what they learned in the classroom & field trips.  Some projects are presented in the classroom while others are designed to encourage parents & family to participate during Parent/Teacher Conferences.

Picture below of student volunteers for Chattahoochee River Clean Up...look at all the tires we found ;(

Click Here for Education Week News Article Featuring Maronda Hastie

Click Here for the NOAA Fisheries Podcast Interview Featuring Maronda Hastie Aboard the Oregon II

Click Here for the NOAA Blogs Published by Maronda Hastie

UGA Marine Education Center in Skidaway Island

See what happens when inspiration comes from past field trips & excursions.  More students have opportunities to explore the world!

McNair High students explored the University of Georgia Marine Education Center in Skidaway Island, Savannah & Tybee Island along the coast of Georgia.  They collected samples in the estuary, dissected fish, learned about invertebrates & coastal reptiles, used microscopes to view plankton & other sea life, discussed marine debris & water quality, identified & sorted fish, saw dolphins, learned about the salt marsh & barrier islands.

Pictured from left to right
Top: Chase G, Maxcine F, Fatou G, Ema J, Elijah D
Bottom: Dieynabou D, Amellion M, Ameenah J, Maronda H

We started our journey with a 3 hour walking tour from Forsyth Park to Riverstreet with Ms. Bethany Campbell, former director of the APEX museum on Auburn Avenue in Atlanta, GA.

Ms. Bethany Campbell is fascinating while telling her stories of the history of Georgia!  She makes sure she remembers all the students' names & includes them in all the discussions.

We learned so much more than the standard text books while walking through the beautiful azalea flowers.  Many of the squares dated back to 1733 with monuments, lush greenery & burial sites.

Did you know that Tomochichi, the leader of the Creek Native American Tribe, is buried in Wright Square in Savannah, Georgia?  People have mixed feeling about him since he helped James Oglethorpe establish his colony.

This rock, taken from the Stone Mountain Rock Query, is all that commemorates the memory of Tomochichi, one of the leaders of the Creek Native American Tribe.

Notice the chains are broken in honor of African Americans.

In March of 2023, my students explored the UGA Marine Education Center in Skidaway Island, Savannah & Tybee Island along the coast of Georgia. They collected samples in the estuary, dissected fish, learned about invertebrates & coastal reptiles, used microscopes to view plankton & other sea life, discussed marine debris & water quality, identified & sorted fish, saw dolphins, learned about salt marsh & barrier island. We started with a 3 hour walking history tour from Forsyth Park to Riverstreet with Bethany J Campbell former director of the APEX museum on Auburn Avenue. Then the students went to Tybee Island to experience the beach for the 1st time. All the classes at the marine center were exceptional, the staff was friendly & the chef fed them well! We also toured Savannah State University...my alma mater. My past experiences with the GA Aquarium & NOAA Teacher at Sea Program have exposed me to more opportunities for my students. NOAA Fisheries Service Marine Biologist Denise Harrington joined us on the walking tour & explained her career & more options for my students interested in pursuing the field of sciences.

Several students designed presentations & spoke to classes to explain their experience in Savannah. I'm pleased that they enjoyed themselves while learning!

STAY TUNED FOR MARCH 2024 Marine, Oceanography, STEM & History fieldtrip.

NOAA Teacher at Sea Program

 NOAA Teacher at Sea Program

I am pleased to represent McNair High School, Dekalb County School System, my family & community for the Teacher at Sea Program sponsored by NOAA (National Oceanic Atmospheric Association).  I am 1 of 6 teachers selected around the United States to work with scientists & fishermen aboard a research vessel for 15 days.

Click Here to Visit NOAA Teacher at Sea Blogs

Students at Skidaway Island Marine Science Center & Chattahoochee Nature Trail

My journey goes like this:

1. Depart from Atlanta, Georgia & head to Orlando, Florida

2. Depart from Orlando, Florida & head to Cape Canaveral to Board the NOAA Oregon II

3. Meet my shipmates (scientists, fishermen, interns, Capitan, technician, engineers, chef). About 30 people.

4. Travel around Florida, pass Cuba & other islands & enter the Gulf of Mexico

5. Work from 12pm-12am: Set up 100 pieces of Mackerel to bait hooks.  Catch Shark, Red Snapper, Grouper, etc)  Collect data, tissue samples, tag fish, etc.

6. See sunrises, sunsets, beautiful horizon, dolphins, flying fish, jellyfish, starfish, etc. every day!

7. Disembark in Pascagoula, Mississippi & fly back to Atlanta.

8. Share the experience with others, plan fieldtrips & create hands-on lessons.

Tag shark, take measurements & tissue sample from fin

Bait 100 hooks, 50 per barrel.

The skyline is beautiful every day!

A few tools to help us complete our mission.

Red Snapper, Starfish & a Sandbar Shark

McNair invites Historically Black College University (HBCU) Kings & Queens to the school

National Black College Hall of Fame Alumni Foundation brings their ambassadors to the youth for a day of inspiration called "Positive Image" program. September 25th, 2019

Click Here for HBCU Link

McNair High Achievers escort our guests & direct the audience to their seats.

They spoke candidly about their life stories, struggles & goals.

Students asked great questions to each representative & were attentive!

The kings treated their queens as royal as they should & were very patient with the audience!

Many of the students rushed the stage immediately following the program to get more information, social media tags & ask more personal questions.

My students are lucky the kings & queens visited our classroom.

Activities May - June 2019

We tackled a few projects in May & June!  We partnered with the elementary schools to build a better connection with the student leaders, we went whitewater rafting & did community clean-up days.

Chick-Fil-A College Football Hall of Fame Museum (May 13th)

We invited students from the McNair Cluster Elementary Schools (Kelly Lake & Flat Shoals)

Students participated in fun interactive displays with interesting information on football players, coaches & all about the game.

Keep Dekalb Clean donates supplies to McNair so student high achievers can organize cleanup days.  We cleaned Bouldercrest Road & the grounds of the school.  By working together, we managed to beautify our neighborhood. (May 20th)

Whitewater Rafting in Columbus, GA was very exciting!  The scenery was gorgeous & everyone survived the rapids. (June 9th)

The tour guides did a great job of keeping us safe!

We learned a lot of history about the Native Americans in the area & several old buildings still standing.

We enjoyed a nice picnic in the park immediately after rafting.