Educational Services - Service Learning
6th Grade: Adopt-a-Whale
Welcome to the "Adopt-A-Whale" 6th Grade Science Service-Learning Project. In this Service to the Environment, students study the ecosystem of whales, becoming more aware that whales are the "barometer of the health of the ocean." A decline in whale population can be indicative of pollution or some other environmental factor. This is directly connected to the 6th grade science students' Science and Language Arts Writing standards. Sixth grade students research the plight of the whales and then "adopt" a humpback whale. Quarterly newsletters are read and an adoption packet listing the whale sightings with their calves and their migration route map are displayed on a special bulletin board. This bulletin board in Kerry Mazor's 6th grade class at El Rodeo reads: 'Lightning and Flash: Our Adopted Whales'. Students feel proud because what they are studying is often in the news and they learn they can make a difference. They gain a respect for endangered species. In addition to the whale adoption, students participate in a beach clean-up (sponsored by Heal the Bay) that illustrates that their human actions directly affect the pollution that goes through storm drains and ends up in our oceans. BHUSD Grade 6 Service-Learning Curriculum: Adopt-a-Whale Official Whale Adoption Project Page Official Heal the Bay Page Student Reflective Poem Student Short Story |
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