At Your Location
The Whale Bus is a van that travels to your site transforming your classroom into a marine mammal museum with real specimens such as bones, pelts, and baleen. All presentations include hands-on activities and exploration of specimens. Programs teach students about the lives of marine mammals as well as the bigger picture of caring for the marine environment. The Marine Mammal Center is a wildlife hospital; therefore, we do not bring live animals.
General Information
There is a two-program minimum to reserve the Whale Bus if your location is within a 55 mile distance from The Marine Mammal Center in Sausalito. If your location is greater than 55 miles from the Center in Sausalito, we require a three-program minimum. At this time, the furthest the Whale Bus will travel is 65 miles from the Center.
It is best if you make a reservation several months in advance as our schedule fills quickly. Our instructor can teach up to four presentations in one day, reaching up to 160 students. However, only one program topic can be presented each day.
At your site we will need:
- The same room for all presentations
- 2 to 5 tables already set-up in the room for specimens/activities
- Access to the room 1 hour before and after the presentation
- Convenient parking for the Whale Bus
- Assistance of an adult or older student for unloading and loading
- 15 minutes between presentations
- Programs with PowerPoint presentations require a darkened room with a screen or blank wall
Group size:
Up to 40 students (up to 30 for Pre-K/K)
Presentation length:
One hour (45 minutes for Pre-K/K)
Rates*:
2 Presentations $140 each ($120 Pre-K/K)
3-4 Presentations $130 each ($110 Pre-K/K)
Travel fees*:
We charge the government approved rate per mile. The 2010 rate is $0.50 per mile plus bridge tolls. You will receive a quote of the actual travel fee when we confirm your reservation. There is a minimum travel fee of $20.
*All rates and travel fees are subject to change without notice.
You may download a flier by clicking here.
Make a Reservation Request
Please fill out the Reservation Request Form after reading the Descriptions of Whale Bus Programs by Grade using the Quick Chart below. You will receive a reply by phone or email within two weeks of your request. Once we confirm your reservation request, you will receive a confirmation packet and invoice by email or mail.
Description of Whale Bus Program Topics
Quick Chart: Click on the grade level or program topic to read the detailed descriptions and go to the Reservation Request Form.
Grade |
Program Topics |
|
Wonderful Whales | Marine Mammals of California | Outrageous Otters | Playful Pinnipeds |
|
| Marine Mammal Exploration | Adventures in Anatomy |
Grades Pre-K to 5th
Wonderful Whales
Beautiful, mysterious, and magnificent, whales fascinate many of us. Through show and tell discussion, students learn about different types of local cetaceans (whales, dolphins, and porpoises). They examine specimens, including baleen, krill, and bones. Participants in 2nd grade and up assemble the skeleton of a pygmy sperm whale; younger grades "dress up" a student as a whale to learn about body parts and adaptations.
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Learn about the most common marine mammals that frequent the California coast. Grades 1st to 5th enjoy a PowerPoint presentation that highlights recent patients at our hospital and take part in an identification game. Pre-K and Kindergarten classes enjoy age appropriate activities to learn about seals, sea lions, sea otters, and whales. All grades touch real specimens and participate in a rope-length activity that demonstrates the various sizes of marine mammals.
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Fun-loving sea otters are the focus of this presentation. Through show-and-tell discussion, students learn about the sea otter's aquatic adaptations, playful antics, and their cousin, the river otter. Activities and specimens help students understand how sea otters use tools, what they eat, how important their kelp forest habitat is, and why they have the thickest fur of any mammal.
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Amusing seals, sea lions, and walruses have unique and interesting traits that we explore in this presentation. By examining taxidermied mounts, pelts, and tusks, students learn about the natural history and behavior of these animals. Students distinguish local seals from sea lions, compare life-sized cut-outs, and participate in a sound activity.
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Grades 6th through 12th
Students rotate through five stations, working together to explore the adaptations and features of different marine mammals and formulate ways to reduce threats to marine environments. Students compare pelts and skulls plus examine baleen and teeth. They study structures and behaviors that help mammals keep warm in the cold ocean and assess common reasons that seals and sea lions are admitted to The Marine Mammal Center.
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Humans and marine mammals share many similar anatomical characteristics, yet they have adapted over time to thrive in different environments. Students work in small groups to compare and contrast bones, skulls, and other body parts of seals, sea lions, sea otters, manatees, whales, and humans. They also assemble a pygmy whale skeleton.
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