Buoyed by the backing of various teachers in the region, a Victoria whale-watching company hopes to keep its floating class above water.

The first question Kathryn Cook fields from students each fall is frequently about whether theyB次元官网网址檒l get aboard a whale-watching boat with the Exploring the Salish Sea program through Eagle Wing Tours.

B次元官网网址淚tB次元官网网址檚 part of our classroom and school culture,B次元官网网址� Cook said. B次元官网网址淎s a marine educator and a teacher for over 30 years, IB次元官网网址檓 so grateful theyB次元官网网址檝e got this program because it allows me to take my students beyond the beach when weB次元官网网址檙e doing marine studies and learning about their own backyard.B次元官网网址�

She aims to foster a sense of belonging and connection, and Eagle Wing does that seamlessly with incredibly gifted educators who connect quickly with the kids, Cook said.

Currently teaching at both Ecole Margaret Jenkins and South Park Family School, Cook discovered the program at its inception in 2018.

The exhilarating, place-based, hands-on exposure connects them to the marine ecosystem and B次元官网网址渟tays with the kids an entire lifetime,B次元官网网址� Cook said. ItB次元官网网址檚 also incredibly easy to tie into any area of the B.C. curriculum; science, English, math, history.

B次元官网网址淪o many kids are spending way too much time in front of screens. It gets them out into that natural world to make that connection and make them feel like theyB次元官网网址檙e part of something bigger,B次元官网网址� Cook said. B次元官网网址淵ou can go anywhere with it depending on where the students and the teacher want to take it.

B次元官网网址淚tB次元官网网址檚 so rich for the kids.B次元官网网址�

Connecting to a place through experiential learning creates an emotional, physical, cultural and social connection B次元官网网址� goals shared by both the business and the educators.

B次元官网网址淚t is simply all about trying to foster and develop an emotional culture to the Salish Sea,B次元官网网址� Eagle Wing co-owner Brett Soberg said.

Understanding B次元官网网址渢he power of information and education,B次元官网网址� the company set out to create the right program to foster positive change. Born and raised in Victoria, Soberg has been in tourism since 1992, in whale watching since B次元官网网址�97 and an owner since 2005.

Feeling fortunate to have grown up exposed to nature, camping and Indigenous culture and history, building a program that crosses into schools was a longtime goal.

B次元官网网址淚tB次元官网网址檚 not lost on me that some kids donB次元官网网址檛 have that ability or exposure,B次元官网网址� he said.

In 2018, 750 kids experienced Exploring the Salish Sea. That doubled in 2019. It survived the 2020 break, maintaining 1,500 kids when the program returned in 2021 and doubled in its fourth year to more than 3,000 kids. With 3,800 students participating in 2023 and 2024, Soberg anticipates thereB次元官网网址檚 still room to grow.

ItB次元官网网址檚 intentionally built as a four-part, immersive experience.

B次元官网网址淭he first part is really all about building a relationship with the kids,B次元官网网址� Soberg said.

There's a fluidity to the program, which starts with a classroom introduction and topic question, allowing teachers to guide its direction and align it with their curriculum. The session primes the students for the second part B次元官网网址� the experience on the water.

While aboard a whale-watching boat, students are introduced to birds, kelp forests and other marine mammals over the two-hour tour.

B次元官网网址淭he ocean is very different from day to day. ItB次元官网网址檚 a classroom in itself," Cook said, adding the program goes to different places each year.

The third part is another hands-on experience B次元官网网址� a beach cleanup, a visit to a salmon habitat or playing games in the classroom that reinforce the topic question.

The fourth element is a celebration culmination of the program. Each class makes artifacts based on what theyB次元官网网址檝e learned and how they connected. That result frequently invites the public into the conversation as classes across Greater Victoria open their showcases to the community.

At Centre Mountain Lellum Middle School, teacher Kathleen Meiklejohn and her class turned a spare classroom into a sea forest complete with scale models of animals created by students. Each of them also wrote an artist statement B次元官网网址� tying the project to several curriculum areas B次元官网网址� arts, science, and language.

Meiklejohn recalled the first time she discovered the program on a professional development day tour.

B次元官网网址淚t was just a wild experience and we couldnB次元官网网址檛 even imagine taking 50 middle school students,B次元官网网址� she said.

Now itB次元官网网址檚 tough to imagine going without B次元官网网址渨atching studentsB次元官网网址� faces light up on the boat.B次元官网网址�

B次元官网网址淚f we want to engage our learners and create people who are going to be stewards of this land, they really need to have that connection,B次元官网网址� Meiklejohn said.

As funding demands grow in public education, itB次元官网网址檚 not a given school districts can budget for the program, and all involved hope to keep the floating class above water.

Eagle Wing technically loses money keeping the venture afloat.

B次元官网网址淲eB次元官网网址檙e trying to make it free for the kids; thereB次元官网网址檚 no money being made here,B次元官网网址� Soberg said.

On average, the hard cost is $45 to $55 per student, taking into account subsidies, with the actual cost at just over $70 per student.

Eagle Wing customers help offset the program, paying a $5 wildlife conservation fee and the company makes contributions adding up to $80,000. The total program cost for roughly 3,600 students is just over $258,000.

Soberg would like to see it available at no charge to all students in grades 4 to 8 in Greater Victoria. 

B次元官网网址淚 donB次元官网网址檛 think you can put a price on a program such as this,B次元官网网址� Cook said. B次元官网网址淯nique is an understatement, there is no other program that does this or anything remotely like it.B次元官网网址�

The two schools Cook works at vary in approach to funding. At South Park, the parent advisory committee has embraced the program as a funding partner, at Margaret Jenkins, families are asked to pay.

B次元官网网址淔unding is so tight. If we can get an outside source of funding that would make it so much more affordable for families," Cook said.

Meiklejohn added that at Centre Mountain Lellum Middle School, they have "done everything you can think of" including selling apples, crafts, popcorn and earrings.

ItB次元官网网址檚 worth it watching some students start to figure out who they are and what they want to do, who they want to be.

B次元官网网址淭o watch them discover that through this type of teaching, itB次元官网网址檚 amazing to watch students engage with the natural world. The floating classroom is something thatB次元官网网址檚 invaluable to my teaching for sure,B次元官网网址� Meiklejohn said.

B次元官网网址淚t really is, at the end of the day when we teach kids and we hope to inspire kids, itB次元官网网址檚 so they can be stewards and have that connection that they would like to care for our planet and our space B次元官网网址� thatB次元官网网址檚 ultimately the goal.B次元官网网址�

Learn more about the endeavour at .