In second term the Buddy relationships are established the Kindergartens and Grade Ones are somewhat used to the structures of a school day so we capitalize more on learning together. Sherran, the Kindergarten/Grade One teacher, arranged for salmon eggs to come to the school. These eggs are part of a Ministry of Fisheries and Oceans salmon rehabilitation program, we raise them to fry and then release them into a near by stream once they are mature enough to survive on their own. The salmon arrived in late January and are set to be released in Stanley Park in April. Second term Buddies revolves around learning about the salmon.
Week One - Our first class after Christmas break was a chance to do a Know, Wonder, Learn together - about salmon in particular or about fish in general.
The salmon eggs arrived. The little buddies were there to welcome the eggs to their new home.
Week Two - We viewed the eggs. We began writing our Salmon Book. Each Kindergarten/Grade One student imagined themselves to be one of the salmon eggs and described their situation as a story, a science story of sorts. This writing drew on the Little Buddies understanding of their senses, a theme from first term, their observations of and their learning around the salmon eggs (they held them in their hands) and of course their imagination - a life long gift we hope to encourage.
Week three - The salmon eggs faced an unexpected danger. The sensor in the tank somehow dropped out of water and onto the floor where it was reading the room temperature as the temperature in the tank. The heater turned off, the cooler turned on and the temperature in the tank plummetted. Which unfortunately for the eggs, but conveniently for our discussion, openned and connected naturally to this week's Buddy lesson - dangers facing the salmon eggs! Sherran explained the situation to the Big Buddies, the Little Buddies had already been briefed; so they were the experts on this one.
Then the Big Buddies took over. Today's lesson worked the concept of 'hot & cold' and measuring temperature with a thermometer. Temperature fluctuations were the first danger to salmon eggs discussed.
Buddies alternated between measuring the 'hot & cold' water samples, completing worksheets about 'hot & cold' and 'up & down' on a thermometer, reading and talking together about other dangers to salmon eggs and reading books about salmon.
It was a productive period for everyone - talking, measuring, reading, writing, thinking.
Week Four - The eggs have developed an eye, they are now eyed-eggs and we are able to see this in our observations.
We continued our discussion of dangers facing the eggs, should they be in a stream somewhere in British Columbia instead of the aquarium at Begbie School. Each of the Little Buddies pulled a slip of paper that sealed their fate as a salmon egg - life, and the next stage, or death. Together the buddies drew an eyed-egg on one side and the 'fate' they pulled out of the basket on the other side of a 'pink' salmon egg.
After the buddies complete their discussion and drawing it is time to put the danger to drama.
Week Five - Danger Drama! After two weeks of discussing, drawing and dramatizing dangers it is time to rehearse once again and then perform for our classes. While you look through the gallery see if you can see a bear or a duck eating a salmon egg, or a dog or a rock disrupting the redd, or dangerous chemicals or silt poisoning or choking an egg - they are there if you look close enough. There is even a little alevin who survives to the next stage.
Week Six - Writing the second page of our science story was easy now...the Big Buddies helped the Little Buddies to recount the previous weeks and the dangers that faced the salmon eggs. Now the Little Buddies could draw, write and represent with confidence what dangers they might face as a salmon egg.
Week Seven - We Have Alevins!
Week Eight - This week we took a break. We read over and discussed the sheets we have completed together. We looked closely, (with magnifying glasses), at models of the stages of the salmon: egg, eyed-egg, alevin, fry. Then we played for a bit while we took turns going to the Library to check out how many alevins we have this week.
Week Nine - Sharing and Completing the Salmon e-Books
Week Ten - Releasing the Salmon in Stanley Park
Our Salmon are fry and gone to the stream to see if they can survive the next stage of their life cycle. We have completed our unit of study on Salmon with our Buddies and invite you to enjoy our Salmon e-Books.