Whale Museum announces new Salish Sea Explorer Kit Program

||| FROM CONOR AGNEW for THE WHALE MUSEUM |||

The Whale Museum and The Salish Sea School are partnering to launch new, exciting take-home kits for educators, parents, and community organizers! These new Salish Sea Explorer Kits will be available through both organizations, and deliver three unique, hands-on experiences that can entertain and educate learners of all ages. While kits are primarily intended to be loaned out to educators, they are available for everyone.

This program currently offers three Salish Sea themed kits: a salmon kit, a pinnipeds (seals & sea lions) kit, and a cetaceans (whales, dolphins, porpoises) kit! Kits include specimens, lesson plans, activities, and resources that can be tailored to all ages and interests, though they are primarily designed for students at an elementary to high school level.

Given the isolation of living on an island, The Whale Museum staff thought it was important to provide more resources to local community members and educators to better connect students to the abundant marine life we have here in the Salish Sea.

Modeling the kits after the Burke Museum’s “Burke Boxes,” these kits can complement educational programs or be a great resource for independent exploration. Many museums offer kit loan programs, and The Whale Museum is proud to launch a program of its own with the new Salish Sea Explorer Kits.

Kits cost $60 to rent for a maximum of two weeks. Thanks to a partnership with the San Juan Island Library, kit passes can be obtained through the library to let parents and teachers check out the kits for free. To learn more or request a kit, visit whalemuseum.org.

This new educational program was made possible through the support of the Mitsubishi Corporation (Americas), the Northwest Aquatic and Marine Educators, and The San Juan Island Community Foundation.