In this week-long class, learners will get an introduction to the San Francisco Bay and coastal habitats. Throughout the course, we will ask students to make and share their observations. Our experienced Marine Education Staff will guide students through the experience leading the student's virtual exploration. We will cover the estuarine habitat, coastal habitats, and the adaptations these animals have to thrive there. We review what it means to be a scientist. Even at home, we are scientists! Once they've developed their heightened investigative skills, we dive into different habitats surround the San Francisco Bay Area. This course will discuss the general external adaptations of bony fish sharks, invertebrates, sharks, and dive deeper into specific animals at our aquarium using actual pictures and footage of our animals and in the field. Students will be asked to share ideas with the class to help us lead discussions and further the exploration based on students prior knowledge. As a final piece on the last day, students will use their knowledge to design a new creature that is well suited for a habitat of their choosing. 

No previous knowledge required, just enthusiasm and participation. We are inquiry-based, we like to ask students questions to help guide our discussion topics. The more they share, the more we can go into topics they are interested in. 

We use an outside program called Nearpod for this course. Students still log into Outschool the same. Instead of a screen share for the visual portion of the class, the teacher will provide the nearpod link for students to log into. Nearpod offers a visual component to the class independent of zoom. This reduces video/sound lag and increases student participation. This program allows students to take virtual field trips where they can independently investigate different habitats in each lesson on their own device. There are interactive corkboards where students can type their answers, submit picture examples, and like each other's answers. Two screens are recommended for this class but not required. Tablets are not recommended for sole class participation due to toggling between both the Nearpod app and the Outschool/zoom app. The Nearpod feature is free of charge for students when participating in this class.