Mike Martin and Chelsea Merrill Set up the Touch Tank at Maine Lobster Theater

Touch Tanks for Kids is proud to be doing it’s job of drawing in visitors and raising awareness about issues surrounding the ocean.  In this case the Touch Tank is located in the Lobster Theater in Freeport, Maine.   This is a brand new opportunity to get to know some of Maine’s ocean residents up close and personal.

When you go to the Lobster Theater there are several things you will notice.  One you will have the opportunity to purchase some Maine keepsakes, almost all in the shape of lobster, or are about our crawly friend.  Second you will have a great chance to visit a live lobster, pick one up if you are so inclined and get to know what they are like.  You may learn how to “band” a lobster and see them function in their own habitat, by visiting The Lobster Theater’s Touch Tank.  Not only can you see lobsters but many other sea creatures as well.  Thirdly there it is called Lobster Theater for a reason, you can watch a film about lobster pounding in Maine and how that helps the lobster industry during the “off” months.  What you have never heard of lobster pounding?  Well it is the practice of storing lobsters in a natural environment throughout the winter months, so that there is a steady supply of Maine’s most famous export available all year round.

Visiting the Lobster Theater is another must do for visitors to Freeport, it is educational, interesting and fun for kids of all ages!  Come on   down visit the Touch Tank and enjoy the movie.  Touch Tanks for Kids was proud to be able to place a Touch Tank at the Lobster Theater located at Linda Bean’s Maine Kitchen & Topside Tavern, in beautiful downtown Freeport, Maine.   The Touch Tank is a crown jewel in the overall presentation of teaching kids and adults about the Maine Lobster.

Fisher-Mitchell School Fourth Grade Teacher Tammy Baxter Holds up a sea star who resides in their Touch Tank.

Touch Tank Welcome

When you walk through the doors of The Fisher-Mitchell School in Bath, Maine it doesn’t take a lot time to see the impact that their 150 Gallon Touch Tank on the school and the community.  You are immediatly greeted by the bubbling tank, full of sea life welcoming you to the school, like no other greeter you have ever seen.

The Touch Tank- Interactive Education

Getting this tank for the school was the idea of fourth grade teacher Tammy Baxter.  She has always been interested in the ocean and what it can teach students, but was looking for a way to make this learning experience more personal for them.  In years past, her classes had been visited by Officer Salty, who taught kids about the creatures of the sea.  The problem was that he would have to try to keep these animals alive using crude equipment, and the lesson was short term, there wasn’t an opportunity for the students to follow up his visit and get to make the information personal to their learning.  That is where the Touch Tank For Kids, Touch Tank came in.

Interview With Tammy Baxter

Touch Tank Exceeds Expectations

“It has exceeded my expectations.” Baxter stated, “It has not only created a more interactive learning environment but has affected the overall culture and climate of the school.”  Students from all classes are able to use the tank and get to know all of the creatures in it.  Sea stars, mussels, clams, scallops, fish, flounder and lobsters all reside there along with periwinkles, sea cucumbers and sea urchins.  It is a realistic representation of a tide pool you might find on the ocean.  ”I don’t think any of our students will look at the ocean the same again!” Baxter exclaimed.  ”There is a connection between the students and the sea life that will be lifelong.”

One Of A Kind Experience

The tank will provide a unique experience for all of the students of Fisher-Mitchell School, and has been a force in involving the community at large in the school atmosphere.  Employees at Bath Iron Works have come to the school every Friday to monitor the salinity level of the tank and to make adjustments to the water, to keep the environment healthy for all of those sea creatures.  There was also a literacy project tied around the touch tank, where students read a book Called, Ocean Soup.  The author, Stephen R. Swinburne, visited and answered student questions, which just made the learning experience that much more powerful.

A Touch Tank will Positively Affect the Culture of Your School

It is clear that Touch Tanks for Kids provides a product that has energized learning in the classroom, but also has provided an inspiration for students to become interested in careers involving the ocean and that protect our environment.  The tank allows students to understand the fragility of an ecosystem and how things that humans do can directly harm or help the lives of the creatures that live there.  There is no other teaching tool on the planet that can do this, like a Touch Tank from Touch Tanks for Kids.

Contact Touch Tanks For Kids Today to get information on getting a Touch Tank for your school today!

Mike Martin readies the tank, students can't wait for their new "classmates" to move in.

Harpswell, Maine-  Recently the crew at Touch Tanks for Kids embarked on a mission to help the Harpswell Elementary School refill their Touch Tank.  This tank just happens to be the first Touch Tank that Touch Tanks for Kids ever produced back in 2004.  This tank is a testament to the quality and durability of these wonderful teaching tools.

