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THE CORAL REEF ADVENTURE CREATING AN IMAGINATIVE EXPERIENCE
Hunter dives down towards a beautiful array of colors. As he swims underwater, he is struck by the majestic sea creatures scattered below.
He catches a glimpse of something shiny glistening further down. He eagerly scoops and kicks to go even deeper to discover there is hidden treasure at the bottom. He quickly grabs a piece of treasure, swims back up to the surface for air, to hear praises from his swim instructor. The 5-year-old Hunter is delighted and smiles for having experienced the Coral Reef Adventure.
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The idea for this Halloween tradition that we host annually at Swim to Shore was generated in a conference session at one of the USSSA’s national events a few years back, where the speaker talked about incorporating weekly themes into their lessons. Although our school leadership didn’t end up implementing a rotation of themes into our program, sparks of creativity flew after hearing the talk and we were inspired to create an imaginative experience for our students.
As our staff brainstormed ideas, we reflected on how much excitement and joy our colorful aquarium brings to our students. Week after week upon their arrival the children come into our facility and make a beeline to see what’s new in the fish tank. And then the idea came to us: We need to create a kid-sized coral reef experience for our swimmers.
We grabbed some extra dri-dek tiles we had on hand and connected them to make a 4-foot by 7-foot base. We purchased various plastic plants and garlands at Joanne’s and zip-tied them all over the tiles to make an “ocean floor.” Next, we secured a medley of large sized aquarium plants to add lots of color. Then we added a variety of large ocean themed toys, like sharks, seals, dolphins, turtles, whales, starfish, shells, and their favorite… a pirate ship. The final touch was dropping randomly placed bright, shiny bead necklaces throughout the reef to add a treasure-like glimmer.
Our coral reef cost $400 dollars to make and we’ve had it for 7 years now. We re-purchase inexpensive bead necklaces each year so the students can keep a piece of the “treasure” they found. The reef rolls up nicely and can be put on a shelf for easy storage. For minimal cost and years of explorative fun and adventure, our Coral Reef is a treasured experience we all look forward to year after year.
