For another year, the Classrooms on Ice program offered by the Moose Jaw Wildlife Federation is putting students out on the frozen lake to learn about the thriving aquatic ecosystem in Buffalo Pound.
The ongoing program runs several days a week throughout February and March, and takes classrooms of students through hands-on activities that talk about fish and conservation.
“It's kind of a three-pronged approach,” said MJWF president Todd Smith, who also happens to be a teacher himself. “We have three different classrooms set up at Loney's Point out on Buffalo Pound Lake and the students. . . cycle through them.”
One classroom takes students through anatomy and physiology, with a dissection of a fish, and talks about the food web within the ecosystem.
Another classroom talks about water quality and the balance of the ecosystem, with a demonstration of soil sampling and looking at macroinvertebrates — such as crayfish and insects.
The third classroom sets the students up to try their hand at fishing, to talk about conservation, and the importance of a healthy ecosystem.
“We actually put them out on the ice and they attempt to catch some of the perch or pike, whatever they happen to hook into,” said Smith.
The hands-on experience is meant to encourage students to look at water — and all of the things that live in it — in a different way. By putting students right out there on the lake, teachers are able to tie in plenty of subjects to explore the importance of water ecosystems, such as social sciences, math, even languages.
The other goal of the program is to show students how important wildlife conservation is, to inspire the next generation to value nature.
“People are only going to conserve what they love and love what they understand,” said Smith. “So, we have to get them out and learning about it, so they end up valuing it and wanting to protect it for future generations.”
Priority for the Classrooms on Ice program is given to Moose Jaw schools, although the Wildlife Federation often gets interest from schools further away, such as Lumsden, Regina, and Craik.
“Our mandate is to help facilitate conservation activities in and around the Moose Jaw area, but if there are spaces left over at the end, we will open them up to schools from a little further away,” said Smith.
This year’s program is already full, but Smith encourages teachers to reach out to the Wildlife Federation early to take part in next year’s program.