This tank used to be housed in Jean Giberson’s classroom in West Harpswell.  Last year marked two significant events in Harpswell, one Mrs. Giberson retired from teaching, and secondly the West Harpswell School was consolidated with Harpswell Elementary.  Not wanting to lose the educational experience provided by the Touch Tank, the school system wanted to relocate the tank to the Harpswell School, where the connection between the ocean and the students could continue to grow.

There was some concern about how much time it might take to set up, but under the expert guidance of Touch Tanks for Kids, director , Mike Martin, the tank was full of water, salt and on it’s way to being operational within an hour, after his arrival.  In a few short days the tank will be ready to support it’s own ecosystem.

It was amazing to see the excitement of the students as they passed the tank and saw it filling with water.  There weren’t any sea creatures residing in the tank yet, but just the anticipation of the arrival of the new “students” that would be coming next week, energized these young learners.  It was clear the kids and teachers couldn’t wait to start using the most effective and innovative teaching tool in the history of education.  No matter what age the students are, a Touch Tank will energize the learners by making the experience an interaction that will be a life long experience.

For more information about how you can get a Touch Tank for your school or organization: Just contact Mike Martin at 207-944-9852.

The old tank at the center served their students well. It provided 15 years of discovery, learning and enjoyment and enhanced the center’s nature-oriented classes by providing learning opportunities for school-age children on weekdays and for adults and their families on the weekends and evenings.

Once a small family-owned dairy farm, the Ansonia Nature and Recreation Center is a town owned and operated park located in a diverse biosphere that is a wonderful microcosm of a typical Connecticut landscape. The site is a beautiful location that provides sanctuary to many species of New England flora and fauna and the visitor’s center provides a home for a butterfly/hummingbird garden and an award-winning woodland wildflower and fern garden.

Use of this facility is free and open to the general public and the center is open every day from sunup to sundown.  The office hours at the interpretive center are from 9 to 5 daily with the exception of major holidays. A portion of the park has been dedicated to recreational fields; including soccer, baseball, and softball, as well as several acres reserved for community gardening and a large playscape for younger children with picnic pavilions available by reservation.

The land surrounding the Ansonia Nature and Recreation Center includes two and one-half miles of nature trails and is encompassed by 104 acres of wooded hills and grassy fields that are bisected by streams, a two acre pond, wet meadows, and an upland swamp. The center provides active and passive recreational opportunities to area residents with nature oriented education programs as their focus.

Substantial program and project support is provided by the Friends of the Ansonia Nature Center, Inc. The new hundred gallon Touch Tanks for Kids classroom Touch Tank made in Maine that will provide a permanent home for several tidal-pool creatures found on the Connecticut coast and provide countless hours of learning, exploration and discovery for the people lucky enough to visit the center, a true educational treasure. The new learning Touch Tank was paid for with a grant The Watershed Fund of the South Central Connecticut Regional Water Authority, 90 Sargent Drive, New Haven, Connecticut. Web Site: http://www.thewatershedfund.org/The-Watershed-Fund-Grants/

View the Calendar of Events for a listing of upcoming activities at the Ansonia Nature and Recreation Center, HERE.

This is a video made by students at Harpswell Elementary School, in Maine about using and caring for their classroom Touch Tank, from Touch Tanks for Kids.  Mrs.  Jean Giberson, the 5th grade teacher at West Harpswell Elementary School, and some of her students talk about the touch tank in their classroom, how they maintain it, and show us some of the unique inhabitants.

Encourages Participation

Thanks to a Grant from Gannet Charitable Foundation, Touch Tanks for Kids has expanded our valuable environmental learning program to three school communities: Freeport Elementary School, Freeport, Maine, Berlin High School, Berlin, New York, and Tuscaloosa County High, Northport, Alabama.

The Touch Tank Teaching Program is an innovative interactive approach to learning that encourages students to respect the environment as they learn about and care for a wide variety of sea animals.

Jean Giberson, an elementary school teacher from West Harpswell Island School on the coast of Maine, designed the original Touch Tank. She wanted more of her students to be engaged in the learning process and understood that by bringing an exciting hands-on learning experience into her classroom, she would reach more students and improve her ability to teach science, environmental stewardship and other related subjects.

Jean’s vision energized her students, created a better learning environment and inspired the creation of Touch Tanks for Kids, a 501 c 3 environmental nonprofit committed to helping more students enjoy the benefits of the interactive lesson of the Touch Tank.

When asked about the Touch Tank Teaching Program, Ms. Giberson said, “The Touch Tank has been one of the best educational tools I have ever had. If people saw what this tank did and how it inspires the students, there would be no question about funding it. The students might forget me in ten years, but not the tank.”

The Lobsters Like Grants

Thanks to Jean Giberson, the Touch Tank Teaching Program is now used in many locations with educators reporting that a Touch Tank  in the classroom supports all aspects of education, encourages participation, improves learning results, and energizes children to learn.

