WorldologistsReviews of worldologists.com

My daughter Veronica and I just came back from the Marine Biology workshop in Bocas del Toro. It was a life-changing experience! We observed manatees, sea turtles, tasted different tropical fruits, made chocolate, planted mangroves, helped with coral restoration, visited Smithsonian Institute, and so much more. It's a trip that we can never arrange by ourselves. Mary knows everything here in Panama, and she is very organized. Beside the workshop, she also gave us suggestions about lodging, travle tips, local guide, food to try, things to do. The families in our group had several outings, and the bat cave adventure was so exciting. Everyone in the group is so friendly and my daughter made some great friends here. Mary is not only knowledgable, but has tons of experience with kids. Her workshop was lively and engaging. From tropical plants to mangrove adaptation, I learned a lot, too. The last day when we were planting mangroves, she said, in a couple of years, when you come back, you will see the mangroves you planted to be a forest. I want to say that you also planted a seed in our kids' heart. The seed of curiosity, kindness, and independence. I can't thank you enough. Hope to see you in the near future again.

Great experience for the kids! The trip is well organized, with great connections to the local community of scientists. Activities are mostly outdoors, building connections with the curricula of the related online class. No one got really hurt despite the massive potential of tropical ecosystem. This is a great opportunity for homeschooled and passionate kids to connect with each others face to face in a very positive environment, and parents to learn from other parents’ experience of homeschooling on the side… looking forward to do this again!

We had a wonderful experience that has sparked our son's interest in science. The workshops were well thought out and well executed. Thanks so much for this once in a lifetime opportunity.

Life-changing experience My son and I had an amazing experience with the Vertebrate Zoology workshop at Gamboa Rainforest Preserve in May 2025. My son has been taking science classes with Ms. Mary for the last five years (Marine Biology, Earth Sciences, Physical Sciences, Oceanography, and Vertebrate Zoology), and he finally had a chance to work with his favorite teacher IN PERSON! Every single day with Ms. Mary (and Brain) was worth a year of adventure and learning. (My son’s quote!) She arranged a night herpetology hike (our kids will never forget it!), a visit to the Smithsonian Bat Lab where we got to chat with the young woman who has been working on her second PhD (in Vampire Bats!!!), a day of birding with a native guide, who could spot the exotic birds (and some nests) and could communicate with them, he helped us take some incredible photos through his scope. We met some top researchers, biologists and guides in the country, who helped us sharpen our observation skills. We were out exploring in the Gamboa rainforest day and night and we always felt safe. We also traveled to the Caribbean side, where we got to snorkel among the mangroves and coral reefs and enjoy the best fruit in the world, visited the Native village and got to practice our Spanish. Mary and Brian took care of everything: transportation, museum visits, guides, figuring out every detail beautifully, and we knew they would make things work in any kind of weather. We were very well prepared and we got lucky. (Panama in May was a lot more pleasant than DC in August!) It will impossible to describe our trip in just one review. So, why is it a life-changing experience? Well, my 13 year-old son came back from this trip a different person: more confident, more experienced/knowledgeable, more adventurous and most importantly, more connected! His connection with the whole group of some awesome kids made it perfect for him! We all had kids there who loved science and loved learning and Ms. Mary brought it to the next level once again! Say YES! Do it! And I hope to see you in Panama next spring!

My daughter and I attended the vertebrate zoology workshop in Panama’s Gamboa Rainforest Preserve in May 2025. My family also attended the marine biology and oceanography workshop in Bocas Del Toro in April 2022, both as an optional part of my children’s Next Level Homeschool courses, and both experiences were absolutely incredible. As a homeschool family, I love making every trip an opportunity to learn about local culture as well as history and science. These workshops were the most enriching and educational trips we’ve had the opportunity to take. Not only were we able to learn from a fantastic teacher who’s so very passionate about what she teaches, but she also curated opportunities for us to learn from experts in their field, as well as share in experiences with the local indigenous peoples. Some highlights from both trips; a night herpetology hike with one of the top herpetologist researchers in Panama, an entire morning of birding with a guide with decades of experience that could literally talk to the birds (they would call back to him!) who was able to find some very rare and hard to spot species, a tour of an indigenous village led by their medicine man, who showed us the large variety of plants and trees in the community and some of their uses, a visit to a coral reef restoration facility that inspired my daughter’s future career dreams, and so much more. Not to mention making fabulous new homeschooling friends! But perhaps my favorite thing about both experiences was how focused they were on both conservation and supporting the indigenous peoples. We loved every moment and I can’t wait to share in another experience with the Worldologists!

My family had an incredible experience at the Marine Science Workshop in Bocas del Toro, Panama in 2025. The access to places, people and organizations was unlike anything we could ever have accessed on our own, and we all learned so much while having a blast. Highlights were releasing baby sea turtles into the sea (!!!), a food forest tour where we sampled so many new fruits, and learning about/participating in coral reef restoration. What an unforgettable life changing experience! Thank you Mary and Brian!

My son and I visited Panama with Mary as part of the Vertebrate Zoology course. We had an amazing, once in a lifetime experience. Mary put together thoughtful experiences with world class, expert, local tour guides that treated the kids with respect—never talked down to them, but met them exactly at their enthusiasm level. Highlights included the herpetology hike and Smithsonian Institution. Our days were busy but not overwhelming, and we felt welcome, safe and well taken care of. The hotel was a dream. Truly a magical experience.

My son and I attended Mary's Panama workshop in April after he completed the year long Marine Biology course with Next Level Homeschool. Signing up for the trip sounded felt like a leap of faith but, I am so glad I went for it - truly unforgettable experience and one that I would highly recommend! Seeing all the kids (ages 10-17) come together was awesome! My son is normally slow to warm up to new people but, he was immediately engaged with this group. The trip was action packed with carefully planned learning adventures and enough downtime in the evenings. We felt supported throughout the entire process - from initial planning to booking to last minute preparations and things to do before and after the workshop. More trips please Mary!!