Grant: 05-009E
Project Title: Development of a Turtle Toolkit
Project Manager: Sharon Maxwell
Organization: South Walton Turtle Watch (Non-Profit Organization)
Grant Amount: $7,875.00
Completion Date: 2006-06-27
Summary: This project will promote the protection of marine habitats and marine turtle population and to educate the public so they can promote the recovery of sea turtle populations. The project will develop a teacher toolkit that will contain lesson plans, activities, posters, and videos and provide training to a cadre of ten teachers at a local elementary school to use the kits. The project will develop a training video for teachers on how to use the materials and will evaluate the outcomes of the impact of the toolkit on students knowledge and attitudes, as well as their extended families. The local school system has approved the activity, as the proposed use of the toolkit in the school curriculum will be aligned to state standards. 
Results: The pilot Turtle Teaching Tool Kit program was gotten off the ground in the spring of 2005 and worked on the summer and fall of 2005 and completed as far as grant money goes from the sea turtle license program in the spring of 2006. We have 4 complete teaching kits and a spare with stock to update the kits as needed. A review with the 3 rd grade teachers teaching the kit was completed and those comments were sent to CCC as part of the 6 months review. These kits were used at Butler Elementary School but soon the word spread and one kit was used in a neighboring Okaloosa Elementary School and two others in Walton Elementary Schools, one in South Walton and one in North Walton. The teachers were very glad to have the teaching guide, web site, as well as all the videos and other teaching materials. It is all done for us said a teacher. I can do as little or as much as I want with these supplies. The children can each have a book to read a long with and look at the pictures. It makes the experience of sea turtles so real. We found that as the teachers talked amongst themselves ideas were shared and new ideas put forth. We are so excited, this kit can and is used with just what is in the kit and the teachers are finding it useful and easy to use. (Author: Sharon Maxwell)