Salmonids in the classroom - Intermediate
Support may be available
Contact your local Stream to Sea Education Coordinator or Community Advisor to find out if an Education Coordinator in your area assists with this activity.
Prescribed learning outcomes and curriculum organizers
English Language Arts (4 - 7)
- comprehend and respond (strategies and skills)
- comprehend and respond (comprehension)
- communicate ideas and information (knowledge of language)
- communicate ideas and information (composing and creating)
- communicate ideas and information (presenting and valuing)
- self and society (working together)
- self and society (building community)
Social Studies (4 - 6)
- environment
Math (4 - 7)
- statistics and probability (data analysis)
- shape and space (measurement)
- patterns and relationships
Science 4
- Applications of science:
- predict the results of an experiment
- use appropriate tools to assist in observation
- suggest possible interpretations for a set of observations
- demonstrate an ability to recognize a valid interpretation of their results
- present their interpretation of the results from an experiment
- demonstrate responsible action when using the scientific information and skills they have developed
- perform an experiment by following a procedure
- use a variety of media to present information
- Earth and space science:
- outline the importance of water for life
- use the physical properties of water to describe or illustrate the water cycle
- compare and contrast fresh water and salt water
- describe human impacts on the Earth’s water system
- Life science:
- relate the structure and behaviour of local organisms to their survival in local environments
- discuss how changes in an organism's habitat can affect the survival of individual organisms and entire species
- give examples of how the differences in individuals of the same species may give an advantage in surviving and reproducing
- relate the growth and survival of organisms to a variety of conditions
- describe the basic structure and function of the organs involved in digestion
- compare and contrast the digestive systems of humans and various animals
- describe the basic structure and function of the skeletal and muscular systems
- compare and contrast the skeletal and muscular systems of humans and various animals
- relate the life processes of an organism to its use of nutrients, water, and oxygen
- describe the changing requirements of organisms as they grow
- relate dietary habits and behaviour to an organism's health
Science 5
- Applications of science:
- identify relevant variables in an experiment
- identify and test a prediction
- classify and order based on a set of keys and criteria
- correctly state a hypothesis
- differentiate between relevant and irrelevant information
- use appropriate technologies to record, measure, save, and retrieve data
- describe technologies that allow humans to extend their natural abilities
- identify ways science is used responsibly in their communities
- Life science:
- identify living resources in the local environment
- describe how humans use B.C.'s living resources
- describe the known and potential environmental impacts of using B.C.'s living resources
- devise a strategy for sustaining a living resource
- compare and contrast the respiratory and circulatory systems of humans with those of other animals
- describe the relationship between the respiratory and circulatory systems
- describe the basic structure and function of the organs in the sensory system
- compare and contrast the sensory systems of humans with those of animals
Science 6
- Applications of science:
- design a scientific test and evaluate its fairness
- use instruments to make a variety of direct measurements
- draw reasonable conclusions from experiments
- organize and interpret information in simple tables and graphs
- write clear, step-by-step instructions for conducting investigations, operating something, or following a procedure
- compare ways of solving problems and finding explanations
- demonstrate an appreciation of the importance of keeping honest and unbiased scientific records
- Life science:
- classify plants and animals according to their internal and external features
- develop common classification systems for organisms
Science 7
- Applications of science:
- select an appropriate procedure for an investigation
- select appropriate equipment and techniques to collect useful quantitative and qualitative information
- investigate how models may be used to think about processes that cannot be observed directly
- evaluate conclusions in relation to other evidence and sources
- propose and compare options when making decisions or taking action
- analyze costs and benefits of alternative scientific choices related to a community problem
- take responsibility for the safe and accurate use of equipment and procedures
- design an experiment involving two or more variables
- Life science:
- describe all organisms in terms of their roles as part of interconnected food webs
- describe ways in which species interact with each other
- compare and contrast the major BC biogeoclimatic zones
- determine the limiting factors for local ecosystems
- outline the stages of recovery of a damaged local ecosystem
- compare and contrast asexual and sexual reproduction in both plants and animals
- describe the growth and changes in the development of an organism
- outline factors that influence the length and quality of life
- Physical science:
- use the pH scale to classify a variety of substances
- identify chemical reactions that are important in the environment
- assess the impact of chemical pollution on a local environment
- collect, analyse, and interpret data on environmental quality
A teacher's resource for studying the biology, habitat and stewardship of pacific salmon
This learning resource, which focuses on salmon, biology, and stewardship, encourages an ecological approach, integrating science with social studies. Knowledge of salmon biology and habitat are viewed as building blocks toward a stewardship ethic. Stewardship means "making informed decisions and taking appropriate actions to protect and conserve all plants and animals who share our planet." And stewardship is one of the building blocks of a sustainable community where the economy, the environment and society are all taken into consideration when decisions are made. In short, this resource is about teaching kids how to "take care in our own lives so that salmon thrive!"
