A group of eighth-grade science students from Middletown Area Middle School went on a canoeing field trip on Oct. 15. The trip was led by teachers Mr. McCain and Mr. Vaughn in partnership with the Chesapeake Bay Foundation. This foundation cooperates with school districts and other groups to inform and offer hands-on educational experiences.
The trip was full of hands-on/minds-on educational activities that illustrated the relevance to the current science unit of study. The primary foundational concept was how both human and environmental actions affect local waterways. These issues are compounded as water travels through the local watershed, which eventually leads to the Chesapeake Bay. The purpose of the trip was to reinforce material that is being covered in the current eighth-grade science curriculum in accordance with the state standards. The students learned about the makeup of the watershed and how the major rivers, like the Susquehanna River, have an effect on the bay.
Students could be found canoeing up and down both the Swatara Creek and the Susquehanna River during the day. Along the creek and river, students stopped to learn about stream biology and water chemistry. Students were able to find and catch macroinvertebrates living in sections of the river or creek and classify those species in order to determine the health of that body of water. Students also used professional instruments to compare different water characteristics of both the creek and the river, including pH, dissolved oxygen, temperature, nitrates, and phosphates. Students could also be found catching fish using long nets along the shore of the Susquehanna, while learning about adaptations and classification of the fish species. Also during the trip, students were able to view the airplane that was still in the river after crashing a week before.
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