Loading...
HomeMy WebLinkAbout2016-106 R RESEARca � � o E C0 SER Florida's Traveling Turtles Application Packet Deadline: June 24th, 2016, Spm This'program was funded in part by a grant awarded from the Sea Turtle Grants Program. The Sea Turtle Grants Program is funded from proceeds from the sale of the Florida Sea Turtle License Plate. Learn more at www.helpineseaturtles.ore. This program was funded in part by the National Save the Sea Turtle Foundation. To learn more,visit savetheseatu rtle.ore. ice'z+.: ori oeo•O / | General Information and Eligibility |nxvat�rResearch Group URG\ is registered 501(c)3 non-profit corporation with a mission to provide the scientific community and general public with information to promote conservation ofcoastal and marine species and their habitats. |nOctober, 2Ol5, |RGlaunched its first Traveling Trunk program. The program contains 4 cmnsema1ion-based lesson plans that take 3,d-8t'grade students on a journey through the world ofsea turtles. Through lessons and activities, they learn about the 5species ofsea tuML|e /vxeseearoundF|mrida,theirnestinghabits, hovxreseanchersstudypopu|a1imns, and what it's like to be biologist that collects data. Trunks include items such as skull replicas, prey items, model turtles, calipers, measuring tapes, a scale, lesson binder, and more. Lessons align with state standards, offer STEM-based activities, and promote inquiry-based learning. Trunks are developed to contain all materials a teacher would need to run the lessons over 2- 3 week period. 3vveekperiod. Trunksare also lent toteachers atnocost. |nthe 3O15'1Gschool year, our trunks were able toreach over 4,0OOlocal students. Because of its popularity with teachers and our successes, we decided to develop a statewide program that would allow us to work with like-minded organizations, recreating these trunks for their school districts. Grant funding allows ustmpurchase the materials and work with selected organizations at no cost to the organization. Only 5 organizations will be chosen based on their applications. Organizations will need to fill out this application form in its entirety and submit to , no later than June 241h, Spm. Eligibility Criteria • Must belocated inthe state ofFlorida. • Must have conservation as a leading part of your organization's mission. * Must be willing to actively work with schools and school districts in launching this ! program. � o Analready established relationship with schools/districts is preferred but not ' required. . w Must have adedicated staff member that will bethe point person for this program. * Must be able to commit time developing and maintain the program. • Must be able to submit required reports onthis program over three year period. i General Guidelines Through this grant program, chosen applicants will be able to add a meaningful and engaging education program to their organization's repertoire. IRG will assist chosen organizations in the creation and maintenance of their own Traveling Turtles trunk program, which they will then make available to teachers for free. The material has been developed by professional educators and vetted by local teachers. I I Timeline There is a three-year program commitment for all chosen organizations. If selected, applicants can expect to run and report back on the program over these three years. Upon completion, the organization may carry on with the program as they see fit but must continue to give rights to IRG and supporting agencies. The program must be ready to run by September, 2016. IRG staff will be working with organizations through July and August to recreate contents and get the organization staff comfortable with the program. There will be instructional videos and content that will guide organization staff through both running the program and explaining it to teachers. This will help organizations understand the content and how to highlight its selling points with educators. Year One*: • Receive supplies and use instructional materials to recreate trunk in its entirety. This includes individualizing model turtles by: o Giving them different epibiota loads (gluing on "algae" and barnacles) o Flipper tagging them with provided tags o Filling them with dive weights and insulating foam so they weigh different amounts o Creating fake injuries • Approach school districts with sample content and garner interest in program. • Establish relationships with local school district coordinators, principals, or teachers to raise awareness about the program. • Establish a personal protocol for scheduling, maintaining contents, and teacher pick- up/drop-off. • Attend district workshops to showcase the program, running simulations with teachers �(if applicable). • 'Maintain reports of school demographics, i.e. how many students reached, grade level, etc. • Encourage teachers to complete surveys upon completion of the program. f i i *If IRG staff does not feel as though a concerted effort has been made in any of the years to accomplish the majority of these tasks, the contract can be renegotiated or revoked. This could halt all programming and result in a loss of all program contents. Years Two and Three will focus on maintaining and building upon the relationships and protocols above. It is highly encouraged to show growth in these years by either increasing the studenIt reach, attending workshops, expanding out to more schools, etc. i Commitment The program can be wildly successful but requires a staff member committed to seeing it