CARBON COUNTY, Pa. — A group of sixth graders from Bear Creek Community Charter School are learning by the water at the Francis E. Walter Dam in Kidder Township on Friday.
"Yeah, it's very fun, you know, we like going in the water," said Grace Kopetz, a student at Bear Creek Community Charter School.
"We focus on environmentalism, and this trout in the classroom is a good way to get kids to have a connection with the environment and know that they have a first-hand effect on the things around them," added Larissa Soroka, Special events coordinator.
This is part of the Trout-in-the-classroom program with the Pennsylvania Fish and Boat Commission.
"So we get trout eggs and raise them right from the eggs, the little guys, and we get to release them into an approved waterway," said Soroka.
Part of the morning was spent learning how to test water samples to learn about water quality.
"So you have to put the water in, about five milligrams, and then put the little drops in there and then shake it up," said Lily Cienciva, a student at Bear Creek Community Charter School.
"The PH is very good in the water and the nitrate," added Kopetz.
"That means it's good and healthy for the fish," said Cienciva.
Teachers tell Newswatch 16 that the goal of all of these activities is to teach students about how the health of the water impacts the rest of nature.
"They see it's not just our campus. It's not just our classroom. It's not even just down the road from us at the dam here. So they are seeing these connections and making it personal to them," said Soroka.
Along with environmental education, students also examined other critters that live in the water.