Virtual Recycle Regatta to the rescue

Encouraging kids to mess about in boats heightens their interest and education, and in an effort to bring ocean-based experiential learning to students and families at home, the New England Science & Sailing Foundation (NESS), in partnership with Educational Passages and the North American Marine Environment Protection Association, is sponsoring the second annual virtual Recycle Regatta.

Participating K-12 students will design and engineer a model sailboat out of common recycled materials, and then test their boats and calculate nautical speed using mathematical applications. Students will submit their data and race against other competitors across the world. Two prizes will be awarded per fleet – one for fastest boat and one for the most creative design. Students will compete in a fleet based on grade level:

• Grades K – 2
• Grades 3 – 5
• Grades 6 – 8
• Grades 9 – 12

Submissions will be accepted from March 1-31 and winners will be announced mid-April. Entry into the Recycle Regatta is free for students.

K-12 teachers looking to bring the STEM concepts of the Recycle Regatta to the classroom are invited to participate in NESS’s Sailing at Home Online Experiential Learning course.

To prepare for the regatta, students are invited to view an array of free educational videos related to the engineering method, buoyancy, recycling, marine debris, and ocean currents on the NESS YouTube channel.

For more information: https://educationalpassages.org/recycle-regatta/