through to completion. The relationship with district staff is the most important part of making this program effective. If you don't have the support of the teachers, principals, or district coordinators, this program cannot reach its full potential. The majority of the first year will be spent developing these relationships and applicants should be aware of the time and energy that this requires. Only applicants that have the time to allocate to such tasks should apply. Once relationships with districts have been developed, maintenance and scheduling are the main focuses. Expectations We will be looking for candidates that show both a passion for conservation education, as well as the drive to begin a new and potentially very popular program. Applicants that can show the need of such a program both in their organizations and school districts will be given preference. This has been IRG's most popular program by far and we want to make sure it works the same for you. Expectations for this program include but are not limited to: • Creation of contents in a timely fashion and in time for the September deadline • Drive to foster affiliations with schools, teachers, district coordinators, etc. • Desire to fill a niche within school curriculum, while providing hands-on experiential learning • Open communication with IRG staff to discuss questions, concerns, troubleshooting, etc. • Commitment in raising awareness for this program with your audience • Consistent reporting on program numbers, teacher survey results and photos (if applicable) i Application Process Applicants must have their applications in no later than June 24th, 2016. All who apply will receive an email stating that their paperwork is under review. The five chosen organizations i Application Please email back to rmott(o)inwater.org no later than June 24th, 5pm I Organization Name Indian River Sea Turtle Program (IRC Habitat Conservation Plan) Address 1801 27th Street, Vero Beach 32960 Cope - HCP Coordinator Kendra Co Contact Name P i Contact Phone 772-538-0616 Contact Email kcope@ircgov.com Organization's mission: Our HCP is specific to improving nesting habitat for sea turtles. "When fully implemented the HCP will increase productivity of the County's beaches". Staff have decided one of the most important ways of accomplishing this goal is through education of public young and old. Number of education staff 1 staff (myself) and up to 15 volunteers School'district(s) you plan to reach with this program: Indian River County public and private schools 1. Why do you believe this program will benefit both your organization and your surrounding schools? Indian River County(IRC)is located in the middle of the most productive loggerhead nesting beach area in the U.S. and Western Hemisphere. All residents of IRC live only up to 15 minutes from a beach no matter where their home may be, yet many to not know any of the ecological treasures this place has to offer. Our beaches are beginning to be over developed, surrounded by lights and buried in trash. The county has eight title one schools and during their 3rd and 4th grade years students form these schools and others make visits to the Environmental Learning Center to discover the IR Lagoon, but nothing is planned for 5th grade students to help expand their coastal education. Before the 15/16 school year only 2 schools openly reported adding sea turtle information in their curriculum, organized beach clean ups or made other conservation efforts with their 5th grade students. Everyone knows that children are some of the most influential people in the world and still have passion and a drive to make their surrounding area better. If 5th graders were offered a hands on opportunity to learn more about their coastal environment and the keystone species that utilize it, like sea turtles, then they would be the ones with the energy to improve conservation efforts for the future. One of the ways the county began making efforts to biologically improve their coastline is though the implementation of the Habitat Conservation Plan, specifically designed to improve nesting habitat for sea turtles. The HCP was implemented in 2005 and in 2015 the HCP coordinator expanded the management program to include education and public outreach using multiple venues. If accepted for the traveling trunk program the county will be able to enhance its education program which is full of volunteers eager to help inform the public of the human impacts sea turtle face and ways they can get involved in local conservation. will be announced on July 15t, 2016 and notified through email. If you do not receive an email by this time, your organization was not one of the five selected. Once organizations have been notified, they will be required to sign an agreement, laying out the details of the program set forth by Inwater Research Group. At this time, should organizations feel uncomfortable with any of the stipulations, they are not required to proceed and another organization will be chosen in their place. FAA's 1. Do I have to be a 501c3 organization to apply? No. Our primary focus is finding organizations that can prove need and have the drive to see the program succeed. 2. Do we have to pay anything to be a part of this program? No. The program is completely underwritten through grants. The only commitment is staff time and .dedication. 