Hebridean Marine Explorers - What we achieved in 2019
In 2019, our Education Team worked with 900 children from 20 schools in and around the coastal towns of Oban and Mallaig, as well as local schools on the Isle of Mull.
The highlight of the year was the creation of our new Whale Detectives session by our dedicated volunteer and Education Assistant, Rian Harris. Pupils loved taking part in this workshop, identifying minke whales from photographs and sightings reports collated by HWDT. Using their detective skills, they became familiar with locally known animals, such as Knobble the minke whale, and tracked their movements using grid references and maps. Overall it was a fantastic introduction to studying whales and provided a great chance to consider ocean giants in a local and global context.
We are searching for an Education Volunteer…
Join our team and help teach primary pupils on board our floating classroom and in schools across the Hebrides. You will also have the chance to develop and pilot your own school workshop, similar to Rian’s Whale Detectives session.
Interested? More details here:
Education Assistant Advert.
“Fantastic workshop – well-pitched with just the right amount of information. Activities were extremely well planned and engaging. Also, a great opportunity at the end for questions, from which we learned so much”
Eleven primary schools visited our acclaimed floating classroom in Dunstaffnage and Mallaig Marinas, marking our first ever visits for some schools. Our team delivered ~40 hours of outdoor education, welcoming 225 pupils on board Silurian. Some of the groups even spotted seals and an otter in the harbour, leaving a lasting impression on the pupils. These unique and memorable experiences are so important for children in our coastal communities, inspiring them to care for our marine environment, whilst promoting alternative career opportunities, involving sailing and science.
“Today I learnt about dolphins and whales and all sorts of things but my favourite was looking through the binoculars and listening to the animal sounds. 10/10 Amazing ”
“My daughter (aged 10) loved visiting your boat. Since her trip, she has been researching marine biology and has decided she wants to go to University in Glasgow to study this.”
Whilst visiting the marinas with our floating classroom, we also opened Silurian to the public, running four events for over 200 people. Thanks to everyone who came along and supported us at these, we had a lovely time talking to you all, showing you around Silurian and answering questions about whales and our work.
In addition to our work with primary schools, our team were also busy working with older students, including presenting content on our research methods and findings to visiting students from Scotland’s Rural College and the University of East Anglia.
We were also delighted to deliver WiSe training courses for 13 wildlife-watching related businesses, providing skippers and crew with guidance on how best to approach wildlife and minimise unintentional disturbance. In total, 22 seafarers gained the nationally recognised WiSe Scheme accreditation in responsible wildlife watching. We also supported young people to gain awards and accreditation, with Tobermory High School pupils achieving their John Muir Award Discovery Award and Teen Research Participants completing the residential section of their Gold Duke of Edinburgh Award on board Silurian.
Whilst reflecting on last year, we would like to take this opportunity to recognise the incredible contribution our Education Volunteer's Andy and Rian have made to the project. Andy traveled miles, especially to support our floating classrooms and share his knowledge, stories and jokes on board. Rian supported our programme to run smoothly and successfully from behind the scenes during his six month voluntary placement, whilst also being an inspiring role model for so many children when out in the schools delivering workshops. Thank you both!
Delivering our busy education programme is dependent on the support and contributions we receive from our volunteers, donors, members, partners and funders, so we would like to wish you all a warm and heartfelt thank you for making this possible.