Whether small or large, class projects based on salmon have the potential to engage students in stewardship and sustainability. Studying a local creek, raising salmon in an incubator, or touring a watershed, are just a few of the projects that your class or school can undertake to make a difference for salmon and for us all!
Unit 1. Building knowledge: The salmon life cycle
Overview
This unit gives students an opportunity to:
- examine and discuss their pre-existing ideas about salmon
- discuss what a life cycle is
- review the stages of a salmon's life cycle
Key concept
Students learn basic vocabulary necessary for studying salmon, and identify what they know, wonder and want to learn about salmon.
Vocabulary
Salmon, life cycle, habitat, waste
Unit 2. Water cycle, watershed and the salmon
Overview
This unit gives students an opportunity to:
- discuss what the water cycle is
- observe water cycling in a glass container
- construct and discuss a model of a watershed
- begin to construct a watershed wall mural or display linked to the stages of the salmon's life cycle
- review the concepts they learned in the unit
Key concept
The water cycle, the watershed and ocean conditions form the broad context in which salmon ecology and human ecology take place. Each stage in the salmon's life cycle relies on parts of the aquatic ecosystem in which they live.
Vocabulary
Water cycle, hydrologic cycle, life cycle, habitat, watershed, transpiration, evaporation, ecology, atmosphere, lake, pond, stream, creek, river, deforestation, runoff, solar energy
Unit 3. Salmon habitat on-site studies
Overview
This unit gives students an opportunity to:
- select a site for on-site stream studies
- review rules for on-site stream studies
- research items that make a good salmon habitat
- conduct on-site stream studies
- review and discuss their on-site observations
Key concept
Spawners travel upriver to their home stream or lakeshore, where they lay eggs and fertilize them to continue the life cycle. Salmon die after spawning but their bodies support the growth of the next generation.
Vocabulary
Genetic variation, genetic diversity, spawn, spawning ground, pollutant, redd, fertilize, carcass
Unit 4. The salmon spawner
Overview
This unit gives students an opportunity to:
- discuss why salmon swim upstream in the fall
- simulate and discuss the importance of salmon returning upstream
- test the significance of fish carcasses to plant growth
- observe genetic diversity in the class and discuss its importance
- test the effect of pollution on the scent of water samples
- review the concepts the students learned in the unit
Key concept
The egg contains a developing salmon. It needs certain elements in a protected environment to survive.
Vocabulary
Basic: redd, yolk, egg white, hatch, gravel, shell, stream, oxygen
Unit 5. Salmon eggs
Overview
This unit gives students an opportunity to:
- discuss the ways in which animals reproduce
- hatch an organism from an egg
- study the role of temperature in egg development
- create a chart of the salmon's life cycle
- investigate the concept of parts per million (ppm)
- investigate the impact of pollution on salmon habitat and identify ways to reduce pollution
- review the concepts they learned in the unit
Key concept
The egg contains a developing salmon. It is highly sensitive to disturbances in water quality, variations in temperature and pollution in its habitat.
Vocabulary
parts per million (ppm), concentration, molecule, oxygen, dissolved, impurities, pollutant, silt, Accumulated Thermal Unit (ATU), embryo, alevin
Unit 6. Salmon alevins
Overview
This unit gives students an opportunity to:
- discuss what a newborn needs to survive
- test the effect of temperature on the rate of growth and respiration in yeast
- test the effect of water temperature on respiration in fish
- discuss how people affect the temperature of stream water and ways of minimizing human impacts
- construct a model of a waste landfill
- review the concepts they learned in the unit
Key concept
Salmon alevins receive food from their yolk sac but remain highly sensitive to changes in their environment, especially changes in water quality and temperature.
