The ocean plays a critical role in sustaining society and global biodiversity. However, a range of environmental impacts has led to its degradation. In response, initiatives promoting the sustainable use of marine environments, such as educational programs on ocean literacy, have gained importance. Despite these efforts, the short duration of many interventions has limited their ability to address the diverse relationships that social groups have with the ocean. This limitation often excludes marginalized segments, such as students experiencing school retention. One proposed solution to engage these groups is the integration of the ten dimensions of ocean literacy into educational interventions. This study describes the design, implementation, and evaluation of a long-term educational intervention comprising 30 sessions with students in situation of school retention from a public school in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. The findings revealed that while students initially resisted engaging with the knowledge dimension, this resistance was not insurmountable. By aligning the principles and concepts of ocean literacy with the students' realities and incorporating the other nine dimensions of ocean literacy, knowledge acquisition was facilitated. These results are particularly relevant for educational interventions that aim to work holistically with the ten dimensions of ocean literacy, emphasizing the adaptation of global issues to local contexts as a strategy to engage students resistant to formal schooling.