Last week, the Year 8 girls went on a trip to Kelly Tarltons.  Currently they are studying marine life in Science and Core Learning and were given the opportunity to experience it first hand.

During our time there, we learned about many things, including habitats, marine animals, the previous research done on them and so many fun facts!  There were multiple rotations, including a classroom experience where we learnt more about marine wildlife, and even got to touch and feel different artifacts!  We experienced the memorable shark tunnel, the seahorse kingdom and many more fascinating exhibits.

We enjoyed the penguin exhibit the most, as we got to experience the staff members feeding the penguins. 

Sophia Zhao & Cate Lindsay, Year 8 

The magnificent dark blue lighting made me feel like I was underwater.

We reached our temporary classroom where we were given a carefully guided lesson which taught us the importance of habitats and adaptations which also gave us a brief overlook of penguins and different sea creatures.

We then walked through the whole aquarium in different groups, looking inside the life of Scott, the first man to reach the Antarctic.  We saw all kinds of sea creatures including penguins, unique tropical fish, sea dragons and turtles.  We even got to see the penguin feeding which was held in their cold enclosure with a narrator giving informative facts about king and gentoo penguins.

There were also many interactive activities whilst walking through the aquarium like the ice challenge where you trial what it’s like to be a penguin and dip your whole arm in freezing, ice cold water which burns!  You time yourself and see how long you go for and can even challenge someone else to a battle.

The staff were so helpful and informative and this trip definitely helped us understand marine life, habitats and their importance to our lives.  It’s safe to say we all really enjoyed ourselves and were so grateful for the opportunity.  This definitely helped us understand our Social Studies topic for this term – Young Ocean Explorers. 

Holly Rakena, Year 8