Using Song to learn about the marine algae that glows in the dark.

Students learn about the marine algae Pyrocystis fusiformis.  Each seventh grade student at R.J. Frank Academy of Marine Science and Engineering received a lesson from two or three Cal State University Channel Islands science students.  They learned what Pyrocystis fusiformis is, why it is important, where it lives and how to take care of it.  Students also received a vial of the algae that they can take home and watch it glow at night.  This activity is designed to spark an interest in marine science education as well as to promote a college going culture.

Sixth Graders Visit the Sea Center in Santa Barbara

Students modeled beach erosion and learned how the beach profile can change with  the seasons.

Students measured the slope of the beach.

At R.J. Frank Academy of Marine Science and Engineering, students are getting fantastic educational experiences.

Students are using their math skills  to determine the slope of the beach.

While one group of students was outside determining the beach profile and learning about erosion,....

......the other group of students was on the wharf at the Sea Center Aquarium....

.....learning about the ecology of the kelp forest and other marine habitats.

The students learned that bat stars, sea urchins, and sea cucumbers all belong to the same group of animals called the echinoderms.

Students even got to pet a shark.

Electronic Engineering in the Science Classroom

Students design circuits on paper first and then using LittleBits hardware build their projects.

In this challenge a motion sensor is triggered which completes a circuit and lights an LED.

In this challenge  a light sensor is placed in the circuit so the LED turns off when the box is closed.

Computer engineering and robotics in the 8th grade science classroom at R.J. Frank Academy of Marine Science and Engineering

R.J. Frank Students visit The Western Foundation of Vertebrate Zoology, Or what the kids call "The Bird Museum"

After the visit to the bird museum, students went "birding" at Parque Del Sol.

Engineering and Robotics Students Competing With Vex Robotics

R.J. Frank Lobos are watching their teammates control the robots.

This robot which is controlled by Juan was designed using Vex parts.  Students learn mechanical, structural and computer engineering in building these robots.

The goal of the competition is to score goals.  This robot is designed to pick up balls and shoot them in the net.

Eighth grade students Kayaking on October 8, 2015

Eighth grade students from Ms' Storey's class and Mr. Veloz's class are doing a Pacific mole crab (sand crab) monitoring project at Hollywood Beach.

Students dig core samples at various intervals,and then place the sand in the bag.  After rinsing the sand from the bag, any remaining Pacific mole crabs are counted, measured, recorded and then returned to the sea.  

Marine Science in the 8th grade classroom

In Mr. Quien's eighth grade science class, students are modeling how temperature differences can cause ocean currents.  The colder blue colored water is moving across the bottom tube towards the warmer, red colored water, while the red colored water moves in the opposite direction completing a convection loop.

In this model, the blue colored water has salt added to it, and its higher density causes it to push across the bottom tube towards the less dense red, fresh water.  Students observe that not only temperature differences drive ocean currents, but differences in salinity also drive the ocean currents.

Marine Science in the 6th grade classrooms

Sixth grade students in Mr Conant's class are studying ocean current models using Ocean Science Sequence, a Lawrence Hall of Science curriculum .  The red colored salty water flows to the bottom of the tank.

The warmer, yellow colored water flows towards the top of the tank.  Students study the oceanographic mechanisms that cause ocean currents

Sand Crab Monitoring on our October 1 trip to the Channel Islands Boating Center

Marine Science and Kayak Adventure at the Channel Islands Boating Center in Oxnard, California

Students are learning how to get in and out of a kayak, 

as well as how to paddle and turn.

Students wear personal flotation devices 

at all times while on the water.

Our principal, Dr. Joyce came down to check out the activity.

Try to stay off the rocks! OK?

A bat star was observed by the kayakers.

Sandy beach monitoring of the mole crab.

Students collect, measure and count Pacific mole crabs at Hollywood Beach.

Pacific mole crabs are one of the most important herbivores on the beach, and they are a vital link in the sandy beach food web. They are prey for birds, mammals, and fishes, including endangered species such as the western snowy plover.