At Warwick Academy students can actively participate in marine science and conservation activities.
Modules of marine science have been woven into, where appropriate, their science lessons. This Facility is open for use by all subjects and across the school. A variety of non-science subjects have taken integrated cross-curricular classes at the facility such as Math, History, Geography and Physical Eduecation. Lessons have ranged from data collection in Math on ocean acidification, Vietnam War and slavery in History, climate change in Geography and a comparative analysis of a sheep heart compared to a fish heart and deep dive techniques in Physical Education. We also welcome the Primary down at the Marine Science Facility for a variety of lessons, such as coral ecology, native and endemic plant scavenger hunt and ocean microbes.

We host after school clubs who explore the biodiversity of Hamilton Harbour and have enjoyed presentations, some, by senior students showcasing their interests, such as on shell diversity and lionfish. Workshops will vary due to what exciting organisms we can find, but the club has looked at phytoplankton and algal diversity, seahares, corals, conches, nudibranchs, nerites, seahorses, fish diversity and testing of abiotic factors. Students gain experience learning how to snorkel and can use the “see” anchors to identify key things in the harbour.

Sixth Form students have found the Marine Science Facility invaluable as Biology, Chemistry and Environmental Systems & Societies (ESS) students have used the facility to collect data for their research papers. We have had students look at how dinoflagellates vary with depth and time of day, how dinoflagellates density changes with temperature, degassing of oxygen from warming ocean water, buffering capacity of the ocean and recovery rates of fire corals after a bleaching event. By 2024 we hope to offer a formal marine science curriculum within the Sixth Form, and both Biology and ESS have large components that include marine ecology and oceanography.

Warwick Academy students have also been involved in the creation of a collaborative project to help enact a plan for seahorse conservation. We now have an enrichment club and a team of volunteers who are busy monitoring and collating data on the vulnerable seahorse populations in Bermuda with Ms. Friesen.

We have barely begun to scratch the surface of the exciting immersion opportunities Warwick Academy would love to offer. We want students to be excited and inspired when they come to school. We value the relationships that we build and want to give every student an opportunity to be successful in the years to come. We are so much more than just a place to learn.

Check out our Seahorse Project.