(above) Grade 7 students Hallie Sussner and Eesha Lal checking out the spider crab.
Life Science Classes at Warren Middle School receive a Visit from The Wetlands Institute
With Spring upon us and warmer weather ahead, Warren Middle School (WMS) seventh grade Life Science classes are studying the aquatic adaptations and reproductive systems of many marine animals that can be found in the waters of coastal New Jersey.
Members from the Warren Middle School PT
O arranged for the Wetlands Institute, a non-profit organization preserving and protecting wetlands and ecosystems, to visit WMS. The Traveling Environmental Education Program is aligned with the New Jersey Student Learning Standards and the North American Association for Environmental Education K-12 guidelines for learning.
The program began with an exchange of information about human adaptations where students were challenged to think and share ways that they adapt to different climates as well as other environmental factors. Next, the instructor introduced a few sea creatures including a hermit crab, spider crab, horseshoe crab, oyster toadfish and knobbed whelk.
In addition to learning about the adaptations of each critter, students were given an understanding of the predator – prey relationships, food webs, life cycles, anatomy and classification of each animal visiting the class.
Lastly, students were encouraged to think like a Marine Biologist and invited to take turns at each station to have a closer look at the sea creatures. Jumping right into the activity, using a two finger touch, students could feel the squishy, scaleless flat brown toadfish, and the hard shell of the horseshoe crab.
The Wetlands Institute is dedicated to educating students to encourage a better understanding of the wetlands and coastal ecosystems. Be sure to keep an eye out for some of these creatures during your next trip to the Jersey Shore this summer!
Photo courtesy of Warren Township Schools
(above) Grade 7 students Hallie Sussner and Julianna O’Sheal checking out the horseshoe crab.
