11/15/12

On Thursday, November 1, 2012, Dundalk High School Grade 9 students experienced a sailor’s life through a trip to the Chesapeake Bay.

At the Bay, the 20 students boarded the Lady Maryland schooner, where they learned the mechanics of ship-sailing. This lesson then provided students with an opportunity to drive the vessel, while their classmates trawled for fish and plankton, discovered the habits of whales, and explored the nature of the Chesapeake Bay ecosystem.

The students, who began reading Moby Dick by Herman Melville in mid-October in their gifted and talented English class, related the tour of the Bay to their classroom studies by selecting a character from the novel and maintaining a journal of their observations as seen through the eyes of their respective character. In the journal, students channeled the voice of their chosen character by incorporating authentic ship and sailor terminology and nomenclature.

Although suggested by Rachel Hartman, a Dundalk High English teacher, as a means to add dimension to the students’ English class study of Moby Dick, the visit afforded students with invaluable connections to their other coursework.