“In a completely rational society, the best of us would aspire to be teachers and the rest of us would have to settle for something less, because passing civilization along from one generation to the next ought to be the highest honor and the highest responsibility anyone could have.”
~ Lee Iacocca, American Industrialist
WIDECAST is passionate about public outreach! WIDECAST Country Coordinators are closely involved with formal and non-formal educators in their countries, and we have developed several science-based resources to help teachers bring sea turtles into the classroom (or Science Club, or summer camp). Check this page often for new materials, several of which are currently in peer-review and will be posted in the coming months.
Other useful resources, including species identification leaflets, a Photo Gallery, and a comprehensive Resource Library can be found elsewhere on our site. Please let us know what you need, and we will be very happy to assist you in locating it!
In partnership with the British High Commission, WIDECAST donated a Teacher Resource Package including a sea turtle textbook, two comprehensive curriculum guides, and a bilingual slide show on Endangered Caribbean Sea Turtles to every secondary school and teacher’s college in Antigua & Barbuda, Barbados, Dominica, Grenada, Saint Kitts & Nevis, Saint Lucia, and Saint Vincent & the Grenadines. Through the generosity of private donors, the same was done for the Cayman Islands and Trinidad and Tobago. To sponsor the distribution of Teacher Resource Packages in your country, please contact us at keckert@widecast.org. To learn more about teacher resources already available at the local level, contact your WIDECAST Country Coordinator.
Are you teaching very young children? Three of the best coloring books we’ve seen are “Turtle Talks” (en Español), the bilingual “Sea Turtles”, and Tortugueando en Venezuela (posted with permission). Puppet shows and arts and crafts are also wonderful ways to reach younger age groups!
Moving beyond sea turtles, some countries have curriculum materials designed to bring environmental issues alive in the classroom. For example, Conservation in Classrooms by the Guyana Marine Turtle Conservation Society and Treasures in the Sea by The Bahamas National Trust (posted with permission). The National Marine Educator’s Association has a comprehensive Ocean Literacy program with a wide selection of downloadable materials for educators.