Reconnecting an increasingly urbanized population of youth
to the systems of streams, rivers, and watersheds that sustain them.
by Brianna Chu
At Sierra Madre Middle School, science teacher Ravi Dev Anandhan (aka Mr. Dev) wanted to help his students better connect with the concepts of water quality and ecosystems, especially rivers, streams, and watersheds.
The project was a massive undertaking, requiring Mr. Dev and some student volunteers to set up a large tank in his classroom in which they could care for and raise the trout eggs. He also had to register to raise and release the fish with the California Department of Fish and Wildlife. However, despite the challenges, raising these trout helped his students understand the direct impact of environmental pollution on our food sources and the importance of watershed health and water quality.
Science, technology, reading, art, and mathematics (thus, Project STREAM) all came together in this project to provide Mr. Dev’s students with a unique and hands-on learning experience that bolstered their appreciation for water quality and cold-water conservation in the short term, and, he hopes, will help “reconnect an increasingly urbanized population of youth to the systems of streams, rivers, and watersheds that sustain them” in the long term. Now that the tank has been set up, he hopes to continue this program in the years to come, using baby trout to help demonstrate environmental impacts to his students and nurture their connection with their local ecosystems.
For our 2018-19 grants we were proud to provide more than $200,000 for 125 grants to 190 educators including 14 school-wide grants. PEF Teacher Grants are made possible with generous support from the College Football Playoff Foundation, Pasadena Tournament of Roses Association, FEDCO Charitable Foundation, California Community Foundation, and individual community donors. Find out more here: http://pased.org/teachers.
