Family, Faith, and Fridays: Dolphin Tale 2

Monday, December 1, 2014

Dolphin Tale 2- Review

Have you heard the buzz? Dolphin Tale 2 is getting ready to be released by Warner Bros. Home Entertainment on December 9th on Blu-ray combo pack, DVD and Digital HD in stores across the country. ($35.99) Pretty exciting stuff for the millions of fans that fell in love with the famous dolphin, Winter, from Dolphin Tale!

If you are one of the few like me that have not see Dolphin Tale, let me catch you up a bit. (Lucky for you, my kids have seen it!) Clearwater Marine Aquarium is a true to life facility dedicated to the rescue, rehab and release of injured marine life. Winter, the feature dolphin, came to the facility severely injured and eventually had to have her tale amputated. While fictitious in some ways, the movie tells the story of how she was rescued and then rehabilitated with the help of a prosthetic tail.

The movie became an instant hit and inspired people all over the world, not only for animal rehab, but for people who had lost limbs as well. Winter became a symbol of strength and determination, and she inspired amputees to live life to the fullest. A special webcam was even set up so people could watch Winter from their own home.

Enter Dolphin Tale 2! In it, Winter has lost her companion, Panama, and has lost interest in food and socialization. Because of laws meant to protect dolphins, if she does not find another compatible dolphin to reside with, she is at risk of being moved to a different facility. That's where Hope comes in!

Hope is a tiny female dolphin that was rescued by Clearwater Marine Aquarium much as Winter was. Their story is one that will have you cheering and wanting to visit them! So sweet!

One of the first things that stood out to me about this movie was that while a sequel of sorts, you can watch it without ever having seen Dolphin Tale. Not that I would recommend it, of course! But is is possible. It may take you a few minutes to figure out how some of the characters fit together, but you will be able to follow the story well.

The second thing I loved about this movie it that it truly is family friendly. We are pretty strict about our movie choices here and this one passed with flying colors. Ages 7 to adult watched and we all loved it!

The last thing that stood out to me was that this is a movie that shows compassion played out as well as the acceptance of others. In the movie, as well as in the special features that shows live footage, amputees are a natural, yet powerful part of the story. I would imagine that, especially for younger kids, seeing someone "like" them would be reassuring and inspiring.

All of the original cast returned for this sequel, to the delight of those that loved them in the first movie, and a special appearance is made by surfer Bethany Hamilton.

“Dolphin Tale 2” Blu-ray Combo Pack contains the following special features:

· Dolphin Tale 2: Underwater Magic Dolphin Tale 2: True Story

· Look Who's Running The Show

· Bethany Hamilton Meets Winter

· Dolphin Tale 2: The Mission

· Cozi Zuehlsdorff - "Brave Souls"

· Gavin DeGraw - "You Got Me"

· Blooper Reel

Good music, good theme, and two dolphins that will capture your heart. It is no wonder that the release of Dolphin Tale 2 on DVD is so eagerly awaited! This would make a great addition to your Christmas List for friends and family!

You can find Dolphin Tale 2 on Facebook!

Thursday, September 11, 2014

Dolphin Tale 2- Release and FREE curriculum!

As most of you know, we are not huge movie theater people around here. Seriously. My kids go to see a movie about 3 times a year. If they really get lucky and beg me on a good day! ;)

Dolphin Tale was one of those movies a few years ago. Dolphin Tale 2 will be one of those this year. And guess what? The won't even have to beg this time. 'Cause I am nice like that!

In case you haven't heard- Dolphin Tale 2 will be in theaters beginning on Friday, September 12th, in conjunction with Homeschool Day. Theaters all across the United States are doing a FREE showing at noon.

Winter's story continues...
It has been several years since young Sawyer Nelson and the dedicated team at the Clearwater Marine Hospital, headed by Dr. Clay Haskett, rescued Winter. With the help of Dr. Cameron McCarthy, who developed a unique prosthetic tail for the injured dolphin, they were able to save her life. Yet their fight is not over. Winter’s surrogate mother, the very elderly dolphin Panama, has passed away, leaving Winter without the only pool mate she has ever known. However, the loss of Panama may have greater repercussions for Winter, who, according to USDA regulations, cannot be housed alone, as dolphins’ social behavior requires them to be paired with other dolphins. Time is running out to find a companion for her before the team at Clearwater loses their beloved Winter to another aquarium.

Guess what else is FREE?

You can access the most amazing curriculum all about dolphins. Do it! Even if you are not a homeschooler, you will not want to miss this great deal.

As a homeschooler, I can tell you not all curriculum is created equally. Quite honestly, you usually get what you pay for. That is not the case here. Trust me on this one. It was written by the same author that wrote Apologia's Exploring Creation With Marine Biology, a high school course my daughter is currently taking!

The curriculum is divided into 5 lessons, each with a corresponding short video to watch and then a downloadable PDF with various activities. The videos are fun and engaging and include:

Get to Know Dolphins- Anatomy and Physical Science- Learn some new vocabulary, and about how long dolphins are and how they sleep.
A Day in the Life of Dolphins- Learn about how dolphins eat and how and why they communicate.
Dolphins in the Ocean-Who are their enemies and how many species are there?
Aquarium Life- Learn why the goal of Clearwater Marine Aquarium is Rescue, Rehabilitate and Release.
Dolphins and Us- What can you do to prepare yourself to work with dolphins and other marine life?

An answer key is also provided.

After your child watches the video, each anywhere from 2-5 minutes a piece, make sure you take time to do some of the activities. There is a little there for everyone, from coloring sheets, to games, to stories. Each activity is marked with a dolphin to indicate activities geared towards elementary aged children or a sea turtle to indicate activities geared towards middle school or high schoolers. We had so much fun with this. What a great way to follow up after watching the movie and would make a fun, rainy day activity for your whole family!

If you are a homeschooler and know anything about Classical Conversations- a quick shout out. There is a 75 page CC lesson guide you can also download. In true CC form, it is simply amazing and covers every subject you could think of. They outdid themselves, I must say. Even if you do not use CC, use this guide anyway! It is worth it!

As a part of the kick off promotion for Dolphin Tale 2, one of our readers can win a Dolphin Tale 2 t-shirt and cool sunglasses just like you see here!