REDLANDS, Calif. — A classroom on wheels has been bringing the ocean to students.

Since 2008, the Wyland Foundation’s mobile learning experience has parked in school parking lots to provide the latest standards-based education about water quality, water resource availability and ocean conservation to hundreds of thousands of students.

It recently provided the experience, complete with an immersive theater-type setup and hands-on demonstrations, to students at Smiley Elementary School in Redlands, where the nearest beach is about 70 miles away.

Fifth grade teacher Ruth Thompson said the science lab on wheels is a great way to supplement field trips as transportation costs have increased. Student Tripp Jones said the experience is a great visual way to show students how they can affect the ocean and ways to protect it.