Students construct a large model ship to hold the items. They keep a record of all incoming items. They fill the ship, then remove items, sort them into categories and evaluate their worth for the mock voyage. Selected items are packed into the trunk. Success is determined when the lid closes on the trunk.
Students research famous ships and explorers, and report to the class sing books, maps and a globe.
The program's greatest value is the attention given to the processes of science in an interdisciplinary curriculum. Students observe, describe, classify, compare, contrast, hypothesize, use numbers, predict, construct models, record, and experiment. They are taught through active participation to think like scientists in their everyday lives. Students benefit from seeing their efforts result in something that helps others.