Kermit the Sea Turtle lives a pretty charmed life. He’s currently lounging near the Florida Keys, and he took his sweet time getting there, navigating 910 miles of warm ocean waters from Melbourne Beach, Florida since July.

But, he hasn’t been alone on his journey. Students in Mrs. Andrews’ kindergarten class have been following his progress virtually.

“We’ve been tracking him once per week. It was a fun thing to start, but now it connects to what we are learning about – how we affect the environment and other living beings,” said Mrs. Andrews.

The class had a Zoom meeting with Dan Evans of the Sea Turtle Conservancy, the agency that tagged Kermit and other sea turtles to allow for tracking. Students asked what they could do to protect the oceans.

“You’re already doing one thing that is really important by studying oceans and sea turtles,” Evans told the class. “You can also reduce using plastic because a lot of that plastic goes directly into the ocean. Plastic bags look like food to sea turtles.”

The students also asked Evans the following questions:

Q: Why do sea turtles have a hard shell? (A: to protect their body parts.)

Q: Why don’t sea turtles go on land? (A: all of their food is in the water, but they do lay eggs on land.)

Learning more about Kermit and his environment seem to make the students more curious.

“They ask me probably two times per day if we can track him. They’re excited to see where he’s headed,” said Mrs. Andrews.