We had a lovely Tuesday morning with the
first of three groups of 7th grade
students from the Auburn Middle School. The
weather was humid and warm at the dock and warmed
up even more for the students as we pulled out
into the harbor to raise the sails. As we headed
out of the hurricane barrier and into Buzzards
Bay we were cooled off by a light breeze coming
from the southwest. The water was calm and the
clouds were rarely letting the sun peak through.
It was one of those bright cloudy days. After being bombarded by totally new
environment, the students and chaperones did a
great job of listening carefully and
participating appropriately. The students were
split into five groups and rotated through
learning stations through the day. They learned
about navigating with a chart, plankton, folklore
and the history of the Ernestina. A great job by
everyone on steering the ship. While they waited
to steer, they learned to make daisy chain
bracelets with colorful string. Most importantly,
they learned about the mechanical advantages of
simple machines like the blocks (pulleys) on the
ship that allowed them to achieve the otherwise
impossible task of raising the sails. I hear that
one small girl was stronger than two large boys
at this station. Something to remember about
mechanical advantage
Thanks to you all for
a safe and enjoyable sail!
Other components of the program
were ashore including a visit to the
Rotch-Jones-Duff House and Garden Museum and to
the New Bedford Sewage Treatment Facility at Fort
Rodman.
After the sail returned,
Ernestina was back out again for an underway US
Coast Guard inspection. They put us through the
paces with sail setting and a run-through of all
the drills including the 'man-over-board' drill.
The photo to the right, below of the ship out in
the fog is from Fort Rodman during the class trip
out to the Sewage Treatment Plant with crew
aboard now in the midst of an inspection.
Captain: Amanda Madeira
Program Coordinator: MaryHelen Gunn
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