The trip has come to a close already! Here’s what we did…
In this Update:
Day 7: Oh Where are My Tube Feet?
After the last lecture of the course, the students did a dissection lab. This lab is well known to anyone who has been to the Nature Center at Fort Wilderness and done the Pearl class with Michael. Each student kept the pearl they found in their dissected oyster and identified the different parts of their oyster. The rest of the morning was spent preparing for oral presentations and evaluation prep.
Since Michael likes to have fun, the guidelines for the oral presentations allow students to show off their thespian chops. Each group is assigned a habitat and makes their presentation about that habitat. They are graded on accuracy, elements included, and creative flare. This year students came up with the following:
- A parody of the TV show “Wild Kratts” where the main characters turned into the different creatures of the Mangroves habitat. The villain, Chef Gourmand, was played by a second year student.
- A puppet show about the Coral Reef habitat and how to classify.
- A skit about “Florida Man” (a student from Florida) doing hijinks in the grass flats habitat to gain superpowers while being pursued by an 80s cop character (played by a staff assistant).
- A VeggieTales parody where the traditional VeggieTales characters Bob, Larry, Junior, and Archibald were transformed into creatures of the Rocky Coast. Larry sang a rendition of “Where is my hairbrush” with lyrics changed to “Where are my Tube Feet” all about the Sea Cucumber and its quirks, including a demonstration of evisceration.
Thank you to our Gold & Silver Sponsors who made this trip possible!
Marv & Joie Suson | Bojar Family | Michael & Denise Lane | Jonah & Naomi VanPietersom | Stitch It! Custom Embroidery & Sew Much More| Corienne ‘Coco’ Walek Real Estate | AriZona Tea
>>> Sponsor our next trip! <<<
Day 8: Ace in the Hole!
Early in the morning four students gathered together to pray for their evaluations. Students were motivated and wanted to do well. They spent an hour and half for final review and questions before launching into the two part evaluation. The first part is closed book and has to be done by memory. The second part of the test can be done with the help of the student’s lab book they had to fill out during the week. It pays to have a completed lab book! But there isn’t enough time to look up all the questions. So students had to spend their evaluation time wisely.
After lunch students enjoyed some free time at the pool to unwind from all the hard work. At 4 PM we headed to Sombrero Beach for some group photos, swimming, and a pizza party! Upon return to base, it was revealed during the roundtable that something amazing happened: for the first time in over 10 years, a student aced the test!
Congratulations Lillian!
A few other students also came close! Great job all around!
Day 9: One Last Stop for Tourism
We started the day with the earliest morning call yet! Everything needed to be packed and ready to go. And since we liked to be good guests, we helped with cleaning the grounds and leaving the hotel in good shape for the next guests (we want to be back next year!). The groundskeeper thanked us for the help. The first stop was breakfast at McDonalds or Dunkin Donuts. Then we headed to the last stop: Shell World! Shells, shirts, keychains, jewelry, home décor… Students found something for everyone in their family. We loaded back on the vans with our booty and proceeded to Miami Airport. Final hugs and goodbyes were exchanged. Some tears were shed.
Thank you to our Gold & Silver Sponsors who made this trip possible!
Marv & Joie Suson | Bojar Family | Michael & Denise Lane | Jonah & Naomi VanPietersom | Stitch It! Custom Embroidery & Sew Much More| Corienne ‘Coco’ Walek Real Estate | AriZona Tea
>>> Sponsor our next trip! <<<
Keep Us in Your Prayers
This trip might have seemed short but I can attest to some of the strong friendships that have developed in the past 9 days. I expect many to keep contact after the trip as talk of plans to meet up over the summer filled the conversations in the last few hours. Please keep praying for our staff and students as they return home:
- For safe travels for all students and staff traveling over the weekend. Some have long distances to go!
- For God to keep working in the hearts of students as they return home.
- For students to keep growing in their relationships and faith.
- For staff to get good rest and recuperate after the trip is done.
See you again soon!
Creative Director / Producer