3. Can we offer the program at our facility? No. The program is designed to travel to schools, allowing teachers to utilize the materials. We want to fill the niche in their curriculum and offer them a service that requires little extra work on their part. 4. Can we charge teachers for the program? No. The program must be offered to teachers at no cost. 5. Can we offer the program to all types of schools (i.e. private, public, charter)? Yes. However, preference should be given to schools that show need, especially Title One schools. 6. Do we keep the trunk after the third year? Yes. You may continue the program after three years without needing to report. All materials should remain with original organizational logos, though. 7. What grades are best suited for this program? 3,d-5th grades really benefit from this program as it targets a lot of benchmarks they will be tested on in 5th grade. 6-81h grade may find the program engaging and it does cover several middle school benchmarks as well. i 2. Do you have a current relationship with local school districts? If yes, please explain in a 'few short sentences. If not, please explain how you plan to develop these relationships. Yes a relationship with the local school district was created in 2015 in concert with the beginning of marine conservation presentations given to 5th graders in 6 of the 13 public elementary schools in the county. This presentation was aligned with the 5th grade adaptations curriculum and taught students about sea turtle and marine mammal biology, the difference between inherited and taught traits, and specific adaptations for sea turtle survival. i These relationships were developed by first reaching out to individuals school principals and AP then through contact with the science teachers.Attached to this application is one of the teacher's emails sent to the Public Works Director raving about the presentation and its correlation with their state standards. 3. Do you currently offer school programs? If yes, please explain and include grade levels, program information, and average amount of students you reach each year. As the answer to the previous question described, currently the IR Sea Turtle Program education team made up of multiple volunteers and one county staff member, gave presentations about marine conservation and adaptations to all 5th grade students at 6 schools in the county during the 15-16'school year, 2 of which were TITLE 1 schools. These were wildly successful and requests for visits the following school year were made by all teachers. Pre/Post tests were administered to students and are currently being graded and analyzed to answer the question "Was their any information learned during the presentation?" 4. Who will be the project leader on this program? Please provide their name and a couple of short sentences on their experience working in education. The project leader will be Kendra Cope, the HCP/Sea Turtle Coordinator for IRC. She created the presentation that is currently being given to 5th classrooms, she made the original contacts with the school teachers and principals, and has made new contacts with a couple private schools in the county interested in including sea turtle curriculum during the 16/17 school year. Her background is with general public education programs Her MS thesis analyzed the community impacts (economic and long-term education/behavior)of the popular turtle walks. She is also starting a new program in IRC during the 2016 nesting season called "Turtle Digs". Nest evaluations in the City of Vero beach will now be a public program which includes a presentation and an up close opportunity for guests to watch sea turtle researchers and volunteers collect data on reproductive success of sea jturtle nests in the area. 5. This program can take time to get started but will last for years to come. Is the project manager willing to commit the time to creating the trunk contents, developing relationships with schools, maintaining the trunk's contents, and liaising with teachers? The project leader is a full-time employee with IRC and her position manages sea turtle nesting and other sea turtle activity outlined by the HCP. She plans to be in this position long-term. As part of the Sea Turtle Program she manages a large group of dedicated volunteers which has grown from 8-15 people in the last year and will continue to grow in coming years. There will be plenty of volunteers available to help create the trunk contents,a handful of them already have experience with presenting at schools and are dedicated to keeping good relations with currently involved schools, and the volunteers will be happy to help build a foundation for this new program. The project leader will be responsible for maintaining the trunk contents over time and all contents will be stored in the county office with other education materials used for various programs. She will also continue to keep relations with the teachers and is dedicated to building relations with the school district board and private school teachers so all students in IRC have an opportunity to learn more about sea turtle conservation and biology. i 6. What is your three year plan for using the trunk? Please explain how you will garner interest from teachers/district staff and how many classes you feel you may be able to reach each year. iDuring the first year of the program I plan on introducing the truck program to all 6 schools that were part of the education program during the 15/16 school year,two of which are TITLE 1 schools, as well as two private schools ithat have already showed interest. During the first year