Peter Perez, 500 Sails Executive Director, stands on a table where boat builders infuse fiberglass materials with resin before assembling traditionally designed boats at a later time.
500 Sails Director of Sailing and Seamanship Junior Coleman talks about sailing with Francisco M. Sablan Middle School students.
OVER 100 students from Francisco M. Sablan Middle School had the opportunity to learn about cultural practice and theory with a field trip to the 500 Sails boatyard in Lower Base and a separate hands-on talaya workshop in Susupe on Friday.
The students are part of Clarissa Masga’s Pacific Studies class, and the trip was organized and carried out by Northern Marianas College student teachers Melvin Sakisat and John Cavinta.
Masga said this is the “culminating event” of Sakisat and Cavinta’s time at FMS Middle School and counts toward their graduation.
Sakisat said bringing the students outside of the classroom was done in an effort to connect theory with practice.
“This is a good project-based learning experience because we’re able to get the students out and have them make real-life connections to what we were learning in the past few weeks,” Sakisat said.
He said the students recently concluded lessons on non-instrumental navigation and the importance of canoes to Pacific cultures throughout Micronesia.
Cavinta said his students were learning about astronomy and weather patterns.
“This type of learning is important for these kids because a lot of the stuff for science can be straight from the textbook, and I try to make it more engaging and exciting for the kids to learn. I think [this is] a great way to apply what they learn in the classroom,” Cavinta said.
During the field trip to the 500 Sails boatyard, students were able to see how the organization makes traditionally designed boats with modern materials. They also were treated to a short tour of the facility that doubled as a history lesson on Chamorro sailing in the Marianas.
Finally, the students sat in for two sailing and navigation presentations by longtime volunteer Andrea Carr and 500 Sails Director of Sailing and Seamanship Junior Coleman.
Carr spoke of her experience sailing the Okeanos Marianas from New Zealand to Saipan. Coleman, for his part, has experience sailing Hawaiian canoes from the Aloha State to the rest of the Pacific, and is a protégé of the famous Master Navigator Mau Pialug.
“It’s something that can be inspiring for [the students] to see how great and highly intelligent their ancestors were in utilizing and working with the elements in nature and making their lives more meaningful and happier while enjoying all of the blessings here on our islands,” Coleman said.
The students later headed to Susupe for lunch and a talaya lesson from David Cabrera of the nonprofit organization Talaya Club.
Cabrera said his organization wanted to empower students.
“[Talaya throwing] is a great way to get kids appreciating the contributions they can make to the household by catching food,” he added.
Cabrera said his workshop covered the “basics” of throwing a talaya, carrying it and spotting fish.
But aside from Cabrera’s goal of teaching the students about their personal “food sovereignty,” he also said there was a larger goal of preserving the Marianas’ food resources.
“The benefit of starting them young is they acquire appreciation young,” Cabrera said. “By the time they get proficient, they’re in their mid-teens and they’re able to sit in on the conversations regarding fishery management with the elders at the table.”
