Guided Discoveries, Inc.

Guided Discoveries has three main goals that tie into its mission:

First, we aim to educate schoolchildren in the sciences. Our educational programs focus on either marine science (Catalina Island Marine Institute) or physical science, astronomy, and engineering (AstroCamp). Science learning is often pushed to the backburner in order to prioritize the more regularly tested subjects of math and literacy. We feel that science is critical to students’ education, and that science is best learned when it is carried out and experienced. Talking about an experiment is not nearly the same as doing it. Our goal is to provide children the opportunity to experience science in a way that is meaningful and powerful.

Second, we aim to promote the personal growth of students who attend our programs. In the process of exploring science and the natural world, students dive into new and challenging experiences. Our goal is to provide a safe environment in which they can build confidence, develop peer relationships, and improve other 21st century skills.

Third, we aim to empower students to further pursue the sciences and protect the natural world. As stated by Kristine Tompkins, “You can’t protect a place unless you understand it. You can’t love it until you know it.” A greater understanding of science encourages students to pursue subjects even further, perhaps even as far as a career path in research, conservation, or education. Meaningful connections empower students to take action and protect the natural world, impacting a new generation of environmental stewards.

Guided Discoveries’ programs are completely experiential; students are immersed in the science as they snorkel over a rocky reef or build and launch their own rocket. Our dedicated teaching spaces and outdoor immersive experiences allow students to explore and discover, encouraging them to question, develop hypotheses, and seek answers. Students experience and understand science concepts in a way that simply cannot be achieved in their school classrooms, all the while generating meaningful connections with the outdoor spaces in which they are learning. As science and technology changes and new discoveries are made in our natural world, we update our programs and curriculum to provide the most accurate and powerful experience possible.

As our programs take place in a multi-day, residential format, children receive the added benefits of spending extended time in the outdoors, spending time away from home (often for the first time), and engaging with their peers on a deeper level. After students attend our programs, teachers and parents often report positive changes in students’ confidence, collaboration skills, and general behavior, in addition to their increase of scientific understanding. Our young and energetic staff promote an encouraging environment in which children feel comfortable and confident as they tackle new and unique experiences, and they provide positive mentors that children look up to and relate to. Our summer camps take this to the next level, as children remain with us for one to three weeks at a time and are able to develop their social and emotional skills even further.

The meaningful and immersive experiences provided by our programs forge connections between students and the world around them, creating environmental stewards and sparking interest in sciences and the natural world. Snorkeling through schools of fish or kayaking among dolphins creates a connection between students and the ocean that cannot be gained by watching a documentary. Launching a rocket of their own design or gazing at Saturn’s rings through a telescope generates wonder and intrigue for physics and the universe that cannot be gained during the normal school day. Students leave our programs with a greater understanding of and connection to the world around them, as well as a greater desire to explore and protect it. This means that students return home more environmentally conscious, more driven to spend more time out-of-doors, and more interested in pursuing a career in a natural or physical science.

Guided Discoveries’ facilities are placed in very specific locations. Our Catalina Island Marine Institute (CIMI) sites are all located on the leeward side of Catalina Island in sheltered coves, allowing for very easy access to calm ocean waters for snorkeling and kayaking. A charter company operating out of the conveniently located port of Long Beach, CA ferries guests directly to our sites on Catalina. Our AstroCamp sites are located in remote areas away from light pollution, allowing for stargazing of clearer night skies than most students have ever before experienced. Students and their chaperones reside on-site at our facilities for 3-5 days while participating in our school year programs. Summer campers reside with us for extended periods of 1-3 weeks.

In order to provide the best experience possible for our students and campers, we have developed designated teaching spaces for all of our classes. Students walk into a space that is wholly dedicated to one subject or concept, allowing them to be fully immersed in and able to explore that subject for the duration of the class. When students enter CIMI’s “Invertebrate Lab,” they see colorful artwork and diagrams on the walls, various white boards for recording observations, and live animals in aquariums, including several touch tanks, which allow them to get up-close and personal with local invertebrate species. When students enter AstroCamp’s “Atmosphere & Gases Lab,” they see gas cylinders, periodic tables, vacuum chambers, and various other equipment, which they will use to carry out their own experiments relating to pressure, volume, and temperature of gases (perhaps resulting in a controlled explosion or two!). These settings simply cannot be replicated in a formal school classroom. They allow us to do our work in the most impactful way possible, and they are updated on a regular basis.

At Guided Discoveries, we pride ourselves on our people. We hire energetic and passionate staff who are dedicated to carrying out the Guided Discoveries mission. We believe that the best way to educate children about science and the natural world is to employ people who are themselves educated in the sciences and passionate about exploring the natural world. All of our instructors have at least a bachelor’s degree in a science or environmental field, with some having already achieved higher degrees. Additionally, we provide our CIMI instructors with American Red Cross Waterfront Lifeguard certifications, which include first aid, CPR, and oxygen administration so that they can safely carry out water activities. Most importantly, our instructors enjoy working with children and are passionate about sharing their love of science and the natural world.

Currently serving approximately 55,000 individuals annually, Guided Discoveries has served a total of 1.3 million since our humble beginnings in 1979. While we started with a single CIMI facility in California, we have expanded to operating three CIMI sites and one AstroCamp site in California, as well as an AstroCamp site on the east coast in Virginia. We operate our facilities 11 months of the year, serving schools from across the country and summer campers from around the world.

We have regularly updated our curriculum and teaching spaces, and we will continue to do so into the future. Our classes are aligned with the Next Generation Science Standards to provide the best learning experience for students, while also tying in nicely to the NGSS and curriculum being used in their schools. Since 1979 CIMI has upgraded from teaching “algae in a bucket” on the beach, to teaching in an algae lab decorated with beautiful murals with lab tables inset with wells, which have fresh saltwater inflow and house algae samples for students to examine and explore. Similarly, AstroCamp has evolved from having a few collapsible telescopes, to having designated observatory spaces with computerized 12-14” diameter telescopes that can be used to view deep space objects such as nebulae and record deep space images. As technology improves and science evolves, we will continue to improve and enhance our programs and facilities.

Knowing that we have an impact in the lives of 55,000 children each year also creates a strong sense of social responsibility. While Guided Discoveries endeavors to operate in a mindful way, we recognize that we can do more to improve our interactions with and impacts on the children who participate in our programs. One of our next projects for 2021 is to develop formal JEDI and trauma-informed teaching trainings. We believe it is very necessary to provide these trainings to our staff so that they may provide an even better social-emotional experience for the children we serve.