Turtles of the Great Barrier Reef Grade: Kindergarten Standard: SKCS6. Students will understand the important features of the process of scientific inquiry. Objective: Students will identify scientific tools and ways scientists stay safe. Materials: Safety video Goggles, rubber gloves, lab coats, shoes, rulers (measuring tape), scales, magnifiers Digital cameras (one per team) Computer access Procedure: 1. Show students pictures of measuring, weighing, recording data and looking inside of turtles. Tell students that scientists are collecting information about turtles so that they can help them survive. Questions: Does your doctor measure and weigh you? What tools do they use? (scale and measuring [View Full Entry]

---

---

Turtles of the Great Barrier Reef Expedition Grade: First Grade Standard: S1CS3. Students will use tools and instruments for observing, measuring, and manipulating objects in scientific activities. Objective: Students will use various nonstandard units of measurement to determine the best unit for measuring odd shaped objects. Materials: Odd shaped objects for measuring such as plastic animals, balls, rocks for each group Nonstandard measuring units such as string, sticks, hands, small counters or coins for each group 1 copy of record keeping page Procedure: 1. Show students video clips from Australia 2. Put students in groups of 2-4 depending on the amount [View Full Entry]

---

---

Turtles of the Great Barrier Reef Grade: Second Grade Standard: S2CS5. Students will communicate scientific ideas and activities clearly. Objective: Students will describe animals in photos clearly. Materials: Procedure: 1. Show the beginning of the general turtle video (5 minutes). Pause and blindfold half of the children. Resume video for another few minutes. Pause. 2. Non-blindfolded students now have to describe what the blindfolded students missed. 3. Blindfold other half and resume video for another few minutes. The non-blindfolded kids now have to describe the missed video to the blindfolded kids. 4. Ask students what they notice about having to communicate [View Full Entry]

---

---

Turtles of the Great Barrier Reef Grade: Third Grade Standard: S3L2. Students will recognize the effects of pollution and humans on the environment. Objective: Students will identify the effects of pollution on marine life. Materials: Procedure: 1. Show general turtle video to spark excitement. 2. Ask students what animals need to survive? Food, air, water, shelter 3. Review different types of habitats. Where do animals live? 4. Ask students if they think humans make this difficult for animals sometimes. 5. Show students the litter video 6. Ask if they think this litter is dangerous for sea life. 7. Show photos of [View Full Entry]

---

---

hi everybody! after some days of wasting myself in Cairns, I finally decided to do a dive course. maybe because many of you my friends already done it... maybe because everybody says it is a must to see the great barrier reef... of course the reasonable price has helped when taking the decision... but predominantly, i'll need the licence when diving on my travel in future. yes. i hope so. so I took the whole package, two courses, SSI license to dive down to 30m, two days of theory and practice in the pool, 4 days/3 nights liveaboard the yacht changing [View Full Entry]

---

---

Wednesday June 25th: We had to get up bright and early again. Today was the start of our five day learn to scuba course. The shuttle picked us up and took us to their retail shop in downtown Cairns. There we squared up all the remaining money, met our instructor Nick and the other six people that would be in our class. From tehre we were shuttled to a small private pool. There we spent the rest of the day. There were two days to be spent here. The people on day two of the course were already in the pool [View Full Entry]

---

---

Did a day trip to the great barrier reef while i was up in cairns. Its just as spectacular as you might imagine. Also got the opertunity to do some scuba diving. Really go the bug for it now and hope to do a course sometime next year. Unfortunately didn't get any under water photos but i will next time. Tomorrow i do a bungy jump. WOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO! [View Full Entry]

---

---

While Simon was exploring deep, dark wrecks near Sydney, Lauren flew north to Townsville where she met her friend Sabrina (who is studying there this semester). The dynamic duo (of MSC 201 and University of Miami Science Diving) reunited with a bang and had a night out on the town, then got up at 5am to catch a bus to Cairns. Cairns is much more Australian feeling than Sydney, with a relaxed and beachy flair evident even through the rampant tourist industry. From Cairns, Lauren and Sabrina boarded the MV Taka and set out for a long weekend of diving on [View Full Entry]

---

---

So I just had to share with you some amazing photo's from sunrise over at Coconut Beach after setting off at 5am to climb a ruggid headland in the dark with no torch...which proved interesting, to Sunset up at Cooks look !!! ....We headed over to Coconut while the stars were still bright in the sky ....climbing the ruggid path we hit Lizard point just as the sun was heading up. After finding the rope we abseiled down onto the most perfect beach to watch the sun come up over the headland..... ...after a few crazy moments of headstands we cruise [View Full Entry]

---

---

Yesterday I did my Great Barrier Reef tour (thanks to generous gift certificates because it's crazy expensive!). It was an hour and half out to Moore Reef (supposedly one of the better ones) and then we spent the day out there. I did a semi-sub boat tour, a glass-bottomed boat tour, looked through the underwater observation windows, and the best part was SNORKLING!!! I loved it - felt just like being in a fish tank!!! The fish and coral were all so beautiful and even though it was a cloudy day, still quite colourful and pretty! I'm posting the pictures I [View Full Entry]

---

---