WHALES ON WHEELS (WOW™)

Hands-On Presentations offered in Monterey and Santa Cruz Counties, California

The Land & Sea Watershed Model

See how human actions on land flow directly to the sea through storm drains. Students will “pollute” the hands-on model and simulate rain, which leads to creeks, rivers and oceans. Presented in partnership with the Stormwater & Education Alliance (SEA). Learn how one person can make a difference. Grades 4-Adult

Whales On Wheels WOW™

Dive-in with a hands-on mini-museum that introduces marine mammals and conservation messages. WOW™ brings bones of baleen and toothed whales, clicks of cetaceans, pelts of pinnipeds, skulls of sea mammals, and tales of toothed whales. A very hands-on program providing a breadth of understanding of marine mammals and the delicate balance that binds us together. Grades 3-Adult

Marine Mammals: Adaptations and Communication

Discover behavioral adaptations and communications of whales and dolphins in their marine environment. A multimedia presentation with hands-on feeding and communication stations: learn about the food web, touch baleen and marine mammal skulls, and view blubber, krill and whale lice. The program includes listening and learning about whale and dolphin sounds. A selected student will wear a whale costume to demonstrate adaptation (for lower grade levels). Grades 1-Adult

Sea Otters: A Story of Survival

Explore natural history, ecology and survival of the California sea otters. This multimedia presentation, with hands-on stations, covers topics as diverse as feeding and keystone species, adaptations and survival, human impacts and pollution. A selected student will wear a sea otter costume to demonstrate adaptation (for lower grade levels). Learn what you can do now to help protect sea otters from extinction. Grades 1-Adult

Fees

• $85 for the first class and $65 each additional class.
• Each class is 45-60 min (depending on students’ interest).
• Class size is limited to approximately 30 students.
• Can teach up to 4 classes per day.
• A mileage fee will be added for long-distance travel.
• All contributions support Save The Whales’ educational programs.

A sliding fee scale is available to financially limited schools.

Contact: Save The Whales
Phone: (831) 899-9957
Email: maris@savethewhales.org

Click here to download WOW™ Spring 2009 Flyer

Maris Sidenstecker shows students a sperm whale jaw bone

Saving whales: the next generation

Save The Whales was founded by Maris Sidenstecker when she was 14 years old, and focuses on educating the public, especially children, about marine mammals and the fragile ocean environment.

No one action will ensure the safety of whales for all time. This is why Save The Whales devotes so much energy to reaching children about whales. So far, over 250,000 school children have learned about whales, and how they can help save sea life through Whales On Wheels (WOW™) , an innovative hands-on educational program offered in English and Spanish. The WOW™ experience provides a stimulating learning encounter.

WOW™ brings you:

Bones of baleen whales,
Clicks of cetaceans,
Pelts of pinnipeds,
Skulls of sea mammals, and
Tales of toothed whales.

WOW™ has travelled across the nation visiting school children in Alaska, Arizona, Oregon, Washington, Illinois, Indiana, Ohio, Michigan, Virginia and California. WOW™ is now based in Monterey, California.

Our instructional staff is made up of degreed marine biologists, environmental educators, and researchers. The background experience of the staff includes: Catalina Island Marine Institute instructors and assistant program directors, Los Angeles Unified School District teachers, oceanography research and sampling, published killer whale research, and international environmental studies.

Whether your group is at a school, a museum, or local library, WOW™ will visit you. Knowledgeable instructors emphasize marine conservation and make learning about whales and their relatives easy and fun.

Bilingual instructor Mauricio Quiroga shows students a whale rib

In 1994, we began presenting WOW™ with bilingual educator, Mauricio Quiroga, a native of Latin America, in order to reach the large number of Hispanic school children in Los Angeles schools who speak English as a second language. WOW™ has reached over 50,000 bilingual elementary school students, ages 6-12 (1-6th grade), with a geographic range covering the greater Los Angeles area and surrounding counties.

WOW™ is one of the only hands-on programs presenting marine environmental science programs to bilingual students. WOW™ programs emphasize why humans, as land mammals, should help mammals that live in the sea and learn how their individual actions can make a difference in protecting marine life.

This exceptional educational program is funded by grants, memberships, proceeds from Adopt A Whale kits, and memorials. WOW™ currently serves the Monterey, California area. Call to book a lecture (831) 899-9957.

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