Tales from Field Trips by Education Intern Michaela Provancha

My time with Skagit Fisheries Enhancement Group as an educational intern so far has pushed me to grow my skill set and interests. I have had the opportunity to work with SFEG on both classroom lessons and field trips in order to teach students about salmon and their life cycle. Living in the Pacific Northwest, many students will hear about salmon throughout their childhoods yet may not understand their importance or uniqueness. It has been so rewarding to engage with students about a topic that is often new to them and to see new interests arise surrounding salmon and marine life.

In the classroom lessons I start by introducing the SFEG program Salmon in Schools. This program connects with hundreds of students across many schools to teach about salmon and their life cycles through teaching and hands-on experience. Students not only learn about salmon, they also raise 200 salmon eggs in their classes and release them into a stream months later.

After students are familiar with the Salmon in Schools program, I give them an introduction into the five local Pacific salmon, then lead them through a bracelet activity representing the salmon life cycle. I have enjoyed how excited kids get for crafts and their ability to link that fun to an educational experience. Shortly after students learn about salmon in the classroom, they get to take a field trip out to a river where their salmon will be released later on in the school year. Many of them will show up with their salmon life cycle bracelets and it has been so rewarding to see how many remember the information we taught them and their excitement.

When I started this internship, I already had a lot of interest and background information on Pacific salmon. I often bother my friends and family with fun salmon facts and love to tell other people why I love salmon so much. Once the internship started, I realized that teaching a classroom of young kids is terrifying. This was my first experience teaching students and it was difficult to stand in front of the class and teach at first. Through these experiences, I am confident in teaching students now and I even lead volunteers through teaching as well.

In a few more months, it will be time for the salmon eggs to be delivered to the schools and students will be able to start watching their eggs grow into little fish. I am beyond excited to continue in this internship and see interest grow in marine life for many young students.