Second Graders Sail the World

Oceans are a key part of the global economy.  Billions of dollars worth of merchandise travels on large container ships from ports around the world.  These ships are typically staffed by highly trained sailors called Merchant Marines.

David McGowan graduated from St Louis School in 2007 and is now in his second year at the United States Merchant Marine Academy in Long Island, New York.  The four-year training program includes three trimesters of “hands on” at-sea training.  David was assigned to train on container ship APL Singapore from November through March, sailing from California to Japan and stopping at many ports.  He worked under the ship’s Captain and First Mate.

St Louis School Second Grade students used the website www.marinetraffic.com to track the location of the Singapore, learning map skills, the geography of the Pacific Basin, commercial shipping ports of call, and the Global Positioning System (GPS).

SLS student Ethan A. had the idea to build a model of the Singapore using Legos.  Students accessed the ship’s webpage at www.apl.com/singapore to discover basic facts and statistics about the vessel. Each student worked on the ship, building the hull to the proper scale and adding the “house” which includes the living space, engine rooms and bridge.  Containers were added to the model to show how cargo is transported.

Upon his return, David McGowan visited St Louis School and shared with the class his photographs, videos and experiences of life aboard the Singapore.