Queen of the Rosary Students Participate in Environmental Conservation Education Program

Queen of the Rosary fourth through eighth grade science students will participate once again in Trout in the Classroom, an environmental conservation education program run by Trout Unlimited and the Illinois Department of Natural Resources. On November 12, Joe Weisenberger from Trout Unlimited visited the Elk Grove school bringing 100 brown trout eggs to Mrs. Runge's science lab and poured them into a basket within her 55-gallon classroom aquarium. The eggs that landed in the gravel instead of the basket were eagerly rescued by fourth graders, who used a turkey baster to retrieve them.

Now that the eggs have arrived, students are responsible for feeding, testing the water, monitoring water temperature, and replenishing the tank with water. If all goes well, students will be able to release multiple baby brown trout in Knickkinnick Creek on a designated day in the spring. Last school year, 72 baby trout were released, which was the most out of all schools in the program.

Queen of the Rosary students in preschool through eighth grade will observe the growth of the trout throughout the year and follow their progress via a blog on the school website: www.qrschool.org

For more information about Queen of the Rosary School and its programs,contact Kathleen McGinn at 847-437-3322.