Students enjoy a cruise around Galveston Bay aboard Coast Guard certified boats that serve as floating classrooms. BaySmart is popular among students, teachers, parents, industry, environmental groups and granting agencies.

OBSERVATIONS:

During the BaySmart water-borne educational fieldtrip, students observe a variety of interesting and important things including:

• Different types of marine vessels
• Marine-related work activities and career opportunities
• Navigation aids
• Petrochemical industries
• Commercial and recreational fishing
• Point and non-point pollution
• A variety of birds and wildlife
• Marshlands

Student Bingo Card
(Adobe .PDF file - if needed you can download the Adobe reader with the link below)

CURRICULUM:

Throughout the cruise, a certified facilitator teaches the BaySmart curriculum that is related to the student’s school work and is also referenced to TEKS (Texas Essential Knowledge and Skills). Topics include:

• Geography
• History
• Wetlands
• International trade
• Environmental issues
• Economic contribution of Bay-related activities
• Recreational boating activities
• Commercial and industrial activities
• Homeland Security

Teacher Syllabus
(Adobe .PDF file - if needed you can download the Adobe reader with the link below)

EXPERIMENTS:

Contingent upon favorable weather and the type of boat being used, students participate in experiments that include:

• Trawling
• Seining
• Water quality testing
• Plankton sampling

EMPHASIS:

The following is a list of underlying themes that are emphasized during the BaySmart fieldtrip:

• Importance of staying in school and getting a good education
• Galveston Bay-related career opportunities
• The value of remaining drug-free, not smoking, staying out of gangs and out of trouble
• Practicing responsible citizenship
• Understanding Galveston Bay’s contribution to the community’s quality of life relative to its natural resources, recreational opportunities and commercial/industrial activities
• Understanding the delicate nature of local marine habitats
• Working together to protect and preserve critical natural resources
• Accepting the need for responsible utilization of marine resources by commercial and recreational groups

RESULTS:

The BaySmart program…

• Empowers young people through self-motivation to reject the allure of youth gangs and anti-social behavior, live drug-free, remain in school and succeed academically
• Provides a unique venue for addressing the intermix of nature, industry and recreation, thus permitting an understanding of and appreciation for what has been done, what is being done and what is proposed relative to harmonizing the diverse interests in Galveston Bay
• Facilitates an understanding of the necessity and feasibility of utilizing Galveston Bay waters as a natural and functional resource for the benefit of all citizens
  

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