For our kids

[The CHop]

I have a question to pose to the reef community?

Our kids are our future. So how do we teach them about the tanks that we love and enjoy? A process that we watch every day in our tanks (denitrification) is one of the greates experiances that a kid can see. Problem is that tanks can be pricy. How can we come up with a low cost option to bring what we love to a classroom for all to see while bringing a experiance the student will remember. Hands on science is the only way to go at least for me?

 

[con999]

im not a ture kid(im 14 and 12 when i set the tank up) and i have figered a cheep why for my tank... working for money, LSF reffing flag footbal game, working at my house. all this time i have had my tank only 30 in tax had come from my parents. on 30 cents the other millions of doll;ers i spend come from me. hahaahaha

 

[con999]

same post sorry

 

[killerbee181]

get in with your local reef club. There's always someone that will donate tanks, equipment and livestock. Especially if it's for a good cause like a classroom.

 

[The CHop]

Thanks killer. This is not so much a post about getting things. More how you can pass your mind to the young ones. I am horriable at speaking my mind sorry. So I hope there is a teacher out there that can help me bring what we love to the kids.

 

[Crawfish00]

I thought the same as killer bee...but now I understand what your asking.

 

[Blown76mav]

What I did with my kids was to build them a small tank(you could use a storebought one) and use the hands on approach. My daughter learned the importance of waterchanges, how we did them and what it takes to keep the fish living. She eventually learned to test the water as well. No need to use corals at this point, start with the basics. My son who is younger is learning with a FW molly now. He feeds it and cleans it all on his own.

A small 10g-20g with a HOB filter, small PC light, small heater, a couple of pieces of live rock and sand and some Clownfish, Damsels, or Chromis (hardy and cheap) and your all set.

 

[jadeguppy]

I have a 65g in my classroom. The kids will ask you lots of questions that open the door up to expand on. I have a student each week responsible for doing top-offs, water changes, feeding, and cleaning the glass. I've learned that if you can catch their attenton, they ask you. It is a wonderful, passive way to teach. They ususally don't even realize that you are trying to teach them, they just think it is a cool tank.