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Trout in the Classroom |
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Creating Excitement in Education |
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This hands-on, flexible program has won
national acclaim and is in place in
classrooms internationally. Raising trout in
the classroom connects students to water
quality and other real-life issues and
inspires them to seek solutions to problems.
The program is simple: teachers set up an
aquarium and incubate trout eggs in their
classroom under the guidance of a Trout in
the Classroom (TIC) coordinator. Students
watch as trout develop from eggs to fry,
with the final result being a field trip to
release the young fish into the wild. This
up-close-and-personal involvement develops
students' interest in the environment
necessary for juvenile fish to develop into
healthy adults. These interests inspire
questions about the needs of humans and
their relationship to the environment.
The program encompasses not only science but
language arts, mathematics, social studies,
ecology and art. |
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| The
Vision |
 Trout
Unlimited (TU) has a vision to ensure that
robust populations of native and wild
coldwater fish thrive within their North
American range, so that our children can
enjoy healthy fisheries in their home
waters. Trout in the Classroom (TIC) brings
the importance of this vision directly to
the members of this next generation,
allowing children to discover it for
themselves. Networks of teachers, supported
by local chapters of TU or private
volunteers, pursue these goals. Here in
Southwest Virginia, Dr. David Jones, a
Martinsville orthodontist, has sponsored
over 20 trout tanks in Henry, Patrick and
Pittsylvania counties for the past 3 years
(2005 – 2008) |
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The Program
A sponsor provides money for equipment and, in the some cases,
volunteer help with setting up tank systems and continuing support.
An aquarium and chiller system is set up to incubate trout eggs in
classrooms under the guidance of a Trout in the Classroom (TIC)
coordinator. Students watch as trout develop from eggs to fry, with
the final result being a field trip to release the young fish into
the wild. The Smith River at the Basset Library in Henry County is
used as a release site.
Watershed Eductation
TIC is a unique way to teach the relevance of
watersheds. Trout are an indicator species; their abundance directly
reflects the quality of the water in which they live. In the TIC
program, students learn to care about their trout and the habitat in
which trout live. As the program progresses, students see
connections between the trout, water resources, the environment, and
themselves.
 This
hand-on experience develops students' interest in the environment
and conservation issues as they learn what it takes to keep these
trout alive and healthy. These interests inspire questions about the
needs of humans and their relationship to the environment. The
program encompasses not only science but language arts, mathematics,
social studies, ecology and art.
The Dan River Basin
Association (DRBA) and Trout in the Classroom (TIC) formed an
exciting partnership to promote shared goals of stewardship and
education for students in Henry, Patrick and Pittsylvania counties,
and the City of Martinsville in the Virginia portion of the Dan
River watershed. Dr. Jones supplies aquariums, support materials,
equipment, and brown trout fry to area schools and the Virginia
Museum of Natural History. For three consecutive seasons, students
and teachers collected data, regulated feedings, monitored water
quality and successfully raised the trout to fingerling size.
Events are later held to release the trout into the Smith River.
This program offers exposure on watershed issues on the Smith River,
a tributary of the Dan, to thousands of students, teachers, parents
and the general public over the past three years. |
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Linking Lessons |
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DRBA’s efforts of
stream water quality monitoring using the Virginia Save Our Streams
protocol of determining the density and diversity of a streams’
macroinvertebrate population (the main diet of trout) was a natural
companion to the TIC project. Linking the two concepts, through
both classroom and streamside demonstrations, gave the students a
broader perspective of the impact this project would be making on
the environment.
The DRBA
presentation illustrated the water cycle, rural versus urban effects
on a stream of storm water runoff, types of pollution, the
importance of preventing pollution, hands on identification of
macroinvertebrates, and a mini ecosystem of macroinvertebrates. |
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Restoring the Fisheries |
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 The
Smith River in Henry County, Virginia provides a beautiful panorama
as the students and teachers bid goodbye to their trout during a
series of releases.
Thousands of trout have been released into the river
as a result of this program with area students participating in the
school wide programs that were responsible for the care of the trout
from eggs to fingerlings.
The DRBA water monitoring program for macro
invertebrates was presented at these streamside releases as well as
additional classroom sessions.
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Improving Academic
Performance |
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The teachers found creative ways to relate
the young trout and their health to science,
math, art, history, government, and
writing. The enthusiasm generated by this
hands-on project has been unprecedented, the
teachers say, in producing students who want
to come to school to learn. School
administrators have been so impressed with
the overall positive effect on classroom
participation that some are planning to
implement curriculum changes to parallel the
TIC and DRBA project. |
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Widespread Positive Results |
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The impact of this project for the
local environment, the brown trout
fishery of the Smith River, the
local economy, and the broadened
education perspective of our
students cannot be overstated. The
initiation of this project, its
financial support, and the
dedication to its successful
conclusion belong solely to Dr.
David Jones. DRBA is proud to
collaborate with and participate in
such a valuable effort.
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Parts of this article and all photos
were submitted by Wayne Kirkpatrick.
Permission given for reprinting in
whole in the Dan River Basin
Association Newsletter and the
Virginia Sportsman Magazine
and on the Dan River Basin
Website |
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