Believing that building relationships is a main component needed for the long term sustainability of the planet, Touch Tanks for Kids collaborates with like organizations, students, teachers and community members to build better ways to teach students. We work toward our long term strategic goals of advancing marine science education, improving waste management practices and providing long term economic opportunities by creating new and exciting ways to learn about the natural world.

With the generous contribution from the Gannet Charitable Foundation, Touch Tanks for Kids has equipping three professional educators and their students with the world-class Touch Tank Teaching Program. The educators will be provided with everything needed to adapt the valuable teaching program to the needs of their students. They will also be asked to participate in a sea-life propagation study, a study that will help future Touch Tank Teaching Program participants maintain more vibrant educational ecosystems.

In order to evaluate the effectiveness of the Touch Tanks for Kids Program. We are seeking educational programs to participate in a collaborative grant writing effort to unlock more funding to expand Jean’s teaching vision to more students. Participants will only be asked to identify possible grant funding sources and to answer objective and subjective questions about the ways the Touch Tank Teaching Program can improve education, advance marine science studies, improve waste management practices and provide long term economic opportunities for the students who participate in the program. Touch Tanks for Kids will share the teachers’ evaluations and suggestions for improvements to the Touch Tank Teaching Program with our interconnected teaching network.

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Linda Bean at the grand opening of Linda Bean's Lobster Cafe' at the Portland International Jetport

Touch Tanks For Kids has added another exciting spot where you can visit and enjoy the experience that is a Touch Tank.  In early October The Portland International Jetport (Maine) and HMSHost Corporation presided over the grand opening of Linda Bean’s Lobster Cafe’ inside the jetport.  Linda Bean herself, Portland Mayor Nick Mavodones and Maine Governor Paul LePage were all in attendance at this gala event.

Linda Bean’s Lobster Cafe’ will provide travelers with the opportunity to experience the best of Maine’s seafood in a convenient location.  Imagine flying into Maine, walking off a plane and being able to experience Maine’s signature food.  This is a tremendous idea, and the location is perfect.

The most exciting part of this transaction for Touch Tanks for Kids is that there is a brand new Touch Tank at the brand new restaurant that will allow for millions of travelers to not only enjoy Maine’s signature food, but to be able to observe and learn about the oceans of Maine and the many forms of life that they support.   Touch Tanks for Kids have provided the preeminent interactive aquarium for years and the opportunity to be displayed in such a prominent place will help spread our message of environmental education.

The partnership between Touch Tanks for Kids and Linda Bean’s Lobster Cafe’ is a natural one because both entities have a major goal in mind.  Raising awareness about our oceans and the sustenance they supply.  Linda Bean’s mission to redefine and promote the value of the Maine Lobster Industry is well under way.   Since the inception of the business in 2007, Linda Bean has become one of the largest lobster dealers in the State of Maine and has opened Lobster Cafe’s all over the world.

Touch Tank for Kids at Linda Bean's Lobster Cafe

The bigger message Linda Bean has sent is that harvesting lobsters is a sustainable practice, that can help power the Maine economy for an unlimited number of years in the future.   Touch Tanks for Kids shares this message of sustainable industries coming from the ocean.  Understanding this vast resource, and teaching people about it were behind the creation of Touch Tanks for Kids from the beginning.

So the next time you are at the Portland International Jetport, and you see Linda Bean’s Lobster Cafe’, stop in for a great tasting lobster roll treat, and treat yourself to a glimpse into Maine’s coastal ecosystem, inside their Touch Tank.  You will be able to see, not only lobsters in a natural environment but many other sea creatures as well.  In this case it is alright to both look and touch!

Kids and Science Education on Display at Fisher-Mitchell

The Touch Tank Project at Fisher-Mitchell elementary in Bath, Maine got some needed grant  support after the  Merrymeeting Bay Trust called Tammy Baxter and urged her to apply for grant money the group had available.  The members of the trust recognized the value of Tammy’s educational vision, of providing a more dynamic connection between kids and science, after reading about it in Seth Koieng’s article, Making it easier to see sea life. In a follow up article appearing in the the Times Record of Bath, Maine, Seth’s writes,

“BATH – A Fisher-Mitchell School teacher has secured more than $10,000 in grant money to acquire a 150-gallon salt water touch tank since a story about her pursuit of the funding appeared earlier this month in The Times Record.”

The innovative Touch Tank teaching program will encourage Tammy’s students to respect and nurture other living things as they will learn to care for those more vulnerable than themselves. They will observe how fish live in their native environment and discover the value of the aquatic habitats that  surround them. They will learn new and exciting facts about our oceans and the animals which enhabit them.  It may even encourage some students to pursue a career related to the ocean, because of the innovative Touch Tank Educational Program.