relationships will be built with other schools in the district including the other 2 TITLE 1 public schools and 4 other TITLE 1 charter schools and will have a plan set out to 'include them in the following years By the 3rd year the program should have all public elementary schools involved and up to 5 private schools. This will happen though teacher relations, word of mouth about the program, land presentations to the county commission and school board after the 1st of"learning impact"data has been analyzed. i 7. Do you foresee any problems with incorporating this program into your organization? I cannot see any reason why there would be an issue implementing this program. As the application outlines all training will be done by IRG staff before the school year begins with program volunteers and staff and I plan on conducting additional training as more education volunteers become available the first year of program is complete and all education volunteers already have experience helping with other sea turtle education programs like turtle digs. 8. Do you have any questions on how you are allowed to utilize the program? Not at this time, thought presentations,workshops, and personal communication I have a very detailed idea of how the program works and I fully support it and cannot wait to use it if chosen. I I Traveling Turtles of Florida kW 5v,•,� a i"-rte Re-creation Instructions I pis trunk and its lessons developed by Inwater Research Group. For more information visit www!inwater.org. This program was funded in part by a grant awarded from the Sea Turtle Grants Program. The Sea Turtle Grants Program is funded from proceeds from the sale of the Florida Sea Turtle License Plate. Learn more at www.helpineseaturtles.ore. This program was funded in part by the National Save the Sea Turtle Foundation. To learn more, visit savetheseaturtle.ora. 1 i Running the Program f Expectations Program The truIAs are to be used solely for usage by teachers on a lending basis for free. This is a great option las it reaches more students (they can share with other teachers) and takes no staff time on your, part. The program includes four ready-made lessons that focus on inquiry-based learning while highlighting sea turtle biology, research, and conservation. School!Districts It is up to you to decide how many school districts you'll be working with. The biggest deciding factor will be travel radius. Since teachers must pick up and drop off the trunk, the biggest constraint for them will be how far they have to go to do this. We reached out to two adjacent and smaller districts, offering a pick-up/drop-off location in each county. You may be able to only offer one and want to start small. Once the program gains traction and teachers learn exactly what they are getting, you will have them interested in subsequent years. Lending Time We began lending each trunk to teachers for two weeks at a time but found this was not enough time for teachers to run through all the lessons due to their schedule so we offer it now for up to three weeks. When coordinating with teachers, we give them an option to use for less time if they won't use the whole three weeks. Some teachers only share with their class and need the trunk only for one week. Some teachers are resource teachers and see entire grade levels and may need it longer. If they're reaching more students, we usually let them extend their rental. Damage EVERY teacher before they are allowed to use the trunk needs to sign the agreement (AKA Registration Form). This ensures that they are aware of their responsibility when the trunk is in their possession and the outcomes if items get damaged or go missing. When teachers pick up the trunk, they are required (based on the agreement)to check off on their receiving inventory sheet (located in the binder)that all contents are present. This is in case something goes missing, you can make sure it was lost during lending time and not before they received it. They must alert you immediately if something is broken or missing upon receiving the trunk. It is up to them to let you know right away. They must check off an inventory sheet prior to return as well. Some teachers may not fill this out and that's okay but it holds them accountable should something go missing. 2 Minor wear and tear is understandable and easily remedied by gluing on a barnacle or touching up pai i t. Loss or damage beyond repair of an item is the teacher's responsibility. The teacher who requested the trunk and signed the form will be responsible for any damage, even if sharing with another teacher. Below is a pricing sheet that lays out the cost to replace each item in the trunk. Prices include cost plus small shipping charges. If any of the items we have provided becomes damaged or goes missing, please contact rmott@inwater.org for possible replacement. i Price Sheet for Lost Items Foam inserts $ 75.00 Trunk $ 75.00 Model turtle $ 30.00 Caliper $ 115.00 Green skull $ 150.00 Loggerhead skull $ 240.00 Leatherback skull $ 155.00 Ridley skull $ 140.00 Hawksbill skull $ 95.00 Scale $ 35.00 Sea grass $ 7.00 Jellyfish $ 8.00 Sponge $ 13.00 Crab $ 11.00 Conch $ 35.00 Ping pong balls(we provide 10 extra in case some go missing)* Measuring tapes (we provide 2 extra in case some go missing)* I 1 *You'll want to remove the extras before you offer the trunk to teachers. i I I 3 Registering for the program The Registration Form includes all program info including logistics like pick up and drop off