Poem inspired by Trout
A poem about not wasting water written by a pupil at Baydon St Nicholas Primary School was inspired by looking after a trout.
Pupils releasing trout with Anna Forbes- original photo courtesy Marlborough News
The poem and entries in Dave the Trout's diary were all part of a long term project that saw pupils raise trouts from alevins and then release them into the River Kennet.
The project was organised by ARK (Action for the River Kennet) and two of their members joined the children as they released baby trout into the river near Axford.
ARK's Anna Forbes told Marlborough News:
"Action for the River Kennet is celebrating eleven years of its ‘Trout in Schools’ project this year, which involves working with over forty schools and thousands of children, including St Nicholas.
"The school received one hundred alevins in a tank in January and, since then, pupils have watched several life cycle stages of the fish happening in their classroom and taken an active part in daily checks and water changes.
"We revisit the classes over the duration of the project to run sessions that help the children gain a better understanding of their local chalk river, and get them close up to the rich variety of wonderful creatures that depend on it being unpolluted with a plentiful flow of water."
In addition to learning about trout, the children also learned about saving water and spotting plants and birds as part of their ARK Passport. Anna said:
"While each pupil took it in turns to look after Dave the Trout and write pages in his 'diary', one pupil was inspired to write a whole poem on his behalf."
Emily, from the Skylarks class (Year 3 and 4), wrote:
Water, water everywhere
Please don’t waste it, you must share
Turn the tap off nice and tight
And brush your teeth with a cup at night
Get a bucket, not a hose
You’ll save water to feed your rose
Have a shower, not a bath
You’ll be quicker with a laugh
Don’t forget these nasty leaks
Get your tool bag every week
Water, water everywhere
Please don’t waste, it you must share
Carol Rasberry, class teacher of Skylarks, told the Marlborough News:
"It’s been a fantastic project for the children to be involved in. They have found out about trout and the conditions they need. They are very excited to be releasing them back into the wild."
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