STEM education has become increasingly important as Alabama looks to the future. While still offering a robust program of student classes, camps, competitions, and workshops focusing on ROVs, remotely operated vehicles, DHP has expanded its ROV program to include other STEM classes and activities.
These new opportunities continue our hands-on approach, but provide a greater variety of opportunities to support and encourage student interest in STEM fields and for students to build, create, apply, and learn by doing.
For more information please email us at askdhp@disl.edu or by phone at (251) 861-2141 x7515.
Academic Year Classes
Designing Plankton
Plankton contribute to half of the world’s oxygen. Students will learn about sampling with plankton nets, use microscopes to discover the many species swimming in our waters, and apply what they learn in a ‘Race to Survive’.
Ocean Currents and Drifters
Students learn how drifters are used to understand the effects of ocean curents on the dyanmics of a barrier island. They will have the chance to build a drifter.
Oceanography of Waves
Students explore the scientific method as they develop and test hypotheses by measuring, graphing and analyzing wave height data.
ROVing the Gulf
Students design, build and fly their own unique remotely operated vehicle (ROV). During the engineering process, they’ll explore buoyancy and hydrodynamics, and teamwork.
Sea Level Rise and Climate Change
Through a series of short laboratory activities, students explore the issue of sea level rise, climate change, and barrier island dynamics.
Educational Resources
Go ROVing! Loaner Program
This free loaner program is designed for teachers, STEM instructors, and robotics coaches across the state of Alabama who are interested in diving into ROVs withvtheir students.
Educator Workshops
Build a SeaPerch ROV: A Virtual STEM Workshop
Are you interested in building a ROV but could use a bit of help? This 3 session virtual workshop will lead you through constructing a fully functional ROV. There is also an in-person optional day to fly your newly built ROV in the DISL campus pool.
Change and resilience in Gulf of Mexico environments
Alabama’s environments seem to be experiencing stress on a number of fronts, but efforts are being made to improve our collective resilience. Join us to investigate these stresses - hearing from scientists, visiting local areas experiencing change, exploring classroom activities that address weather, climate, biodiversity, and more in coastal areas and discussing solutions and adaptations to change you can share with your learners.
Exploring STEM in the Ocean
Immerse yourself in ocean STEM in this free multi-day workshop. Experience using ocean technologies in the field, learn from scientists, and explore hands-on classroom activities.
Go ROVing!
Join us in person to explore bringing ROVs into your classroom or learning environment and learn about our new ROV loaner classroom kit.
Time traveling through our coastal history using seashells: A STEAM approach
Empty shells preserved in sand and mud on the seafloor offer a lens into past environments, allowing scientists to “time travel” to coastal environments long before the Industrial Revolution. Join us this year to explore the environmental history of Alabama’s coastal waters.
Student Competitions
MATE ROV Competition
Discovery Hall Programs hosts the annual Northern Gulf Coast regional competition for the Marine Advanced Technology Education (MATE) ROV Competition program.
SeaPerch ROV Competition
Discovery Hall hosts the Alabama SeaPerch Regional. This single day event is open to student SeaPerch ROV teams and includes two pool-based courses.
Summer Camps
Marine DeTECHtives
If you are interested in robotics and engineering then this camp is for you. Learn how to build a simple robot, solder components on a circuit board, and design and build a remotely operated vehicle (ROV).
Ocean Bytes
Campers will get their feet wet in this single-day camp using some of the tools scientists use to study the oceans, including underwater robots, drones, and GPS along our beaches.