information, dimensions of the trunk, responsibilities, and the agreement page for signature. Please i eel free to change the highlighted text to reflect your organization's information. When we give the Registration Form to teachers, we typically highlight the parts of the document that need filling out before we send it to them so can easily see what information they need to provide. This helps ensure you get all the info you need the first time around. After the program details have been worked out, we send a confirmation via email with a staff signature and date at the bottom of the first page so they can reference it, saving a copy for ourselves. The week prior to the borrow period begins, we send out a reminder email to the teacher with the following: • Agreed date and time • Address and directions • 'Dimensions of trunk • Contact info for last minute emergencies or help with directions This is really helpful as teachers can sometimes forget a program they requested months ago and it helps avoid "no shows". In addition, before the lending period, we print the first page of their confirmation, which has the drop off date and time, and place it in the front of their binder with that information highlighted. Return'of trunk Once you receive the trunk back make sure to inventory all the contents and check that the turtles have all their parts intact. It's important to look through the binder at this point. Make sure all the activity cards are counted and in the right places. Sometimes one or two can go missing and that can throw off a lesson. I There is- survey in the front of the binder that we ask teachers to fill out upon completion. If they have not filled it out and you'd like to follow up with an email link, you can send them to https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/TravelingTurtiesFL. Any responses we get online, we will share with your organization. 4 i Contents Binder The les I son binder has all 4 lessons pre-printed, cut and laminated where appropriate so teachers Just have to pick up the trunk and run the program. In addition to pre-cut and laminated pages, we've supplied the originals in case teachers would like to make copies. There is also a DVD in the binder that has all the original files if teachers would like to print them out to keep. The video files for Lesson 4 are also on there along with a PowerPoint presentation,Jeopardy game and supplemental resources. The binder is meant to be re-used so teachers may not keep any contents but rather use and put back or make copies to keep. Binder contents should be checked and updated when necessary. If you need to recreate some of the contents because they are worn or missing, we will include a DVD for you with all the lessons. Please make sure whatever condition we provide them to you in, you recreate (e.g. laminated activity cards must be replaced with copies that you cut and laminate so they are the same). We will provided a binder for you to use. Included in the binder: • Lessons 1-4 I • DVD containing: lesson plans, video files for Lesson 4, PowerPoint presentation, Jeopardy game, and supplemental resources • Inventory sheets • Confirmation letter with dates/times of pick-up and drop-off highlighted • Images of trunk organization so items are placed back in the right spot • Teacher survey • IRG brochures (you may add your organizational brochures as well) Lessons Lessons 1-4 align with Next Generation Sunshine State Standards and build upon each previous lesson. Lesson 1 covers an intro to sea turtles with an out-of-the-seat activity where students must find their respective turtle group using clues on their activity cards. Lesson 2 has nesting activity worksheets as well as a relay race in which students must act as nesting1moms laying their eggs. Lesson 3 is all about population sampling. Why we do it, what it can tell us, and gets students to participate in class with a sampling activity. Lesson 4 takes students through a modified sea turtle stranding sheet that helps them determine species, size class, body condition, etc. It delves into why we tag turtles and why data collection is important. Students will see this come full circle when they watch videos of researchers who originally tagged their turtles. Biologists share their original capture data and 5 students will be able to compare it to current data to determine what changes have occurred between capture occurrences. SuppliI es The supplies for the trunk run $2,500. We use Amazon.com for most of our orders so many of the materials will coming to you via Amazon.com and delivered either through UPS or USPS. The skulls and calipers will be coming from two additional companies and you will receive a package from IRG with the remainder of supplies. Turtles We made sure that every turtle was unique by giving them injuries, different weights, etc. We're including a list of the turtles we created as well as each one's approximate weight, injury and epi biont load. We are including photos of each turtle to give you a better idea. Below you will see'how to recreate these materials and the time it will take to put them together. In sharpie; somewhere inconspicuous, you can number the turtles to keep better track since not all are tagged. This will have to be reapplied as it tends to rub off. Here's what you'll need to do to ensure that your turtles are individualized: Barnacles* (30 mins to apply) *provided but these are instructions if you'd like to create more. We took real barnacles and put them in 