Recently, high school senior Kelly McLoughlin visited her former teacher, Ms. Naftalis, at Thomas P. Hughes Elementary School and gave a very special environmental presentation to her class. Kelly’s lesson was on ecological health, ocean currents, and satellite tracking. While these topics do not normally grab the attention of young scholars, these students were all ears. This was due to the exciting visual Kelly brought with her, an Ocean Drifter.
The Ocean Drifter, which Kelly built, is a device that tracks offshore currents and sends back GPS data for analysis. Since the beginning of the school year, Kelly has been working on this project in her Environmental Science class. With the help of her teacher, Lara Mendenhall, she conducted original research on the topics and developed a grant proposal for the materials. With the support of the Berkeley Heights Educational Foundation and several teachers throughout the district, Kelly was able to purchase the necessary material she needed and construct the Drifter.
Kelly not only educated the students at Hughes School, but actually had them help complete the project. The Drifter includes four sail-like canvas fins that help capture the currents and propel the device forward. Kelly had Ms. Naftalis’ students decorate these canvas fins, thereby incorporating art into the STEM-base project. Kelly plans to launch the Ocean Drifter in April after she presents at the March 31st Board of Education Meeting.
(above) Kelly explains what the Drifter is.
(above) constructing the Drifter.
(above) Students holding up their decorated fins as part of lesson.
