Teaching with Trout - fish lessons on the environment for Millis middle schoolers - Milford Daily News

Teaching with Trout - fish lessons on the environment for Millis middle schoolers - Milford Daily News

Teaching with Trout - fish lessons on the environment for Millis middle schoolers - Milford Daily News

Posted: 18 Jan 2020 10:00 AM PST

Seventh-graders in science teacher Deborah Hickey's classroom are raising trout for an eventual spring release in the Charles River through an educational program offered by the state Division of Fisheries and Wildlife.

MILLIS – Every school day this winter, Millis Middle School student Ashley Aten ran into Room 228 and headed straight to the fish tank.

Inside were 233 Eastern brook trout eggs nestled on an incubator tray. Finally, on Jan. 6, she ran in to see several had hatched, swimming around with their yolk sacs still attached.

"It's fun to see them swim around. We had to wait a long time," said Ashley, 13.

Seventh-graders in science teacher Deborah Hickey's classroom are raising trout for an eventual spring release in the Charles River through an educational program offered by the state Division of Fisheries and Wildlife. As part of Teaching with Trout, students keep an eye on the water temperature in the tank, test the water for pH, ammonia, nitrate and dissolved oxygen levels, and correlate their findings with mortality rates.

The project is a hands-on way for kids to learn about concepts such as ecology, population biology, water quality and conservation, Hickey said.

"The whole point of project-based learning is question-driven. 'What's next? How do they sleep? How big are they going to get?' They're asking all the right questions," said Hickey.

Soon, the fish will start to feed, and their waste will cause spikes in ammonia as it decomposes. Hickey said she's looking forward to students noticing that spike in their daily water tests and deducing what is behind it. 

"They're going to drive that on their own," said Hickey.

Every class, a "tank team" of students check the tank, keeping an eye on the temperature and removing any dead fish. Students then record their findings in a journal, reporting what's changed since the previous day.

There are "no more fish laying in the open," wrote Rian Barber, 13, in her journal Thursday. "They have all moved to the rocks. I wonder why they hide in the rocks. Is it protection?"

There are about 50 schools across the state taking part in the program, said Hickey. Equipment was purchased with the help of a retired coworker. According to MassWildlife, an aquarium set-up for the project costs roughly $1,300, though maintaining it costs very little. The system includes a 55-gallon tank, water chiller, air pump and water chemistry test kits.

Another aspect of the project is educating the community about the importance of ecosystem health in the Charles River Watershed with an exhibit at the end of the project. 

"Ultimately, we want them to be stewards of the environment," said Hickey. "We want them to understand the environment and move toward protecting it."

According to Hickey, it's the "coolest thing" she's ever done as a teacher.

"There's nothing better as a teacher than seeing kids run into the room every period to see the growth," she said.

Zane Razzaq writes about education. Reach her at 508-626-3919 or zrazzaq@wickedlocal.com. Follow her on Twitter @zanerazz.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

This fish is worth $300,000 - New York Post

This fish is worth $300,000 - New York Post This fish is worth $300,000 - New York Post Posted: 05 Jun 2016 12:00 AM PDT With exacting precision, the surgeon inserted the scalpel above the eyeball and cut out a snotty deposit of fatty tissue. The routine eye-lift was nearly complete when suddenly the patient awoke, suffocating, and began to flop about on the table. The audience gasped. Knowing time was of the essence, the surgeon scooped up the patient in his arms, raced across the stage, and dropped her into a tank of water. She revived. Because she was a fish. Yes, fish eye-lifts exist. As do fin jobs and tail tucks. The operating theater was a mall in Jakarta, Indonesia, where a pet expo was under way. As for the patient, she survived, her formerly droopy eyes now bright and perky. A good thing, too, as this was no ordinary goldfish but rather an Asian arowana, the world's most expensive aquarium denizen, rumored to sell for as mu
Read more

Reviews: Horrified SeaQuest Aquarium Visitors Tell All | PETA - PETA

Image
Reviews: Horrified SeaQuest Aquarium Visitors Tell All | PETA - PETA Reviews: Horrified SeaQuest Aquarium Visitors Tell All | PETA - PETA Posted: 21 Sep 2020 12:00 AM PDT SeaQuest aquariums—which are owned by Vince Covino—are plagued by issues: animal deaths, legal violations, injuries to employees and members of the public from direct contact with animals, and customer reviews that'll make your jaw drop (and not in a good way). So if you've ever considered visiting a SeaQuest location or any other Covino-operated aquarium, do yourself and animals a favor: Learn from these TripAdvisor and Yelp reviewers. At SeaQuest Folsom in California, an otter was apparently whacked with a broom. "This place smells the animals look tortured and starved. I'm not a fan of this place. Took my family and we ran out of there. … We will never go back. Also we saw an employee wack an otter with a broom. … If you love animals you will hate t
Read more

Eight different exotic fish species recorded in Ganga river: Kataria - Outlook India

Image
Eight different exotic fish species recorded in Ganga river: Kataria - Outlook India Eight different exotic fish species recorded in Ganga river: Kataria - Outlook India Posted: 17 Sep 2020 12:00 AM PDT New Delhi, Sep 17 (PTI) Eight different exotic fish species were recorded in a study on fishes in Ganga river, Rattan Lal Kataria, Minister of State in the Jal Shakti Ministry, said on Thursday.             Many ecological parameters like dissolved oxygen conductivity indicated that the river health is improving, Kataria said.             In a written response to a question in the Lok Sabha, Kataria said under the Namami Gange Programme, a project of ''Assessment of fish and fisheries of the Ganga River System for developing suitable conservation and restoration plan'' was sanctioned to Central Inland Fisheries Research Institute (CIFRI) for Rs 7.067 crore. The purpose of the exercise was to study fish and fisheries of river
Read more