90%alcohol for a week. After that, we placed them in the sun for one day facing up and the next day facing down to ensure they completely dried out. Then, we took a wooden skewer and pulled out the actual dried up animal, being careful to leave the operculum intact. Finally, we sprayed them with a clear satin polycrylic from Lowes. This will most likely take 2 applications per side. To adhere these to the turtles, we tried hot glue, which melted in warmer temps so super glue ended up being the best bet. Algae (30 mins) We cut the fabric in mis-shapes to look more realistic. It is best adhered with super glue. We tried to,hide the edges by pushing down on the fabric strands themselves, which helped them adhere over the fabric edges. We put the algae and barnacles in the same areas so it looked more realistic and so the algae could hide when the barnacles weren't flush with the carapace. Injuries(2-3 hrs) We gave the turtles all sorts of injuries so students could understand human impacts. The fishing hook in mouth was achieved by simply cutting a slit into the mouth of the turtle and sliding a large J hook in past the barb. We super glued it in place so it wouldn't wiggle around or come free. The plastic bag was achieved the same way, pushing it into the slit with a flathead screwdriver. The missing flipper was removed with a utility knife and smoothed over. We then painted it a mixture of white and green to match the area. Boat strikes were achieved I 6 I / by using a utility knife to carve out 3 lines in a row on the carapace and painting them in red. A shark bite was simulated by cutting out a jagged crescent shape along the marginal scutes with a utility knife. We also painted the bite green and white paint to match the turtle, simulating that the wound had healed. I Weights (3-4 hrs) Each turtle weighs a different amount and this becomes important to keep track of when tagging the turtles. We thought out what each turtle's "story" should be so the data the researchers share on the video make sense when compared to the data the students collect from their turtle. Each turtle was cut open along its plastron, about 4 inches. We took dive weight beads and filled each with a different amount. We then used the insulating foam, inserting and rolling around until the beads stopped moving inside. We taped the turtle around to hold the edges of the incision closed while the foam dried. This step should be done first so you can keep track of the weight of the turtles before adding any injuries or tagging. Turtle Tae# Iniury Barnacles Algae Weight NO igg # Location 1 IRG057 1 2 1.331 KWNWR a Yr 1 1.137 Puerto Rico 3 Shark bite . '' s'v 1.149 a' 4 IRG062 Right front flipper missing 0.973 Boca Raton „�-,;-i�.; 5 IRG073 Boat strike kms,..` -'}3 =4r 0.984 ACNWR 6 IRG051 1.083 St. Lucie h 7 IRG063 3 3 0.999 Big Bend 8 Plastic bag in mouth 9 2 1.031 i:F .et}fjLE 9 Hook in mouth 12 2 1.008 10 IRG052 3 1 0.993 Palm Beach NOTE: When filling the turtles, they do not have to be exactly what you see above. The important part is that turtles that are underweight (<1.ikg) remain below that threshold and that turtles that are healthy(>1.1kg) remain above that threshold. For turtles that are above weighty you can make as "robust" as you'd like. The highlighted weights above require no filling whatsoever and can remain intact to achieve these weights. 7 I 1.IRGO57 2.IRG065 I . 17 . I - i 3.Shark Bite ~- I _ 3.Shark Blte.(close-up) I 4.IRGO62 4-CI i 4.IRGO62(close-up) d 8 5.IRG073(close-up) � - � 6.IRGOSI 7.IRGO63 -17 VA S.Plastic Sag S.Plastic Sag(d 1 U. �1 tom_ r� 0 syri'y k t xr Mr.;= 4 . i TrunkLabels We will supply decals with supporting organizations' logos. They are reinforced with sheet metal and must be screwed into the top of the trunk as seen below. We suggest using a 1/8" diameter drill bit and machine screws >1/2" long with an appropriate sized nut on the back to secure it. Holes should be drilled on all four corners of each decal. I - JAIL i I C� r•< I a;LD 11 Trunk Foam Inserts The foam inserts will come with more foam than you need for replacement as they can get pretty banged up. Most of the pieces are "pick n pluck" foam, which means you can take out small cubes one at a time to make space for your artifacts to fit into. We've provided photos of the layout with labels to help you figure out what pieces to remove. The bottom foam should be thelwavy, non-"pick n pluck" piece. Place it so the flat side is facing up. On top of that you'll want to place the piece from which you removed the cubes. This gives you the foundation in which you'll put your skulls (picture below). You can use another"pick n pluck" piece intact, to lay on top so the artifacts are protected. Please put the artifacts in the order you see below as it's the'layout we provide to teachers so they can organize the contents before they return it. Green Skull Kemp's ridley Skull Leatherback Skull Gab Hawksbill Skull Sponge Jellyfish Loggerhead Skull Shell Sea grass Verbiage When writing up something on your website, social media, newsletter, etc., please feel free to pull from the verbiage below. Local teachers can now request our new Traveling Turtles of Florida trunk program. The program is built on four conservation-based lesson plans for 3-8r'graders that center on hands- on learning. Each lesson builds upon another, taking students through the exciting world of sea i 12 i turtles. Classes will learn about Florida's sea turtles, their nesting habits, sampling populations, and