BAKERSFIELD, Calif. (KERO) — The Kern River Rainbow Trout can grow to between 5 and 7 pounds. At 7 weeks, the fish are still just babies, called fry, and some of them have become part of one junior high school's project to bring the ecosystem into the classroom.
8th graders at Thompson Junior High School in Bakersfield raised the trout fry, and on Wednesday, March 29, they released those fish into the Kern River to live the rest of their lives.
7 weeks ago, the fry were just eggs in science teacher Simran Brar's 8th grade classroom.
"Our principal, Michael Brasier, brought this idea to us about housing trout in our classroom, and we were so intrigued that we reached out to the Kern County Fly Fishers and we kind of arranged for all this to happen," said Brar.
Principal Brasier, however, admits to borrowing the idea from his own high school science teachers.
"When I was a classroom teacher for science I did it as well. I got to experience it as a high school student and I found it super valuable, super rewarding, and so I brought it to my high school classroom," said Brasier.
Brasier says the use of hands-on learning allows students to connect more with the lessons they're being taught in class.
"To apply their learning is just a testament of their determination to kind of continue learning and their love of learning," said Brasier.
In addition to the partnership with KCFF, the Bakersfield Chapter of the Buffalo Soldiers also helped, sponsoring the event and teaching students about the Buffalo Soldiers organization.
Lieutenant General Dee Slade with the Buffalo Soldiers says that not only will this project help students gain knowledge, but it will encourage them to share the importance of caring for the environment with others.
"They are going to learn some things that they were not aware of. Why? Because they're going to go back and impact the community through their parents, through those that they speak to about their experience this morning," said Slade.
Brar adds that although this was a classroom assignment, the field trip was voluntary. However, students were so excited about this particular assignment that roughly 100 students joined in Wednesday's fish-freeing activity.
Two of those students, Abraham Davila and Elijah Warner, shared what they gained from the experience.
"How the water temperature affects fish, because warm temperatures can affect a fish's metabolism and their behavior," said Davila.
"I hope to gain more about the fish that I didn't know before," said Warner, "Because I don't usually find them interesting animals, but after this I found out that they're quite interesting and I hope I learn more about the world of animals here."
According to the Thompson science teachers, the Rainbow Trout fry released Wednesday have a 0.1 percent survival rate due to their small size. However, they say they will continue this project next year, as they believe it's a great hands-on learning experience.
