Week 6 Junior Summer Program
August may have arrived, but we’re still full steam ahead at The WaterFront Center! Week 6 Marine Explorers focused on Ocean Principle 6 - The Ocean is our Friend: learn about the connection between oceans and humans.
Bay Buccaneers: (Grade 1 & 2): Learned different ways to protect the environment this week! Educators taught about the importance of recycling, saving water, and pollinators in growing fruit, nuts, and flowers. They did a beach cleanup and made bee crafts from recycled materials to follow up on the lesson. They also learned about invasive species and how they can impact an ecosystem by going into the field, catching invasive crabs in the salt Marsh, and looking at invasive sea sponges off the dock.
Sound Swash (Grades 3 & 4): Explored the power of nature and how to harness it. Group members learned about water mills and then designed and tested their own. The group used trial and error to determine what was wrong or how to make their design more efficient. They also examined how powerful earthquakes are and then built and tested buildings against earthquakes.
First Mates (Grades 5 & 6) & Skippers (Grades 7 - 10) Experimented in nature by finding the crossroads of science and art! The groups collected various materials around The WaterFront Center, including flowers, berries, leaves, and rocks. The group made paint and tested various methods by adding oils and natural materials.
Opti Beginner (Ages 8 - 12): Our opti sailors went off the beaten path this week, sailing to the Bayville Bridge. With excellent wind and even better weather, we spent most of our time sailing for distance and fun. On our light wind day, we worked on sailing a windward-leeward course and honing zigzagging skills. The next day took a turn towards excitement when we sailed Sonars in the afternoon. Our sailors became well suited for high winds this week, ending on a high note.
Opti Intro (Ages 8 - 13): We started the week with an adventure sail, working on our upwind sailing. We advanced to learning the right of way and played a fun game to apply the skills. We finished the week by learning how to start and doing some practice races.
Opti Race (Ages 8 – 15): This week, the opti race team worked on their roll tacks and quickly switching sides of the boat. They practiced this by zigzagging around a course. With high winds this week, they also went for a long sail to the other side of the harbor, working on their heavy wind skills.
c420 Beginner (Ages 13 - 18): With the heavy wind this week, our beginners were off to a fast start. After learning the parts of the points, they jumped into points of sail to learn how to properly and safely harness the wind.
c420 Race (Ages 13 - 18): Our efforts for the entire season culminated in our stellar performance at the c420 championships at American Yacht Club. Our boats had some great starts and awesome first-mark roundings.
Adventure Sailing (Ages 8 - 17): It was an extra adventurous week in adventure sailing. We started off by reviewing sailboat controls, such as the tiller and main sheet, including how they work. After our capsize tests on Monday, we sailed off the dock to get accustomed to the controls. Sailing was coached on the water throughout the week to improve their boat handling skills. Bayville Bridge, the beach, and pirates cove were some of the favorite destinations over the week.
Authors:
Liam grew up in Oyster Bay and received a Bachelor of Science in Marketing from Hartwick College in 2023. Growing up in Oyster Bay he spent much of his time enjoying the bay via sailboat and fishing the waters.
Liam currently acts as The WaterFront Center’s Marketing Assistant and plans to provide our Sailors and Explorers with quality content to show off the wonderful work of The WaterFront Center.
