It's World Water Day!

So let's celebrate with this final blog entry about the Trout and About project from 5P at Ashton Gate primary school.

Monday 18 March 2013
Today we went to Blagdon lake and fed 18,000 fish. Then we went on a nature trail through the woods and saw the lake overflow in action. After that we went to Chew Valley lake and walked on a very muddy path to release our trout at the stage of fry. Also we got sticky bits of card and made pictures out of small plants. Some fish had no egg yolk left when we released them. Everyone misses the trout a lot already.

The field trips have been a great ending to a fabulous project. Students have had the chance to see how their fish will grow and develop. They've got muddy and wet, visited small rivers and big lakes, learnt about where their water comes from and how the lakes support a wide range of wildlife. 

Thanks also to Bristol  Water who have funded the whole project, providing the transport and tuition costs, fish husbandry expertise and tanks, which has enabled the project to be truly inclusive. 





           




            


Finally,thanks to all the students, your blog entries have been really interesting. I've loved working on this project and glad that you have enjoyed it too. Don't forget to look for the MSC tick when buying fish to make sure it's sustainable and look after your school pond by providing lots of nice plants and keeping it litter free.

Happy World Water Day!

Free the fish!

Last week many of the classes involved in the Trout and About project visited Blagdon and Chew Valley lakes and set their fish free.At Blagdon lake students had the opportunity to feed some really big fish and see some fry that were slightly older than the fish they had raised in school.

Feeding the fish at Blagdon visitors centre

Looking at the fry

Releasing the trout at Chew Valley Lake

Here's an extract from class 5B at Ashton gate primary school

Goodbye Trout!

On Monday we went to release our trout (fry) into a real water habitat.

We all went on mini buses to get to Blagdon, where the Bristol Water Company set up all their machinery. They showed us many different things, including lot’s of tiny little trout, massive trout feeding and powerful machines for purifying water. After this, we got back on the mini buses and set off to Chew Valley Lake, where we would release the trout. We were each given sticky bits of paper to stick natural resources on to make a picture. After that, we set of on the long journey to the lake. When we got there we were releasing around 8 fry in partners into the further upstream lake. We waved them off and wished them luck in the big wide world! Then we walked to bird hide where we given binoculars in pairs to spot some beautiful nature. Although it was freezing, we were all had a lot of fun!

So far I think we must of released over 500 trout! The last field trip is tomorrow with Parson Street primary. I'm going to release my fry from the Avon Wildlife Trust office too.

End of week 3 of #troutandabout

Exciting times.....all the eggs have hatched and my student parents are doing a fine job. The alevins are wriggling around, and as far as I know, Jane's Pond is still alive at Ashton Gate primary and Alevin and the fishmunks are doing swimmingly at St Barnabus.


Hatched alevins at Ashton Gate

This week pupils have been learning about the Marine Stewardship Council and discovering more sustainable ways of fishing and watching their own  fish change and grow as they start to explore the tank.They also discovered that their trips next week will take them to the reservoirs of Chew Valley where they will learn about the different habitats around the lake and compare the freshwater habitat to the one they studied near to their school. These are owned by Bristol Water and supply water to homes, schools and businesses in Bristol. 

Barni from Ashton Gate primary school  has sent an update for the blog.

Thursday 7 March 2013
Julie set the trout out of the cage into the fish tank, sadly a few will never be able to swim because they didn't make it. There's been a few that have tried to swim up but they need to absorb their egg sacks before they can properly swim about.
The trout are huddled together to not be seen. It looks like we will have a few swimmers in a few days.

Two weeks to go......we're hoping to make a film of the project so watch this space to see how the trout and the pupils get on.

Students get rapping...

This week as part of the Trout and About project students have been learning about the water cycle, water use, marine habitats and how they can contribute to a better environment. They learnt about how the water gets to their taps and what they should and shouldn't put down their toilet! Inspired by Wessex Water's fantastic rap  pupils had a go at writing their own. Here's a flavour...


The Water Cycle
Water goes up...EVAPORATION
A cloud appears...CONDENSATION
Water goes down..PRECIPITATION
Water gets together. That's COLLECTION
Then it starts again

It gets collected in a reservior
Then the water travels far
It travels far
into your car


Water goes up...EVAPORATION
A cloud appears...CONDENSATION
Water goes down..PRECIPITATION
Water gets together. That's COLLECTION
Then it starts again

Use your water well
It's the essential thing so use it well.
Take a shower instead of a bath
If you don't, it's not a laugh


Water goes up...EVAPORATION
A cloud appears...CONDENSATION
Water goes down..PRECIPITATION
Water gets together. That's COLLECTION
Then it starts again

By William and Felix



Just Save Water
Just save water
Just save water
I'm going to say it one more time
Just save water!

Take one less minute in the shower
You don't need to take an hour!

Just save water
Just save water
I'm going to say it one more time
Just save water!

By Barni and Caelan

Just turn off the tap
When you're doing your teeth
Just to go to sleep
Turn off the tap
Before you take that nap

Don't drop your phone in the loo
While you're doing a poo
Cos you don't need an app
Just turn off the tap

By Bradley and Katie

Fabulous! More to come....