PEAK TO PEAK CHARTER SCHOOL

800 Merlin Drive

Lafayette, Colorado 80026

K – 12 College Prep in a Small-School Environment

For Immediate Release: April 13, 2006

Contact: Nicky Zaayman, (303) 453-4780

Peak to Peak seventh graders embark on a sailing journey

(Lafayette, Colorado) On April 17-21, 27 Peak to Peak 7th graders in Mr. Phillippe's Earth Science classes will be embarking on a sailing journey to the San Juan Islands of Washington.  This is not a spring break trip by any means; instead the students will be conducting oceanographic research aboard Carlyn, a 61-foot research and sailing vessel.  Divided into watch groups, the students will take turns sailing the vessel, while learning about sail craft, coastal navigation, and rules of the sea.  While underway, they will make several deployments in order to measure seafloor sediment composition, conductivity, salinity, phosphate and nitrate concentrations at various depths of the ocean column.  They will use this data to test a hypothesis regarding the distribution of zooplankton and phytoplankton within the Salish Sea.  The students have been spending the past 2 months readying their chart, knots, and oceanographic skills in anticipation of the trip.