Fresh Catch: New Fisheries Content Enhances Online Curriculum

New curriculum content highlighting Great Lakes fisheries is now available online via Michigan Sea Grant’s web site, Fisheries Learning on the Web (FLOW).

Four new and revised classroom lessons help educators and students observe and identify Great Lakes fish, understand the fundamentals of fish habitat and life cycles, and learn how scientists monitor the movement of fish populations.

The new FLOW lessons were developed in collaboration with fisheries experts at the University of Michigan, among them Professor Jim Diana of the School of Natural Resources and Environment, Professor Emeritus Gerald Smith of the College of Literature, Science and Arts, and Christine Geddes of the Institute for Fisheries Research. The lessons were reviewed by seven Michigan science teachers. All lessons meet state and national science education standards and benchmarks and are designed for educators and students in grades 4 through 8.

“Our development team took the opportunity to improve the fishes unit based on feedback from science teachers and fisheries experts,” said FLOW project director Elizabeth LaPorte. “The revised unit provides a comprehensive overview of Great Lakes fishes.”

Lesson 1 of the revised fisheries unit introduces students to the number and variety of Great Lakes fish. Students use a dichotomous key to identify distinguishing characteristics and identify common fish families. The lesson activity includes 12 illustrated fish cards and a teacher master that highlights significant details about each species.

Students head outdoors to complete Lesson 2 on fish habitat. Supplemental worksheets guide students through the process of observing and recording field data and making scientific predictions. Lessons 3 and 4 feature new content discussing fish life cycles and reproductive strategies, and an introduction to how technology can be used to monitor Great Lakes fish populations.

The revised fisheries lessons can be found in Unit 3 of the FLOW curriculum. They supplement existing lessons in Unit 1 covering the aquatic food web and invasive species, and Unit 2 covering wetlands and water quality. Together, the lessons provide a unified, standards-based Great Lakes curriculum.

The Sea Grant FLOW development team includes: education specialist Nikki Koehler, extension educator Brandon Schroeder, project director Elizabeth LaPorte, senior editor Joyce Daniels, and graphic artist Todd Marsee.

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