In partnership with Educational Passages, Kent School has launched an unmanned sailing vessel named The Osprey. The vessel, launched from New Jersey in early June is equipped with a GPS so students and friends of the project can track the Osprey’s progress across the Atlantic Ocean. At the time of this publication the Osprey was tracked at 46 24’N 36 15.6’ W. The west coast of Ireland will be The Ospreys destination if the vessel remains on its current course. Students have been encouraged to plot the course of The Osprey while it makes its journey. Tracking information is available here: https://www.nefsc.noaa.gov/drifter/drift_ep_2016_1.html. The Osprey was launched along with vessels from The Country School in Easton and Radcliffe Creek School in Chestertown. All three boats can be tracked using the same website.
The launch of the Osprey was made possible by Kent School’s Parents, Teachers and Friends (PTF) organization who funded the project and coordinated its execution in conjunction with Educational Passages. According to the Educational Passages website, “Learning can be fun and very involved as these little boats voyage across the oceans and along the coasts. When one is launched it is not sure where it will end up and what it will encounter on its voyage. To date there have been 13 launches with one boat on its second voyage. Exciting…you bet! We hope to continue to expand and provide knowledge and adventure to the next generation of sailors, but also provide thought-provoking exercise to budding mathematicians, meteorologists, marine scientists, naval architects, informational technologists and the web content producers & journalists who bring you this information.”
Data from The Osprey’s voyage will be incorporated into curricula throughout the school in the coming academic year as students explore mapping, longitude and latitude, geography, oceanography and a myriad of other topics associated with a journey across the Atlantic. Nancy Mugele, Head of School said, “We are deeply grateful to the PTF for spearheading this project. As a community who values lifelong learning we can gain important insights into our world when we research it in relevant ways. The Educational Passages project and The Osprey will foster global understanding amongst our students.”
Kent School is an independent school serving boys and girls from Pre-K through Grade 8 located in historic Chestertown, MD. For more information, visit www.kentschool.org or call 410-778-4100 ext. 110.
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