Over the past three years, the Turtle Conservancy and The Thacher School have developed a partnership aimed at innovating a new kind of science curriculum that engages students in real-world turtle conservation programs through hands-on learning experiences. This summer we took it to the next level by inviting middle school students from Los Angeles County and surrounding areas to join us on a week-long adventure. The students were immersed in learning about various aspects of turtle conservation and Ojai ecology. Some specific topics that we covered include learning about individual chelonian species, conservation management techniques, egg development, the climate crisis, and the theory of convergent evolution in giant tortoises….