OCEAN STUDIES CHARTER SCHOOL INC
92295 OLD STATE ROAD, TAVERNIER, FL 33070 www.oceanstudiescharterschool.org

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Organizations Filed Purposes: THE MISSION OF OCEAN STUDIES CHARTER SCHOOL IS TO OFFER A QUALITY PUBLIC EDUCATION BASED ON THE BEST PRACTICES IN ACCELERATED LEARNING AND REFLECTING THE DIVERSITY OF THE CHILDREN OF MONROE COUNTY. OCEAN STUDIES CHARTER SCHOOL WILL OFFER A RIGOROUS ACADEMIC PROGRAM, PRODUCING STUDENTS WHO MEET OR EXCEED THE SUNSHINE STATE STANDARDS IN ENGLISH LANGUAGE ARTS, MATH, SCIENCE AND SOCIAL STUDIES. WHILE NURTURING CURIOSITY, CREATIVITY AND IMAGINATION, WE WILL ENCOURAGE CHILDREN TO BECOME INDEPENDENT, RESPONSIBLE AND SELF-MOTIVATED LEARNERS. THROUGH A UNIQUELY PREPARED ENVIRONMENT AND THE USE OF SPECIAL DIDACTIC MATERIALS, THE STUDENTS PROGRESS THROUGH INDIVIDUAL EDUCATION PROGRAMS CENTERED ON THE FASCINATING MARINE ENVIRONMENT SURROUNDING THEIR COMMUNITY. IN ADDITION TO ITS STATED MISSION, OCEAN STUDIES CHARTER SCHOOL'S MAIN PRIORITIES ARE: -TO PROVIDE THE FAMILIES OF THE UPPER KEYS WITH A BOARDER ACCELERATED-LEARNING EXPERIENCE THAN THAT AVAILABLE THROUGH THE TRADITIONAL PUBLIC SCHOOL SYSTEM

