News
Bring the ocean indoors: Educate and engage young people from the safety of your sofa
For the first time, the Marine Conservation Society’s (MCS) education team will be offering live webinar sessions in addition to education tools and resources available online for groups, schools and individuals at home.
The webinar sessions will focus on recycling, plastic waste, and marine conservation more broadly. By offering engaging webinar sessions, live lessons and offline resources to download, young people can learn more about the state of our seas from the safety of their homes.
Jenny Griffiths, Education Programme Manager at MCS says: “We’re really pleased to now be able to offer a series of engaging online webinars which can keep young people entertained and educated during these uncertain times. Our ocean education resources are available for everyone to use, from teachers looking to provide support to their classes from afar, to parents and guardians hoping to keep children occupied! We at MCS have long believed that ocean literacy should be a key part of the national curriculum, with these resources we hope to show the incredible value in education the next generation about the ocean and the issues it faces.”
The MCS Cool Seas Explorers website has a wealth of resources for different age groups, with educational games, quizzes, creative activities, image galleries and more, to help with home learning. Downloadable PDF resources and lesson plans which focus on different topics in more detail are also available.
Some of the amazing ocean resources available online:
– Amazing UK seas (ages 5-11)
This topic looks at all the really important processes our cooler temperature UK seas allow for, including learning about our vital kelp forests and seagrass meadows which are habitats for many different creatures. In this section you can find some brilliant resources and lesson plans, covering rare and threatened species, Marine Protected Areas (MPAs), and how we can all help our ocean.
– Marine litter (ages 5-11)
This topic explores how litter and waste finds its way onto UK beaches and what we can do to help prevent it polluting our coastline. Find games, galleries, lesson plans and documents in this section for more information on ocean plastics. A detailed Unflushables lesson plan is also available to download as part of the Cool Seas Investigators programme, which is aimed at secondary school students.
– Marine industries (ages 7-11)
This can be used to teach older children about the different industries which utilise our seas, including fisheries, oil rigs, ports and shipping, and offshore renewable energy sources. There’s a Tetris-style game based on a shipping container’s cargo, a gallery of images of different industrial apparatus, and downloadable resources to use at home.
– Encounter Edu
The team at Encounter Edu have a fantastic programme of live lessons scheduled which allow children to hear from experts in their field streamed live on location, a fantastic addition to your home learning schedule! The AXA Arctic Live 2020 event is also running from 4-15th May 2020, where there will be live lessons streaming from the UK’s Arctic Research Station on Svalbard. The first week of lessons will focus on life and work in the Arctic, and the second on exploring the conservation issues the environment is facing there.
All of these resources and sessions are available for groups, schools, or individuals at home to join in with, as a fun and interactive way of learning more about our ocean. If you are interested in booking one of these live sessions please email the team at education@mcsuk.org to find out more.
For more information, please join MCS’s UK Ocean Schools Resource Hub on Facebook, where members share useful marine education resources they’ve come across online.
After a two-year tour of UK art galleries, community spaces and aquariums, the Shark Trust’s acclaimed Oceanic31 exhibition takes its final bow at the Royal Geographical Society later this month. And the unique collection of artwork, depicting 31 species of oceanic sharks and rays, donated by 31 artists, is now open for bids from art lovers and shark enthusiasts. The online auction, launched today, will close on the 7th December at 8pm (BST). The money raised will support the Shark Trust Oceanics Programme.
People can now bid on 27 of the artworks by visiting this website:
https://superstars-auctions.com/sharktrustauction
It is a chance to own a beautiful piece of original art and to support the Shark Trust. The timing of the auction also means that these would make a very special Christmas gift for any shark-lover.
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- Bigeye Thresher Shark by Janina Rossiter
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- Carcharodon carcharias by Jimmy Higgs
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- Croc VR 2030 by Tom Mead
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- Oceanic Whitetip by ATM
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- Silky Street by ScapaJoe
The diversity of pieces mirrors that of the sharks and rays they represent. You can bid on paintings, digital creations, sculptures, mixed media and more. You can pick your favourite artist or species of shark. Or you can select the perfect artwork to make a statement in your home or office. Whichever you choose, you will be supporting the work to protect these amazing animals.
One of the pieces of art has been selected to be auctioned live by Steve Backshall at the For the Love of Sharks event at the Royal Geographical Society in London on the 29th November. In addition to this, two further pieces will be raffled at this event, giving people a chance to win an incredible piece of shark art. For the Love of Sharks is the Shark Trust’s flagship evening. A night to celebrate sharks. Steve Backshall is the headline speaker at this event that will see other prominent shark advocates join him on stage.
Tickets for the event can be snapped up here:
https://thesharktrust.org.uk/Event/flos24
Those that would like to see the Oceanic 31 exhibition have one final chance. It is being displayed at the Pavilion at the Royal Geographic Society from 26th November until the 7th December. Entry is free.
Find out more here:
https://www.rgs.org/events/upcoming-events/oceanic-31
Paul Cox, Shark Trust CEO, Said “This exhibition has given us the opportunity to reach out to a new audience. And inspire more people with the wonderful sharks and rays on which our Big Shark Pledge campaign is based. We are immensely grateful to the 31 artists who have worked so hard to create these works.”
Bid for your favourite Oceanic 31 artwork here:
https://superstars-auctions.com/sharktrustauction
Banner Image: Smooth Hammerhead by Alicia Hayden
Cozy and warm in cold water.
It’s drysuit season all year round. With the new RS series premium drysuits from DYNAMICNORD, divers are perfectly equipped for all cold waters.
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Noteworthy is the Molle fastening system, which can be used in a variable and compatible manner. This way, the two detachable leg pockets can be attached easily, safely and comfortably.
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The matching Dynaskins made with high-quality Polartec® technology are available in various designs. As an undersuit under the drysuit, as a single suit in warm waters or as a two-piece suit. Polartec® technology’s main features are neutral buoyancy, breathablilty and quick-drying.
Dynaskins are made largely from recycled plastic bottles.
The drysuit RS-351 for men and RS-352 for women are now available at your DYNAMICNORD dealer and in the online store.
Colors men and women: Black-Blue and Black-Burgundy
Sizes men: XS-4XL incl. intermediate sizes MS, MT, MLS, MLT, LS, LT, XLS, XLT, 2XLS, 3XLS, 4XLS
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DYNAMICNORD – Your Outdoor Companion.
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