The Atlantic Salmon Classroom Hatchery Program is one of the education components of the Lake Ontario Atlantic Salmon Restoration Program (L.O.A.S.R.P). This five-month hands-on lesson on Atlantic salmon and the biodiversity of the Lake Ontario watershed introduces students, parents, and teachers to the Atlantic salmon species, their history in Ontario, and the restoration efforts to bring back a healthy and self-sustaining population to Lake Ontario. Salmon raised in the hatchery become part of the overall number released into the target streams annually. The Classroom Hatchery program creates long-term environmental awareness and engagement among participating students at the schools.
Through the contributions of many partners, the L.O.A.S.R.P. offers the Classroom Hatchery Program with as little cost as possible to the schools. In the winter of 2008, 38 classrooms participated, spanning from Hamilton to Trenton and up to Peterborough and Bradford. In addition to the classes, many more students experienced raising Atlantic salmon at five outdoor education centres and the Toronto Zoo.
The lead funding partner in the Atlantic Salmon Classroom Hatchery Program is the Friends of the Greenbelt Foundation, a not-for-profit organization created to help foster the Greenbelt's living countryside by nurturing and supporting activities that preserve its environmental and agricultural integrity. Their funding will add classroom hatchery units to schools in the Greenbelt and neighbouring urban centers, as well as provide teaching materials to be integrated into the Understanding Life Systems strand of the Ontario grade 4 and 6 science curriculum plus other subject areas.
The goals of the program are to:
- engage students in a large-scale, historic restoration effort;
- deliver messages on habitat, stewardship, and biodiversity using Atlantic salmon and the Greenbelt as tangible examples of those concepts;
- foster a sense of ownership and stewardship towards an environment that now has "their" fish; and
- achieve a broader public awareness for the Lake Ontario Atlantic Salmon Restoration Program as the students take their experiences with the classroom hatcheries back to their families and communities
There are many opportunities to get involved in this program whether you are a teacher, parent or community member.
Hatchery Timeline
- Fall- Presentations and Teacher and Mentor workshop
- January - Hatchery set up, Egg Delivery,Measurements
- February to April- Record observations feeding
In January, 50 to 100 eggs are delivered and placed in an incubator tray ("fish condo"). Students will be able to see the eggs hatch and develop into sac fry (alevin). The student's daily duties include checking temperature, water level, and recording any observations. Program staff and volunteer mentors are available to provide technical support and presentations to classes on Atlantic salmon and their history in Ontario. Participating students release their fry in late April or May into the closest target tributary (one of Cobourg Creek, Duffins Creek, Credit River, or Bronte Creek).
Getting Involved
The Atlantic Salmon Classroom Hatchery looking for classes to host a classroom hatchery and classroom mentors to provide support to established classes. Responsibilities and duties for both classroom mentors and schools are outlined below.
Eligible Classrooms:
Must be within the Greenbelt or the neighboring areas from Hamilton to Trenton and up to Peterborough and Bradford;
- Must be grade 4 or 6 (or split 4/5, 5/6);
- Materials and hatchery units are provided;
- Schools are responsible for busing to stocking sites.
Mentor Role:
- In-class maintenance support for classroom hatchery;
- Provide assistance with the in class hatchery to share fishery knowledge with the class;
- Will receive training in a fall workshop.
Please contact
Kyrsten Burns, Atlantic Salmon Education Coordinator at 705-748-6324 ext. 269 for more information, or to get involved.
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