OCEAN STUDIES CHARTER SCHOOL EARNED AN "A" RATING THIS YEAR! WE ARE ALL PROUD TO HAVE INCREASED FROM A "C" RATING DUE TO THE HARD WORK AND DEDICATION FROM OUR PARENTS, TEACHERS, AND STUDENTS. OUR UNIQUE, PLACE-BASED EDUCATION AND MONTESSORI FOUNDATIONS PROVIDED THE OPPORTUNITY FOR STUDENTS TO GROW AND ACHIEVE THEIR GOALS.LAST YEAR, MS. MARTHA HEADED A GREEN SCHOOL DESIGNATION INITIATIVE FOR OCEAN STUDIES. WE EARNED THE GREEN APPLE STATUS AND ARE MOVING TOWARDS BRONZE! IT BEGAN WITH THE ELECTION PROCESS IN THE 3RD-5TH UPPER GRADES BY ELECTING A SCHOOL PRESIDENT, VICE PRESIDENT, TREASURER AND SECRETARY. THIS GROUP OF ELECTED OFFICIALS BECOME THE "GREEN STUDENT COUNCIL." THE GREEN STUDENT COUNCIL ALONG WITH THE 4TH - 5TH GRADE SHARKS CLASS WEIGHED GARBAGE PRODUCED FOR ONE WEEK IN EACH OF THE CLASSROOMS TO GET A BASELINE OF AMOUNT OF POUNDS OF TRASH WE WERE PRODUCING - SEA STARS, DOLPHINS, RAYS AND SHARKS. THE GREEN TEAM THEN STARTED A CAMPAIGN TO EDUCATE STUDENTS AND PARENTS AND PLANNED A "ZERO WASTE LUNCH WEEK" CONTEST. PRIOR TO THE WEEK, THEY SPOKE TO EACH CLASS, MADE POSTERS AND ANSWERED QUESTIONS REGARDING ZERO WASTE LUNCHES. THEY DEVELOPED A COMPOST PLAN AND TAUGHT THE KIDS WHAT THAT WAS. THEY SPOKE ABOUT REUSABLE CONTAINERS AND NAPKINS AND MADE POSTERS. THEY ALSO DISCUSSED BRINGING YOUR OWN SILVERWARE IN AS OPPOSED TO PLASTIC ONE TIME USE FORKS AND SPOONS. THE WEEK WAS A GREAT SUCCESS! THE RAYS CLASS HAD THE ABSOLUTE MINIMUM TRASH FOR ONE WEEK TOTALING LESS THAN 10 POUNDS OF TRASH - WHAT ONE DAY USED TO BE! THEY WON A HOMEMADE POPSICLE PARTY :GREEN STUDENT COUNCIL CREATED, PLANNED AND IMPLEMENTED A "BIKE TO SCHOOL" INITIATIVE TO PROMOTE A GREENER AND CLEANER WAY TO GET TO SCHOOL. THEY MADE POSTERS, CREATED AN INCENTIVE PROGRAM (STUDENTS EARNED ENERGY "BUCKS" THAT YOU COULD TRADE IN FOR PRIZES IF YOU RODE YOUR BIKE) AND SPOKE TO ALL THE CLASSROOMS TO PROMOTE THEIR CAMPAIGN! AT THE END OF THE 3 MONTH PROJECT, THEY HAD RAISED OUR BIKER PROGRAM FROM 0 BIKERS TO 10! OCEAN STUDIES CHARTER SCHOOL ALSO EARNED THE DESIGNATION OF A NOAA OCEAN GUARDIAN SCHOOL. STUDENTS EMBARKED ON A YEAR-LONG SCIENTIFIC STUDY AS TO WHETHER FRAGMENTED SEAGRASS COULD BE REGROWN OR TRANSPLANTED. THEY DID EXTENSIVE RESEARCH IN THE LAB ONLINE TO LEARN ABOUT SEAGRASS. THEY MONITORED AND COLLECTED DATA FROM HEALTHY SEAGRASS BEDS AT THE FL KEYS SAILING CLUB ON THE BAYSIDE IN KEY LARGO. THERE, THEY WERE ABLE TO OBSERVE THE GROWING RATES, CONDITIONS AND CIRCUMSTANCES THAT HAVE TO HAPPEN FOR SEAGRASS TO GROW. THE STUDENTS CONDUCTED THEIR EXPERIMENT IN THE SCIENCE LAB BY TAKING FRAGMENTED SEAGRASS AND PLANTING THEM IN THE LAB TANKS. EACH WEEK, THEY CHECKED CONDITIONS IN THE TANK INCLUDING SALINITY, NUTRIENT COUNTS AND TEMPERATURE. THEY ALSO MEASURED AND GRAPHED THE GROWTH RATE. DURING THIS TIME, STUDENTS WERE ASSIGNED A GROUP TO COLLABORATE WITH AND DETERMINE FINDINGS. AFTER HAVING THE TANKS RUNNING FOR A SHORT 5 MONTHS, THE STUDENTS WERE ABLE TO SUBMIT THEIR SCIENTIFIC FINDINGS TO THE STATE PARK SERVICE (AND THEIR TEACHER.) STUDENT FINDINGS WERE SIMILAR. THE SEAGRASS WAS NOT ABLE TO GROW IN THE SHORT TIME OF 5 MONTHS, BUT THEY ALL DID CONCLUDE THAT THE SEAGRASS FRAGMENTS WERE ABLE TO STAY ALIVE AFTER BEING REPLANTED. AS IN SCIENTIFIC RESEARCH, THE STUDENT SCIENTISTS OFFERED SUGGESTIONS. AMONG THE MANY THAT STATED TO LENGTHEN THE PROCESS TO SEE IF THE GRASS WOULD REGROW, ONE GROUP STATED THAT "IF PEOPLE WANT TO RESTORE THEIR SEAGRASS, THEY CAN CONTINUE TO KEEP THE FRAGMENTS ALIVE IN A TANK UNTIL THE REPLANT SITE IS RESTORED, THEN TRANSPLANT." MOVING FORWARD, NOAA WOULD LIKE OCEAN STUDIES TO CONTINUE THEIR EXPERIMENTS ON THE FRAGMENTED SEAGRASS. THE SAME CLASS WILL CONTINUE AND LET THE NEW INCOMING 3RD GRADERS JOIN. EXPERIMENTS THIS YEAR WILL FOCUS ON THE VARIABLES TO REGROW SEAGRASS IN TANKS. VARIABLES WILL BE DETERMINED BY STUDENTS. EXAMPLES INCLUDE SUNLIGHT EXPOSURE, TANK VS. WILD, ALGAE OVERGROWTH AND SALINITY. OUR 3RD GRADE STUDENTS TEAMED UP WITH PETE FRESA, THE ISLAMORADA PARKS MANAGER TO CONDUCT A MANGROVE TRANSPLANT PROJECT. STUDENTS COLLABORATED WITH LOCAL MIDDLE SCHOOL STUDENTS TO REPLANT MANGROVE PROPAGULES THAT WERE UPROOTED DURING HURRICANE IRMA AND DISPLACED IN A NEIGHBORHOOD. THEY PLANTED THESE AT THE GREEN TURTLE HAMMOCK IN ISLAMORADA. THE EXPERIMENT CONDUCTED WAS TO SEE WHICH TRANSPLANT METHOD WORKED BEST - PLACING PROPAGULES IN A PVC PROTECTED PIPE OR TO PLANT THEM DIRECTLY INTO THE GROUND. DURING THE EXPERIMENT, THEY ALSO MONITORED THE HABITAT INCLUDING ANIMAL COUNTS, WATER QUALITY, SALINITY, TEMPERATURE, SECCHI DISKS (TURBIDITY AKA. CLOUDINESS), AND DISSOLVED OXYGEN.

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