Up and Coming
By Vivian Morgan

Imagine yourself following the seashore, taking in the view of Morro Bay and The Rock. Your walk reaches the tide pools, where you notice the vibrantly colored purple and orange starfish, feel the eelgrass scraping between your toes, and follow the tiny footsteps in the sand of a flock of snowy plovers.
Now, imagine exploring the ocean’s habitats without nature’s endangered species.
Students at Morro Bay High have been rallied together to not only showcase their talents, but also raise awareness for the bay’s endangered species populations.
Sophomore biology and English classes have teamed up to produce a book for elementary school students. “In addition to sharing the book at local elementary schools,” English teacher Danny Fahy said, “the book will be showcased to the entire Morro Bay High School student body and staff in a school-wide showcase on May 21.” Morro Bay High’s book is set to publish during the third week in April.
Science classes are being taught about each local species and what qualifies them to be listed as endangered. English classes have brought in guest speakers, and taken extra precaution to ensure students have a good understanding of the main question being asked, “How can we get young people to care about our local endangered species?”
The project includes four categories: science, English, art, and Spanish. Students have created fact sheets for each species; English classes have identified elements of strong writing; Spanish and advanced placement (AP) English students will revise and translate the book, and volunteers have drawn illustrations, all in preparation to present their work and represent their class at Los Osos’ Baywood Elementary.
“It’s thrilling for me to see my students getting into this project. I’m very proud of them,” said Fahy. Here’s a short Q&A on the book project:
Vivian Morgan: What is the purpose of producing a book for the community?
Danny Fahy: Our guiding question is “How can we get young people to care about our local endangered species?” So in one sense the purpose is to solve this problem. But from a teacher standpoint, a second purpose is to engage students in real world work, where the purpose and outcome are directly connected to the community and actual issues
VM: Will the book be showcased to more than just local elementary students?
DF: In addition to sharing the book at local elementary schools, the book will be showcased to the entire Morro Bay High School student body and staff in a school-wide showcase on May 21.
What is the expected date for the book to be finished? We expect the book to be finished by the third week in April.
VM: What are the steps taken to produce this book?
DF: The project involves four disciplines: English, science, art, and Spanish. The science class learned about our local endangered species, the causes for their endangered status, and the steps we must take to protect them. They also created fact sheets for the species. English classes learned about writing for children, identifying the elements of a strong narrative, and creating compelling stories.
Twelfth grade AP English students will edit and revise the stories. Volunteer artists will be using various media to create illustrations for the stories. The stories will be translated for a version of the book in Spanish. The stories will be laid out by yearbook students using a web based publishing program, and then they will be published in a book.
VM: How did teachers prepare in advance?
DF: We went to a 2-day workshop where a facilitator presented the theories, ideas, and steps for a pedagogical concept called Project Based Learning (PBL). A major part of the training was to create a PBL lesson. You will see a lot of this kind of learning going on in the coming years at our school because it supports our school’s STEAM framework, as well as the Common Core standards.
VM: What were students’ reactions to being told they were going to create a book?
DF: Students were/are excited about the project. The fact that its audience is not their teacher but outside community members — Baywood 4th graders in this case — brings a heightened sense of importance to the work. They seem to want to “get it right” because it reflects directly back on them. They are working hard in their teams to compose meaningful, entertaining stories for the kids. It’s thrilling for me to see my students getting into this project. I’m very proud of them.

Vivian Morgan is a sophomore at Morro Bay High School. Her “Up and Coming” column will be a regular feature of The Bay News through the end of the current school  year. Viv transferred this year to Morro Bay from Lake Havasu H.S. and wants to be a journalist. She is also a gymnastics teacher in SLO.