Get your feet wet!

Twice a year, COA hosts a day of hands-on learning for 5^th-8^th graders at the beach.  The 23^rd Annual Spring Student Summit on Sandy Hook is coming up on May 10^th and 11^th.  Every year, about 300 to 500 students gather from various middle schools to learn about their marine and coastal environments.  All NJ public and private schools are invited to attend either the spring event on Sandy Hook or the fall event on Island Beach State Park.  The students are split into smaller groups where they participate in 6 workshops and 1 of 12 field trip activities.  The workshops include What is a Watershed, NJ Seashells, Make a Difference, Marine Invertebrates, Horseshoe Crabs, and Marine Litter.  They are taught by High School students from the Marine Academy of Science and Technology (MAST) in the spring and from the Marine Academy of Technology and Environmental Science (MATES) in the fall.  The field activities are led by volunteer educators from various institutions and include trips like marine seining and identification, beach profiling, beach sweeps, and birding.  The event is free for all schools but the schools must provide their own transportation to and from the event.  It starts at 9:15am and ends at 12:30pm.  The schools are dismissed and are free to leave or enjoy lunch at the park.  We are looking forward to seeing the students for this year’s Summit on Sandy Hook.  For more information, please email citizens@cleanoceanaction.org or look at our website: http://www.cleanoceanaction.org/index.php?id=108.