Staff Involvement With the Aquarium
The goal for the Cabrillo High School Aquarium is to integrate as many
departments and educational disciplines to utilize the Aquarium as the catalyst
that helps students use their imagination to learn.
Art
Under Richard Fisher's mentorship, each year students use their talent
to develop sketches, paintings and large murals that help our visitors better
understand how delicate our coastal waters are. Additionally, Mr. Fisher
has provided the aquarium with a series of sketches that provided three-
dimensional views of how the new aquarium facility could look. Included
in the sketches were tanks, people standing around, seating modules, and
aquatic sculptures with different themes for different areas. He also provided
front views with rocks, plants, and murals. These sketches were starting
points in discussions with the architectural firm who has created formal
drafts of the proposed new facility.
Business
The business department has teams of students who are developing plans
for marketing T-shirts, hats, and other promotional materials that promote
the Cabrillo High School Aquarium. Students help in addressing, collating
and distributing letters and flyers that are sent out each year to Aquarium
Patrons.
Drama
Students have designed life-size costumes of sea animals. A killer
whale, dolphin, sea star, squid, bat ray, or leather back turtle can be
seen greeting the bus loaded with K-6 graders who are eager to see the Aquarium.
During "Library Week" this past Spring, the newly formed Aquarium
Players performed at the local library to rave reviews.
English
Members each year proofread Aquarium materials and help students find
publishers that will print articles and stories about the sea.
Graphic Design
Developing a "new look" for the aquarium, Mr. Schaller and his graphic arts students are providing a more polished presentation to
the thousands of visitors that read about and visit the high school aquarium.
Included in this upgrade effort are new patron brochures, signs, tour brochures,
new stationary and letterhead, coloring books for children, and collaboration
on a multimedia CD with Vandenberg Air Force Base. Additionally, design
help for the floor plan was provided in sketches for viewing by the architectural
firm hired to draft the proposed new aquarium.
Industrial Technology
Each display in the CHS Aquarium has been designed and developed by
students and staff using the equipment and knowledge of our Industrial Technology
Department.
Photography
Cabrillo's Photography Instructor, Greg Hyatt, took the first photographs
of the aquarium when it only had a warm water reef. He created the first
aquarium slide show set to music, and as the facility has developed, he
has recombined the slide show with music several times. Eight or nine years
ago he created the largest picture in his career, a 4' x 8' poster of the
warm water reef. Greg also took the pictures and developed the layout for
the first aquarium brochure. Most recently, he completed a photographic
documentary on the raising of trout in the aquarium.He has helped his students
take and develop photos for news articles and displays in the Aquarium.
His photos have been featured several times in Fresh and Marine Aquarium
Magazine, a nationally recognized Aquarium Magazine with international distribution.
Science
In Greg Eisen's Marine Science classes all students are required to
complete at least fifteen hours per semester that directly benefits marine
science and the aquarium. The students choose their projects which may include
becoming a tour guide during lunch hours for visiting groups, or completing
projects like alphabet ocean cards and coloring books. Unable to learn certain
things from a book, the aquarium provides Cabrillo classes with a location
for the studying of specific organisms, perhaps looking at respiration rate
or behavior. Water quality testing is also done. Students are also working
with Mr. Newman Whitmire on skeleton articulation.
Educational
Outreach
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