On April 22nd, the Marine Science 1 Honors classes went on a field trip to go to the Florida Aquarium based in Tampa, Florida. The Marine Science classes included both teachers – Mr. Palys and Mrs. Copello. The students went to their first period class and then once the bell rang for second period, they went to the cafeteria to check in and wait for the buses to arrive. The field trip consisted of fun activities as well as learning opportunities according to the students. One junior who went on the trip, Danica Mueller, said, “I learned that there are such things as dwarf seahorses that are so adorable and tiny!”
Another student, Janie Topping, said, “I learned a lot of interesting facts about lots of the marine life including what their diet includes of, their adaptations, and the size that they grow to.” Nelly Kuzel, a junior, said that her favorite part was “looking at the different animal species! My favorite animal that I saw there were the lemurs!” Another popular animal amongst the students were the otters.
Danica Mueller’s favorite animals she saw were “probably the otters, rays, and jellyfish. My favorite part of the whole field trip was touching the moon jellyfish and seeing the river otters! I thought they were super cute.” Janie Topping’s favorite part was “seeing the otters that were outside. I liked looking at the sea turtles as well.” Another junior, Alexis Schmidt, also loved seeing the otters, as they are her favorite animal. “I loved seeing the otters doing backflips in their tank!” The layout of the field trip consisted of a fun-filled day. Janie Topping describes it as follows: “During the field trip, we got to have a partner and go around to do a scavenger hunt as well as take pictures of many different animals so that we could see multiple kinds of marine life! After that we got to eat lunch with our friends and then went to see the penguins that were outside.” Students recommend this field trip to any future Marine Science students. “I would recommend this field trip to other students. I had a ton of fun!” says Nelly Kuzel. “I loved it! I had a great time,” states Alexis Schmidt.