After a year of waiting, 5th graders at Carl E. Schluter Elementary found out that the whales they studied and lobbied to save from life in a marine park are a step closer to their goal. Learning isn’t just about getting good grades in school. At Carl E. Schluter Elementary School in Haslet, st udents are learning that their voices matter outside the classroom. “I just want them to know that they can follow their own passions and do something with their voices to make a difference in the world,” 4th-grade teacher Rachel Friend said. Last year, for an opinion writing assignment, Friend had her students study the plight of captive whales, Wikie and Keijo, in a French marine park. The then 4th graders wrote letters to a French minister in the government, lobbying to send the Orca whales to a sanctuary. That French government official saw their letters, because she used one in a social media post. Fast forward one year. This week, students who are now in 5th-grade got some good news. The French government agreed to send the whales to the Whale Sanctuary Project in Nova Scotia. “The moment Ms. Friend told us, like in here, just burst out with joy because (we) realized that we made a difference by writing those letters,” 5th-grader Kade Rubalcava said. “No matter how small or how big you are, you can make a difference, and you can change the world in your own way.” The next steps are to get health checks for both Wikie and Keijo, and raise the remainder of the funds to build the Whale Sanctuary Project. If all goes to plan, the whales could be moved next summer. “It takes a lot of extra work, but I just feel it’s so important to teach them beyond what we teach in the classroom,” Friend said. “Then when you actually see, even though it took a year, that it actually worked, that’s pretty rare.” “Like, it actually went somewhere. I actually, like, helped,” 5th-grader Charlotte Riney said. “I changed the world, just one step at a time. It’s just amazing!” ...read more read less