Students Visit "Finding Nemo"'s Home -- The Australia Great Barrier Reef
"Finding Nemo"'s is coming to Rancho Santa Fe! The husband and wife, marine biologist and underwater photographer team, Wayne and Karen Brown, are presenting one of their nationally-acclaimed school assemblies, The Australia Great Barrier Reef Expedition, at Rancho Santa Fe School, this Friday, September 14. This fun and exciting program documents the Brown's expedition to visit and study the home of "Finding Nemo" -- The Australia Great Barrier Reef. The Browns take their audience on a virtual expedition using unique props, biological models, modern SCUBA diving equipment, and breath-taking underwater photography!
At the start of the program a life-sized coral reef is bulit on stage. Student volunteers help demonstrate some of the specialized underwater equipment we will need to visit this unique ecosystem. Using their reef and additional models, the Browns then show how Nemo's home is actually made of millions of tiny animals, called "coral polyps".
After their introduction to coral biology, undersea explorers Wayne and Karen Brown, then take students on a thrilling adventure to Nemo's home -- The Australia Great Barrier reef, via an engaging, high-definition digital presentation.
In this HD digital presentation students are invited to join the Browns on the expedition boat, where they meet the captain. As they accompany Wayne and Karen on their scuba dive, students see the incredible diversity of life on the largest coral reef on Earth. Students also meet the animals that live with Nemo and make the coral reefs their home. We see a fascinating variety of marine creatures big and small, from the most docile to the most dangerous. The students learn about the special relationships between different creatures. They also learn how fishes protect themselves from predators and how some fishes search for food.
After the "expedition", a gigantic, 8' tall inflatable, coral polyp appears on stage to dramatically show the anatomy of a coral polyp.
