by Laura Stabbert
JEFFERSONVILLE — On Wednesday, May 20, the fifth grade students of Sullivan West released the trout they had been studying and raising for the past eight months.
The class received trout eggs in October and teachers Dawn Hauschild, Kelly Erlwein and Sue Mullally all helped guide the students in learning about the fish.
Over the course of the year the students learned about different aspects that affect the trout from maintaining the water temperature to checking the pH level.
The Jeff Bank and Trout Unlimited were instrumental in the success of the program. The sponsors provided everything from the trout to the tank to the chillers for the students and because of the generous sponsors the students had the ability to learn about the life cycle of the trout through a hands-on experience.
Trout Unlimited is a national organization dedicated to the preservation and restoration of streams, the Upper Delaware Chapter is our local chapter and is dedicated to sponsoring Trout In The Classroom.
For the ceremonious send off of the trout last Wednesday, Trout Unlimited created different stations along the nature trail at the Sullivan West Elementary School in Jeffersonville for the kids to have a fun, learning experience. Students learned about a variety of aspects concerning the trout from fly casting, fly tying and fish carving to stream oncology and how plants are used to stabilize the stream bank.
The project allowed more than 100 students to have a hands-on experience that was directly related to both course requirements and the community, finishing with the opportunity to give back to the environment by setting the healthy trout free in the Callicoon Creek between Jeffersonville and Kohlertown.