how to collect valuable data from their very own model turtle. Lessons are aligned with NGSSS, with emphasis on STEM initiatives and inquiry-based learning. I The program is contained entirely in a mobile trunk that has skull replicas of the 5 sea turtles we see in Florida's waters as well as prey items for each species. Trunks also include model turtles, calipers, measuring tapes, a scale, and a lesson binder. Each lesson has been pre-printed, cut, and laminated to reduce the teacher's workload. Trunks may be borrowed for up to three weeks i t a time and are completely free! ALL mentions of the program in printed materials MUST include the following sentences along with all three logos provided: This program was created by Inwater Research Group (w ww.inwater.orQ) and funded in part by a grant awarded from the Sea Turtle Grants Program. The Sea Turtle Grants Program is funded from proceeds from the sale of the Florida Sea Turtle License Plate. Learn more at www.helpingseaturtles.org. This program was funded in part by the National Save The Sea Turtle Foundation. To learn more, visit www.savetheseaturtle.org, We use this on our website as well: FAQs 1. Who can borrow a trunk? (Change to include the school district(s)you will be working with) 2. Can the trunk be shipped? Sorry, but our trunks are all-inclusive and too heavy to ship. We have two pick-up locations in Martin and St. Lucie County. (Change to reflect how many locations you have and in which counties) 3. Can I borrow the trunk longer than three weeks? We can sometimes accommodate longer lending periods upon request. 4. What does it cost to borrow a trunk? Absolutely nothing! The borrowing teacher will be responsible for late fees or damage i fees. 5. How many kids can the trunk lessons accommodate? Lessons are set up to best cater to classrooms of around 20 students. Launching the Program 13 i Getting the word out to local teachers may be the hardest part of getting the program up and running, unless you already have established relationships. You have a few avenues in which to work. Teachers If you 'already have programs that teachers consistently use like field trips, outreach programs, etc., you can contact them directly through email. If you are afraid this will compete with your current programs, explain to teachers that this program will bolster what you may already offer and is a great way to prepare students before an outreach or field trip. It can also be offered after for continued learning. District Coordinators Your district coordinators are an excellent way to break into the school realm as they are in contact with all public school teachers in that county. You'll need to first figure out who your coordinators are. You can find this on your school districts' websites. They are typically the STEM or Science Coordinators but can also be Science Instructional Leads as well. We found that calling or emailing them to start and offering to send them a sample in the mail is helpful. You can find an example of a sample packet on your DVD. If you can work with the district coordinators and show them that this is a worthwhile program that is meant to help teachers and students at no cost, they are very receptive to getting the word out for you. Workshops Some district coordinators will even ask you to be a part of workshops, where teachers get in- service hours for attending. It's very easy to run through lesson 4 in these workshops and it's an excellent way to show teachers what they're getting. We attended a workshop right after the launch of our program and booked two trunks for the entire school year. We have included a PowerPoint to aid you and created a separate workshop lesson to run through with teachers. Along with the trunk contents, bring a calendar of availability and registration forms. You have their piqued interest and attention at this point. Once they leave, it is much harder to have them select dates and pass forms back and forth via email. If you can get them to sign up in person,1this will make your job exponentially easier. Once they do, we follow up with an emailed confirmation of their dates/times. Princip IIs I Principals can be harder to get a hold of and labor intensive to reach each one individually. This said, they can be liaised with in the same way you work with district coordinators. They are not easily accessible during school hours so you'll often have to leave voicemails. Figure out the name of the principal and ask the front desk to patch you through to their voicemail if they're extension is not available on the school's website. i 14 Traveling Turtles of Florida _ l TI I- - f .Y Details & Agreement This trunk and its lessons developed by Inwater Research Group. For more information visit www.inwater.org. This program was funded in part by a grant awarded from the Sea Turtle Grants Program. The Sea Turtle Grants Program is funded from proceeds from the sale of the Florida Sea Turtle License Plate. Learn more at www.helpingseaturtles.org. This program was funded in part by the I National Save the Sea Turtle Foundation. To learn more,visit savetheseaturtle.ors. I Wheeled trunk (23" H x 37 L x 23 W) Foam inserts (can be pulled apart to-fit skulls) Sea turtle skulls (5) Prey items (jellyfish, blue crab*, sea grass, sponge*, conch*) Model turtles (flipper-tagged)* Calipers (10) Insulating foam Dive weight beads (3 Ib. bag) Acrylic;paint* Faux fur for"algae"* Barnacles (preserved and sealed)* Scale Ping pong balls (40)* Measuring tapes (12)* Lesson