Let the Field Trips Begin!

As a classroom teacher, I was never a fan of field trips. Permission slips, substitute lesson plans, bus drivers, the lack of learning in most cases : it was just too much effort with too little to show in the end. That said, I am sure my physics students in Atlanta loved the Six Flags Physics Day, especially when they watched Miss Sy take on the roller coasters. 

Luckily, field trips look a little different with a student: teacher ratio of 1:1. Maddox had scoped out the information on an Underwater Observatory  about 30 minutes North of us,  and so we counted our yen, filled our water bottles, and headed out the door.  

This is the observatory at the end of this pier. It goes down about 4 meters.

The location of this observatory is stunning, like much of the coastline of Okinawa. This particular beach area is adjacent to one of the nicest resorts on the island, and is a hot tourist destination. We bought our tickets for the glass-bottom boat ride and the observatory.

First, we took the boat ride. The water was crystal clear and the boat captain and tourists fed the fish to insure that there would be fish to see! We saw so many different varieties of fish swimming in the coral. My favorite was probably the blue starfish. After the boat ride, we headed towards the observatory.

The observatory is at the end of this long pier.

Once inside the observatory, you climb down a few dozen steps, and there are windows to look out from all sides. We spent quite a long time watching the fish. According to Maddox's field notes, we observed Banana Wrasse, Yellowfin Goatfish, Blue Starfish , Needlefish, Blowfish, Emperor Snapper, Yellowbar Parrotfish, Moorish Idol and the Indo-Pacific Sergeant. 

Indo-Pacific Sargeant, my favorite

We also saw someone's eyeglasses at the bottom of the ocean which she found the most interesting. But the coolest thing was seeing the Clownfish (Nemo) and the sea anemone. The observatory has an anemone placed on a sill outside one of the windows with a net holding it there, so everyone can observe the star of the show. It did not look real ; somehow at its most colorful, nature seems impossible.

Finding Nemo!

Sometimes I am worried that she is not learning enough, as if it matters whether she remembers the names of the fish she observed. I know it is important to cultivate her curiosity, so that she does not pass through life as a mere observer. I want her to wonder why the anemone is not lethal to Nemo. But for now, I think it just may be enough to know that these things exist. How amazing to live in a world such as ours, and how grateful I am to share it with her.

Maybe my former physics students do not remember how to calculate the speed of a roller coaster at the bottom of a hill, but maybe they take their kids there now, and say, "I remember coming here on a field trip. It's all physics, kid." And I guess that's worth the hassle of a few permissions slips. And hopefully Maddox will watch Finding Nemo with her ​​kids someday - in her Smart House with Holographic TV - and say, "You know, I saw Nemo once. Maybe I can take you there some day. "