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In the Media July 8, 2006

POSTED: 7:47 pm EDT July 5, 2006

BRUNSWICK, Ga. — A Glynn County teacher got an up-close lesson on marine life that she could take back to her students.

Melissa Allen got a chance to swim with massive whale sharks in Australia, and the whole experience was caught on tape.

During the school year, Allen can be found inside the Media Center at Glynn Academy teaching kids. However, a few weeks ago, she was the student; the ocean was the classroom; and sharks were the subject.

“It was so overwhelming,” Allen said.

After receiving a grant from a conservation group called Earthwatch, and with the blessing of the school she once attended and where she now teaches, Allen traveled to Australia to help do research on whale sharks.

“Well, it’s the largest shark in the world. It’s the gentle giant,” Allen said.

As one of the eight members on the research team, Allen took measurements, analyzed plankton, and dodged jellyfish miles offshore.

“The first thing I saw, because they put you in front of the shark … So, you just see this huge mouth. So, it’s a mouth coming at you, sucking in all the water, and you’re just like, ‘Oh my God,’” Allen said.

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source: http://www.news4jax.com/news/9474172/detail.html

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