Biology at the River

By Julie Koop

CARSON CITY, Nevada -- In 1859, Nevada's Comstock Lode silver strike sparked the first major wave of immigration into the area. During the subsequent gold and silver rush, the Carson River played an important role in transporting gold, silver, and people to and from the mining sites and the small settlements that lay along the river.

That historically significant Carson River is only about four miles from Carson High School, where I teach science. Although it's an important river in Carson City's history, a lot of students don't understand that - indeed, some don't even realize we have a river nearby. I wanted to develop a program that would teach students about the river.

Actually the river has a bad reputation because of supposed mercury contamination. Ore mined from the Comstock Lode was transported to mill sites, where it was crushed and mixed with mercury to amalgamate the metals. During the mining era, an estimated 7,500 tons of mercury were discharged into the Carson River drainage, primarily in the form of mercury-contaminated tailings. People who live in this area still believe it is not safe to swim in the river or drink from it. While the mercury poison in the river still needs to be cleaned up, I wanted to use science to show that the water quality at the river is generally good

The program I developed is called "Biology at the River." The goal of the program is to enrich environmental curriculum so that the students see a real-life reason to respect and protect their environment. Since Nevada is mostly a desert, the river systems are extremely important and need to be respected and carefully managed. My project enables students to learn in a natural environment in their community. Students are bused to the Carson River five times throughout the year within their block biology period.

Additionally, the program was designed to help create excitement in students to pursue the study of science and to share what they have learned with others using technology and project-based curriculum. Part of the project requires students to create an informative multimedia presentation about the river and show it to our community. Another part requires students to improve a natural area in their community by protecting, sustaining, designing and building an educational trail – the Ambrose River /Trail Site. This project leaves behind a legacy that will be enjoyed by many generations of youth and adults.

See the full story at TechLearning.com