Beach Heroes
For Grades K-3rd
Season: late March through the end of the school year
Beach Heroes is a multi-part field trip program designed to introduce students to the Puget Sound beach habitat and the organisms that live there. All portions of the program are correlated with Next Generation Science Standards and have in-person and virtual options (in-person the default). ESC prioritizes working with schools in nearby south King County districts, including Highline, Tukwila, Renton, Kent, and Auburn, though we are open to working with other schools.
Program Details
In the Introductory Lesson (Part 1) students get to know the marine invertebrates they are most likely to see on Puget Sound beaches, while simultaneously learning about beach etiquette and stewardship. A professional naturalist visits each participating school and every class receives their own 1-hour lesson. Students have the opportunity to follow along and complete activities in their ESC-provided Field Journals, which they can then use during the field trip (and beyond!).
The 2-hour Field Lesson (Part 2) is a trip to Seahurst Beach during a low tide. Naturalists guide groups in student-centered exploration of the beach habitat and safe interaction with intertidal organisms. Students learn about these incredible creatures, as well as about the ecological importance of the nearshore habitat and marine stewardship. This lesson can be a virtual field trip if needed, with naturalists live streaming from the beach and students connecting virtually.
“I loved that students had lots of time to explore on the beach and had the chance to yell "observation" to share what they found. Our naturalist did such a good job of acknowledging everyone's observations…while still guiding them to move along the beach. It was the right amount of structure with time to explore…Loved it!”
- Kindergarten teacher
Advanced Beach Heroes
Designed for 2nd and 3rd-grade participants, this version of Beach Heroes offers students the opportunity to get involved in additional science activities on the beach during their Field Lesson. The goal is to provide students with diverse ways to connect with and learn about the beach habitat, including collecting biological survey data and practicing nature journaling.
These older students will receive an additional 1-hour classroom component (Part 1.5) after the Introductory Lesson and before the Field Lesson, in which a naturalist returns to the school to discuss ways of doing science, and to practice field illustration and data collection with the students. Advanced Beach Heroes allows us to give these older students a more in-depth experience, while still allowing for plenty of student-led beach exploration
Location
Introductory Lessons will be conducted at each participating school. Field Lessons take place at Seahurst Beach in Burien, WA. Both components can be taught virtually, if needed; in-person programming is strongly preferred.
Cost
Beach Heroes is generously funded through local and state grants such as King County Flood Control District’s WRIA 9 CWM program, Port of Seattle’s South King County Environmental Fund, King Conservation District, RCO’s No Child Left Inside program, Horizons Foundation, and the 4Culture Sustained Support Doors Open grant. Thanks to these funders, we are able to offer the Beach Heroes program at no cost to students and teachers at schools where more than 45% of families qualify for free or reduced-price meals. For qualifying schools, we can offer partial reimbursement for the cost of buses. For schools where less than 45% of families qualify for free or reduced-price meals, the cost is $50 per class for the program.
Accessibility
ESC has two all-terrain GRIT Freedom wheelchairs that can be borrowed by participants during programs, one youth-sized chair and one adult chair. We have found that these wheelchairs work best for youth and adults who have some mobility (e.g. can get out of the chair for short periods, for instance, if they want to get closer to an organism, or if the chair needs to be maneuvered over an obstacle) and who have at least one dedicated support person. These wheelchairs increase the accessibility of Seahurst Beach, but are not able to reach every part of the beach, and unfortunately don’t make the beach entirely accessible.
In the Beach Heroes registration form, you can indicate whether you can indicate whether you would like to borrow one or both chairs. For participants using their own wheelchairs, there are parts of the park and the beach that are accessible, depending on the type of chair. For further specifics regarding our wheelchairs, please email Rosie (Rosie@EnvironmentalScienceCenter.org). If your group has other accessibility needs, there is space to describe them in the registration form.
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Registration
We schedule by grade cohort; please coordinate with the other teachers in your grade at your school and sign up as a group. One teacher should register all the classes in their grade at their school. If this does not work for your grade cohort, please contact the School Programs Manager, Rosie (Rosie@EnvironmentalScienceCenter.org), to discuss alternatives.
Please register for each component of the program separately, using the links below. If you have any questions or issues with the scheduling process, please contact Rosie.
Beach Heroes 2024 Impact in Numbers
2,053
Students participated
100%
Of teachers thought the program was an effective way to help their students make scientific observations
81%
Of students showed improvement in their understanding of what makes a healthy beach habitat and how to care for it
3,542
Student hours spent outside
