Today was the first day of Bravo Team for the school year. We started off our day playing some fun games to get acquainted with each other and reminding ourselves what it was like to be a part of Bravo Team.
We also started a list of things we are interested in learning this year. By the end of class we had a pretty big list! We want to learn more about boat operation, sailing, navigation, tides and currents, nautical terminology, knots, natural history, current environmental issues of the Salish Sea, and to build team work and friendships.
A Small Craft Advisory was posted, so we weren’t able to go out on the water, but we did head down to the boat. We took some time to review boat parts, safety and rowing commands. Then we practiced our rowing while tied up and refreshed the commands and our oar handling.
After that was our snack break on the boat where we had a moment of silence. To warm our brains up for science, we took a few minutes to notice some of the animals, plants, energy, and “elements” that make up the world around us. This year, we will be doing some science inquiry studies and an environmental service project.
For our ending reflection, Daniel asked, “If you could change something about you or the world, what would you change?” After some thought we came up with a good list: that everyone has an opportunity to sing and play music, that more towns ban plastic straws, that everyone uses ocean safe sunscreen, to be able to replant and repair habitats for animals, to give homes to stray animals, and that every one could have a cozy, safe space to live. We are a caring, thoughtful, and fun loving group!
