Project: A Vivarium For School
Resources Needed:ReptoFilter Filtration System, MicroPump, ReptoFilter In-Tank Filter, Repit-Clean Filter & Replacement Cartridge, Harcourt Science by the Grade - Grade 4
School Poverty Level: High
Location: Gateway Environmental K-8 Learning Center, Homestead, FL
Total Cost: $282.69
Still Needed: $121.35 Completed!
Expires: Feb 28, 2014
Teacher's Comments from Mrs. Alfaro:
My Students: My students begin each day by turning on the lights of their classroom pets. They say good morning to their Bearded Dragons, Leopard Geckos, and turtle. They love their classroom pets and have learned how to care for them by researching the websites and the books in the classroom library.
Our school is in a suburban area and the students are of low income families. The percentage of students on free or reduced lunch is 95%, so most of them cannot afford to have pets. They enjoy watching their own classroom pets so much that I would love to begin another Vivarium in the lobby of our school. The other students from other grades love to come in to my classroom to observe our pets, so it would be a magnificent opportunity to provide them with a larger Vivarium. This Vivarium will allow all the students the opportunity to interact with some pets at the school and learn about the care of them.
My Project: The students will use the materials requested by incorporating them into the Vivarium. The filters will be used in a 75 gallon tank which has been donated to my classroom. I decided the best place for the tank would be the lobby of our school. Since our school is an environmental school, it will be the perfect way to continue the theme of it. They will build the tank once we return from winter break in January.
The turtle docks will be placed on one side of the tank and the lights will provide the necessary UV light they need for proper growth. It will be part water and part land so it is a necessity for the students to have the filters in the water for the fish which will be added to the Vivarium.
The students will learn how animals interact with each other in an ecosystem. They will clean the filters, feed the animals, and observe their growth.
This Vivarium project will make a difference in the lives of all students, all personnel staff, and all the parents. It will bring together a learning community for all who see it. I have observed my students grow in the first half of the school year just by learning to care for the pets we have now. Imagine what they can learn from the Vivarium in the lobby of their school.
COMPLETED
Please move on to the bonus project.