Have you heard about the incredible story of the Rye Riptides? What started out as a project, has become so much more. As a teacher, the whole experience has really opened my eyes, and my students’ eyes, to the world and ocean in a way I could never have imagined.

Our journey with Educational Passages started in September 2018 when we ordered our kit. When it was delivered to the school, we were excited and hit the ground running. As their teacher, I was at the helm helping my students as they made decisions about what to put in the cargo hold, how to decorate it, but more importantly, how we were going to take it far out into the ocean. I watched as my students learned how to communicate and work with each other, develop consensus, wrote letters to ship crews requesting help for deployment, and so much more.

Rye Riptides is the miniboat organized, built, and launched by two grade levels of 5th and 6th grade (~100) students at Rye Junior High School in Rye, New Hampshire. It traveled in the ocean by the wind and currents for 462 days, and landed more than 8,000 miles away.

Decorated proudly with our school’s “Rye Riptides” logo and filled with various tokens from our town chosen by our students – our miniboat was launched on October 25th, 2020. We tracked our miniboat almost daily, and the students were hooked. They made predictions and followed the voyage the entire way. There is nothing like seeing that level of enthusiastic learning from your students.

Our miniboat went silent for several months, but we didn’t give up hope. And that perseverance certainly paid off, because on January 30th of this year, we got a final ping from Norway! There, a boy named Karel recovered it with his parents, and brought it to his 6th grade class the very next day. We were able to connect virtually with Karel and his classmates, and my students watched as his class found all the carefully selected tokens we had set inside. They answered their questions about life in the United States and they asked them about what Norway was like, and I watched as new friendships formed. 

By making a donation to Educational Passages, you are ensuring that teachers and students will have access to this very important program. EP provides a deeply transformative experience for students on an educational and personal level. My students learned about tides, currents, water temperature and waves, but also I watched as their confidence grew. I saw them become more curious and creative. They collaborated, worked together, and forged lasting bonds of friendship.

Please consider making a gift today to help other students participate in the Miniboat Program, giving them the opportunity to have their own truly unique learning experience.

With Gratitude,

Sheila Adams, Educator