I read the news today, oh boy!
THE GULF OF MAINE RESEARCH INSTITUTE
350 Commercial Street, Portland, Maine       Telephone: 772-2321

MYSTERY OF THE X-FISH EDUCATIONAL PROGRAM
PARENT/GUARDIAN INFORMATION AND
PERMISSION FORM

Dear Parent/Guardian:

On November, 13, your child’s class will be visiting the Gulf of Maine Research Institute (“GMRI”) to participate in a 2-1/2 hour educational program called Mystery of the X-Fish.     

Students will experience a dynamic introductory presentation about the Gulf of Maine and then rotate through four 20-minute activities at
LabVenture Stations (LVS).  Each LVS is an
interactive digital kiosk where students will work in teams of three or four doing hands-on
experiments and scientific investigations.  The students will take team photographs, collect
digital data and record videos of their hypotheses and conclusions.  The program concludes with a presentation displaying their team data and relating this data to current research being done in the Gulf of Maine.

Student data is saved to a website created for each student, which he/she can access after the program with a username and password provided by GMRI.  Student websites will also be accessible to GMRI staff as well as educators and students who have participated in the Mystery of the X-Fish program.  The websites are username and password-protected and are not accessible to the general public.  If you have questions about the security of the website and our privacy policy, you may review the policy at http://mystery.gmri.org/about/privacy.aspx .

Important Points for Parents/
Guardians

• Student Participation.  Students must be able to participate in the photo and video
portions to obtain full value from this program.  If you do not want your child to
participate in the activities described above, he/she will not travel to GMRI with his/her
class.  Parents/
guardians must complete the attached Permission Form in order for their
child to attend the program.
• Student Photos and Videos.  GMRI may use student photos or videos in our
publications or presentations explaining our programs.  GMRI does not identify students
by name or school when using photos or videos.  In addition, local newspapers and
t.v.
stations occasionally take photos of students participating in the program.  If you do not
want your child’s photo and/or video used by GMRI or local media, please let us know
on the permission form.   
• Data Collected is Property of GMRI.  All data collected by students during the
Mystery of the X-Fish program becomes the property of GMRI.

We hope that your child has an exciting and enjoyable learning experience at GMRI.  If you
have any questions about the program, please do not hesitate to contact us at 772-2321.


*********Please have your child here by 7:45 as the bus they send to pick us up will be here around 8*********