binder* Trunk decals* DVD with recreation instructions and training material* Certain items will ship from the business of purchase. All items with an * will be shipped from IRG. Items may come separately. You must supply an address that can receive shipments after hours. Reporting Organizations will be required to report back on July 1St of each year with the following: 1. Program Demographics Reporting spreadsheet (provided) 2. Teacher surveys 3. Photos (if possible) 4. List of events, workshops at which the program was presented (if applicable) 5. Copies of print mention of program (e.g. social media, newsletters, e-blasts) i Timeline YEAR 1 July 2016 • Organizations will be notified of their selection • IRG will contact project leader to discuss questions, concerns, etc. • Contents of the trunk will be shipped to your specified address the first two weeks of July • Organizations will recreate the model turtles using the supplied instructions and materials • ' Trunk will be put together in entirety by organizations • Organizations will work out the logistics of the program (registration procedure, drop off/pick up locations and times, etc.) August/September 2016: • Contacts within the school district will be notified within the first two weeks of school • Program launch announcement via social media, press release, e-blast, etc. • IRG will be available to assist in any program implementation • Organizations will begin taking reservations for the program September 2016-June 2017 • Organizations will offer program to local schools • Organization will maintain contents of trunk and ensure materials are in good, working condition • Organizations will work to receive feedback from teachers via surveys • Organizations will track program numbers and demographics in supplied spreadsheet. July 1, 2017 • Organizations will provide IRG with their annual report YEARS 2 and 3 • Continue to work with schools in offering the program • Seek opportunities to present the trunk program to school districts if not already achieved in the first year • Maintain trunk contents and update materials as needed • Report back to IRG with program details annually i f Usage This program was created to provide teachers supplemental learning materials that focus on sea turtle conservation. We have guidelines and requirements for how this program should be run but we want to make it adaptable to your organization. The program may only be used as laid out in the Re-creation Instructions (attached). Using the program for any other purpose without consent from Inwater Research Group (IRG) could result in the agreement being voided and th; trunk being revoked from your organization. Program Restrictions • ,The program must be offered to educators for free and the organization may not benefit monetarily from its usage. • Lessons may not be broken up or offered for other purposes other than this program. • Materials must be created as laid out in the instructions and not left out or modified. • Sharing or replicating the lesson content for reasons other than your organization offering the program is prohibited unless given consent by IRG. • All supplies must be used solely for the purpose of this program. • If you are given permission to use the program for other purposes than are laid out in the agreement and Recreation Instructions, its primary purpose must take precedent and secondary usage must not hinder it in any way. • You may share this program with private and charter schools but public schools must be given priority. Reach This program has the potential to reach many students throughout the school year however we understand this may take time to establish. Each organization will be expected to work more or less with the timeline they laid out in their applications. IRG staff will be available to assist during the three year period to guide you if you have any questions or concerns. There will be questions as to how this program can be used and we will try to be flexible but the program was developed to fill a specific niche and priority for that will always take precedent. It is meant strictly for usage by teachers, not as part of an outreach initiative. We prefer you to reach many schools across at least one district but understand if you must start small. Please try to rotate the program around so that not just one or two schools have it available to them. Priority should always be given to public schools but may be used by other types of schools. If during the three year period IRG feels as though the program is not being utilized either as intended, or to the extent at which the organization laid out in their application, we have the right to terminate the program and revoke the trunk along with its contents. Supplies i Project Leader Contact Information Organization: INDIAN RIVER COUNTY Nam I KENDRA COPE Cont ict Phone: Contact Email: 772-226-1569 KCOPE@IRCGOV.COM I Shipping Details* Name: INDIAN RIVER COUNTY Address: 1801 2 7th ST. City: VERO BEACH State:iFL Zip: 32960 *Must be able to receive packages after hours By signing below, you agree to all the terms laid out in this document as well as in the Recreation Instructions. Print Name Bob Solari. Chairman Signature _ ��t.c.t+ Date July 12, 20];6°' Bob Solari, Chairman ; *. Please scan or mail a copy of this agreement to the following: oQNr�. Rebecca Mott ATTEST: • •`ER•auNr• � 5565 SE Martin Meadows Ave Jeffrey R. Srn , Clerk of o �c ....•••• Stuart, FL 34997 Comptr rmott@inwater.org BY: ut Clerk