EXPLORATORY SCIENCE with Mr. Smith
Students taking Exploratory Science with Mr. Smith need to come prepared to class with appropriate clothes and shoes as we will be going outdoors during the warmer months as well as taking advantage of good winter days when they happen. All students have been given the meeting dates for their own classes and were required to write such in their planners for each of the class dates so they would remember to bring along older sneakers/shoes that can handle some grass or dirt as well as wear socks and long pants that are appropriate for hiking.
6th grade will be investigating Alien Invasive species and during the months of September/October will be going to the CT. River to collect Asian clams as well as look for Water Chestnut sign. We will also encounter young lamprey ‘eels’ in the fine sand as well as freshwater mussels, dragonfly larvae and more. During another class students will investigate the retention pond in front of the school and gather samples of the world’s smallest flowering/fruiting plant – Wolffia sp. We will also encounter a substantial bullfrog population there. Students will learn about the connection between Wolffia and how it has caused the bullfrog population to explode. Basically the Wolffia population grows until it completely covers the entire surface of the pond. This blocks sunlight from penetrating to the water below where submerged water plants as well as algae in the water would normally create oxygen via photosynthesis during the day. In these low light underwater conditions the submerged water plants die and algae photosynthesis shuts down. The decaying water plants then cause low dissolved oxygen levels due to the respiration of the decay bacteria. Anaerobic conditions prevail and fish die off. These fish would normally have eaten many of the small bullfrog tadpoles as well as just metamorphosed young frogs. Without this predator the bullfrog population explodes as we now see. Other classes will include investigations into the Phragmites sp. plant community and insects that feed on them, the Purple Loosestrife population and tiny introduced beetles that are feeding on them as well as fecundity of Autumn Olive.
Following the Alien Invasives unit we will delve into Waste Disposal which will include a highlight of taking a tour of the East Hartford Waste Water Treatment plant. Students will be amazed to see the change in the quality of the water from what comes in to what finally leaves the plant. We will then transition into Global Warming which is basically the result of waste gases from the burning of fossil fuels. Students will also learn about the Ozone Hole and Acid Rain. These are important environmental concerns that all middle school students should get a working understanding of.
Then, students will finish out the year participating in NASA programs. The NASA programs are not yet locked in stone but over the next month or two we will select from the menu that NASA will be offering.
7th and 8th grade students will begin their year investigating the biodiversity that exists near Two Rivers Magnet Middle School. Field trips will be taken to various habitats such as fields, forests, floodplains, ponds, rivers and more. We will hike along trails following the CT. River, Hockanum River and more – collecting plants that are in flower/fruit as well as insects. These specimens will be identified and preserved permanently in our school’s teaching collection which will be housed in herbarium and insect cabinets provided by UConn as well as Cornell drawers that the Two Rivers PTO from several years ago provided funding for. Neat insects we have captured so far include walking stick bugs, tiger beetles, Asian praying mantis, cicadas, parasitic wasps, etc.
During our hikes we have encountered other interesting species which we will not keep, and which includes milk snakes, leopard frogs, a tropical land crab living along the CT. River, a barred owl and beavers at work in the Hockanum River. We have seen tracks of otter, coyote, skunk, raccoon, squirrel, turkey, great blue heron, purple sandpiper etc.
Following the Biodiversity unit we will engage in NASA programs as they become available.
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