Vocabulary
embryo, temperature, energy, cold-blooded, warm-blooded, micro-organism, yeast, respiration, sensitive, landfill, compost, leachate, yolk sac
Unit 7. Salmon fry
Overview
This unit gives students an opportunity to:
- discuss ways of distinguishing one animal from another
- investigate the classification of animals as fish
- read and discuss information on salmon fry
- test ways in which air gives objects buoyancy in water
- examine microscopic life in a sample of pond water
- examine microscopic life in a sample of runoff water
- review the concepts they learned in the unit
Key concept
Fry swim and search in their stream or lake habitat for aquatic organisms they can eat for food. Fry exhibit characteristics that classify them as fish.
Vocabulary
swim bladder, insect, nymph, larva (plural: larvae), plankton, Parr marks, predator, imprinting, classification, species, aquatic organism, cold-blooded, chum, chinook, sockeye, pink, coho, rainbow trout, steelhead trout, cutthroat trout, buoyant, buoyancy
Unit 8. Salmon smolts
Overview
This unit gives students an opportunity to:
- discuss how salt water and fresh water mixes in an estuary
- observe the reaction of animals to salt water
- simulate the effect of salt water on cells
- develop a simulation game representing salmon predators
- research local estuaries lost to development
- review the concepts they learned in the unit
Key concept
Smolts migrate to the estuary and adapt to salt water conditions, but face increasing hazards in the estuary.
Vocabulary
Smolt, adapt, excrete, membranes, cells, estuary, eelgrass, nutrient, predator
Unit 9. Adult salmon
Overview
This unit gives students an opportunity to:
- discuss whether they like to eat salmon
- watch or conduct a salmon dissection
- identify species of salmon by categorizing their features
- use various senses to navigate without a map
- construct a three-dimensional map of the classroom
- research various methods of fish harvesting and responsible fishing
- review the concepts they learned in the unit
Key concept
Adult salmon migrate through the ocean and then return to their home rivers. People fish for salmon in different ways and for different reasons (recreational, commercial, native fisheries).
Vocabulary
Salmonid, dichotomous key, species, isotherm, slime, scales, gills, gill rakers, milt, liver, bladder, kidney, lateral line, migration, mackerel, orca, plankton, herring, navigation, water pressure, salinity, magnetic direction, thermal, temperature, guidelines, principles, by-catch, zooplankton
Unit 10. Review: The salmon life cycle
Overview
This unit gives students an opportunity to:
- discuss what a life cycle is
- review the stages of a salmon's life cycle and habitat
- examine the material in their model landfill
- calculate rates of salmon survival
- prepare a plan for reducing human impact on salmon
Key concept
The stages in a salmon's life form a cycle, but each stage has specific needs and is vulnerable to disruption and mortality.
Vocabulary
Natural environment, built environment
Recommended additional resources and optional enrichment activities
(E.g. Web-sites, Teaching Guides, Student Reading, Videos/Audio-tapes, Posters and Brochures, Field Trips)
- Big Little Science Centre "Stream to Sea" program
- Enchanted Learning - Learn about the sea and its inhabitants with fact sheets; colouring sheets and connect the dots
- Kingfisher press
- Nature Vancouver was founded as the Vancouver Natural History Society in 1918 by Professor John Davidson to promote the enjoyment of nature; foster public interest and education in the appreciation and study of nature; encourage the wise use and conservation of natural resources; work for the complete protection of endangered species and ecosystems and promote access to, and maintenance of, natural areas in the vicinity of Vancouver
- Project Wild: Aquatic K-12 curriculum and activity guide
- Public Broadcasting Service (PBS): Internet games relevant to marine studies ("Form and Function"; "High Seas" and "Artic Adventure")
- Sea Semester at Woods Hole: Lesson plans on marine biology and oceanography
- Tagging of Pacific Pelagics (TOPP): Census of marine life information pages
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