‘Life In The Bay’ DVD Inspires Children To
Explore And Protect Pleasant Bay 

by Jennifer Sexton 

            “I believe deeply in what I do. I love talking about the ocean and talking about Pleasant Bay,” says Jeff Croll, marine educator and president of Deep Blue Discoveries. Croll has recently released “Life in the Bay,” a DVD program for children of grade level three to five and their families and teachers.  

          An extension of Croll’s enthusiastic and entertaining elementary school classroom presentations on New England marine ecosystems, “Life in the Bay” is a 24-minute interactive, comprehensive program that brings Pleasant Bay alive. Young viewers dive with Croll as he explores the multiple marine ecosystems that make up Pleasant Bay, experiencing how animals and plants live in their natural environment. Children come away with a sense of involvement with the fascinating underwater world that surrounds them as well as knowledge of scientific concepts, increased vocabulary, familiarity with the challenges faced by the environment, and ideas about how to protect and preserve the aquatic world.

            Deep Blue Discoveries is in the process of introducing “Life in the Bay” into elementary schools on Cape Cod and in Eastern Massachusetts, where it will serve as a unique and valuable locally-produced teaching resource.

            Croll, who lives in Sandwich, spent summers in Orleans, where he learned to love Pleasant Bay.

            “I grew up on Pleasant Bay, so this is where it all started for me,” Croll says. “Pleasant Bay, like many bays on the eastern seaboard and throughout the United States, is a marine estuary which acts as an underwater nursery for many marine creatures and birds. It faces a lot of challenges like nutrient enrichment and nitrogen loading, and other sources of pollution come into it, but it is a very resilient body of water, and it is very easily accessible. Within three to five feet of water, a whole new underwater world opens up for exploration. Kids need to be active explorers, and they need to be able to take charge of their learning. I developed ‘Life in the Bay’ so children can feel as if they are diving right along with me. It encourages them to explore and to take steps to protect this and other valuable underwater ecosystems.”

            Croll’s love for the ocean motivated him to become certified as an open water diver and then later as a divemaster. He holds a master of arts degree in education and human development. After working as a dive volunteer and as a volunteer marine educator at the New England Aquarium, he was moved to share his love of the ocean with students.

            “During my time at the New England Aquarium, I dove in the morning in the giant ocean tank and in the afternoons I gave presentations, and I said to myself I want to do this full time,” Croll explains. Four years ago, he created Deep Blue Discoveries to do just that. “We are here to get kids to take action, and it’s done in a fun, understanding, creative, upbeat way.”

            Everything produced by Deep Blue Discoveries is peer-reviewed by scientists and teachers. “Life in the Bay” includes a comprehensive lesson plan with objectives, questions and interactive vocabulary, along with activities that children and teachers can use right now to protect the Pleasant Bay, commitment sheets to protect the environment, and diagrams of familiar undersea creatures like lobsters and crabs.

            “I am a firm believer in protecting the ocean. In my classroom program I bring the ocean right into the classroom,” Croll says. “I am determined to succeed, but it’s not for me. It’s more than that. It is about teaching kids to explore, to protect, and to become eco-explorers.”

            Opportunities to learn about the marine environment do not end with the warm weather. Croll teaches all-season programs designed for use in indoor swimming pools for children aged 10 to 12 with Red Cross Level three swimming ability. He will teach a Build a Coral Reef program at Atlantis Sport Club and Spa at the Resort and Conference Center in Hyannis on Jan. 16 at 2 p.m. Enrollment is limited. To reserve a space or for more information, call 508-888-7349.

            “I love what I do, and I want you to join me,” says Croll. “Let’s get together and form a movement to protect the ocean, and let’s start right here in Pleasant Bay.”

            For more information about Deep Blue Discoveries, including how to purchase “Life in the Bay,” and more about Croll’s classroom presentations, snorkeling tours, all-season marine ecosystem pool activities, Croll’s blog and newsletter and more, visit www.deepbluediscoveries.com or call  508-888-7349.

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