MONTVILLE, Conn. (AP) — October 20, 2013 — Nineteen fifth-graders surrounded Project Oceanology instructor Caitlin Lewis on the deck of Envirolab III one morning last week, jockeying for a good view of the net they had just reeled in.
The children were fascinated by their catch, shouting things like ‘‘Fishies come here!’’ and ‘‘Fishy is mad!’’ as they struggled in the net. But once Lewis loosened the net enough to allow the fish to flop out, the students drew back and shrieked in horror.
Diane Monahan’s fifth-grade class from Charles E. Murphy Elementary School was participating in one of Project Oceanology’s boat programs, during which students test water samples and learn how to identify marine species. On Wednesday, the boat sailed to the area where the Thames River meets the Long Island Sound.
School districts that purchase yearly memberships in Project Oceanology can send their students to the University of Connecticut’s Avery Point campus in Groton for a variety of hands-on experiences in marine science and ecology.
The Montville School District was a founding member of Project Oceanology when it started 40 years ago, but the district took a short lapse from membership for budgetary reasons. Montville rejoined the program this year for $30,000, an expense the Board of Education was able to make room for even though there was no increase in the budget.
Read the full story by the Associated Press at Boston.com