Over the past few weeks, 7th-grade students from Wilmington, Middleton, Topsfield, Boxford, Ipswich, Hamilton, and Wenham have participated in Resilient Rivers, Ipswich River Watershed Association’s (IRWA) new enrichment program. This program aligns with 7th grade state science standards, and aims to inspire future environmental advocates while providing teachers with a locally relevant program that fits into their busy curriculum. By the end of this initial pilot phase, 800 students will have taken part in the first of two hands-on lessons that have been developed this year.
The lesson being piloted this spring, “Where Did the Herring Go?”, introduces students to the Ipswich River food web and a pressing real-world issue: the decline of river herring in the Ipswich River. After forming hypotheses about what could be causing the problem, students rotate through three interactive stations to gather evidence.
- Environmental Engineering: Students explore how roads and dams impact both water quality and fish migration, and use a variety of materials to design a prototype solution to mitigate these impacts.
- Environmental Science: Students analyze data on water quality and macroinvertebrates in their community to assess the river’s health.
- Hydrogeology: Using a groundwater model, students examine how groundwater withdrawals via wells affects the river and fish populations.
At the end of the lesson, students revisit their hypotheses and discuss their findings. They also are given the opportunity to offer their thoughts on how the program went through a post-program feedback form, which will help us to improve the program for the next wave of 7th graders.
A big thanks to all of the teachers and volunteers who have worked hard to bring this to life. A special thanks to teachers Theresa Fisher (Wilmington Middle School), Heidi Emmons (Miles River Middle School), Deb Wescott (Masconomet Middle School), Therese Schroeder (Ipswich Middle School), and Emilie Cushing (Glen Urquhart School), and IRWA member and part-time curriculum development assistant Claire Hopkins, for their participation in our working group to develop this program.
Stay tuned for future reporting on this exciting new initiative!