Congratulations to the students of Fisher-Mitchell Elementary School, Tammy Baxter for her incredible vision and a big thank you to Merrymeeting Bay Trust for the grant support that helped theses proud students  fund their Touch Tank Project!  If you are interested in acquiring a salt water aquarium for your school, don’t hesitate to contact us!

Science has helped motivate kids to make a difference in ocean habitats

The Mission of Touch Tanks for Kids includes motivating everyone to take personal responsibility for our actions and ending habits that poison the Oceans. In order to have an impact by motivating Touch Tank educators and students to take action, our volunteers monitor the efforts of other groups so that we may share their ideas with our supporters.

Our friends over at Science Buddies have several free project ideas and resources that many Touch Tank educators find useful to help advance kids and science learning.  There are over 1000 project ideas to choose from including teaching resources that include everything teachers need to plan, manage, and evaluate a science fair or a science project in the classroom.

One of the major motivating factors throughout the formation of Touch Tanks for Kids was the existence of the Great Pacific Garbage Patch. This phenomena is from far great, actually it’s quite disgusting.   This ecological disaster is a huge warning sign of how human waste can alter the environment in a negative way. As to what to do with the massive sea of plastic,  that most reports say is bigger than Texas, Oceanographers are at a loss, but organizations like Science Buddies and The Tech Museum have suggestions. Here is a marine debris project and “Tech Challenge” that advance the Touch Tanks for Kids Vision of a cleaner habitat in the ocean.

How Much Plastic Slips Through?
Marine debris often starts as litter that makes its way through local storm drains

Researchers are discovering that much of the litter in the oceans is very small. While some ocean trash comes from boats, other debris starts its trip to the ocean on ordinary streets like your own. In the Do Your Storm Drains Keep the Ocean Trash Free? project, students will document local stormwater drainage systems, make models of storm drains they find, and test those models to see how effective they are in filtering out plastic trash. (Difficulty: 6)

Be a Part of the Solution!

Marine scientists are asking The Tech Challenge’s young engineers to help them clean the seas. Your team’s challenge is to design and create a device that can collect trash from the ocean without harming marine life. We at The Tech Museum know you can do it. In the past challenges, you have explored volcanoes, moved water without electricity, and even helped NASA clean up space.

Want to help? Click here for more information about how to participate in The Tech Challenge, which will culminate in Event Day April 30, 2011 at Parkside Hall in downtown San Jose, Calif.

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Touch Tanks for Kids encourages everyone to start conversations and take actions that help stop the release of dangerous plastic into the environment. We applauded The Tech Museum and Science Buddies for motivating students to take action that helps protect  our oceans.

A students letter has eloquently articulated the value a Touch Tank would provide for kids and science education everywhere.  I encourage you to read this letter first, as it will show you why this project is so important.   The students of Tuscaloosa County High of Northport, Alabama have a reason to smile. Because of the dedication of University of Alabama alum Lisa Clark, her students are now developing unique and interesting ways  for them to  use their very own Touch Tank to learn more about the oceans.  Often times, the most difficult part of participating in the Touch Tanks for Kids Program is raising the money for the Touch Tank. Lisa’s students are working hard at raising funds and are close to buying their very own  Touch Tank and all of us at Touch Tanks for Kids, including Count Sharcula, want them to succeed.

Northport got its name because of the importance of the Black Warrior River. This vital river basin is entirely contained within Alabama.  The Black Warrior Riverkeeper is a citizen-based nonprofit organization dedicated to improving the water quality of this historic watershed that services one million residents, contains 16,145.89 miles of mapped water, and covers 6,276 square miles.

Black Warrior Riverkeeper’s mission is to protect and restore the Black Warrior River and its tributaries.  One of the missions of Touch Tanks for Kids is to motivate more people to take personal responsibility for our action when it comes to habits that lead to polluting our water ways.

Protecting America Rivers is a vital step in improving the health of our Oceans and providing the funds necessary for the Tuscaloosa County High students to fully participate in the Touch Tank program will help recruit a generation of students to contribute to the protection of the Black Warrior River Basin, helping to keep the Black Warrior River clean and to also  improve the health of Ocean habitats.

Please help the students of Tuscaloosa County High reach their goal of achieving the first Touch Tanks for Kids’ educational Touch Tank in an Alabama school by making a contribution and asking your friends to do the same. Please indicate Tuscaloosa County High (Alabama) while making the contribution.

Here is a copy of the 500-word essay that a partner team of Lisa’s Tuscaloosa County High students wrote/typed when applying for the Touch Tanks for Kids Grant. Beautifully Articulated!

A Single Touch Tank Touching Minds

The entire science department here at Tuscaloosa County High feels passionately about the acquisition of an aquarium. Working as a cohesive unit, the entire science department already knows how the school will utilize a Touch Tank. Under passionate leadership from our teachers, the students of TCHS have divided into numerous research and development teams that are already creating a plethora of fresh ideas. The exciting maelstrom that has ensued just merely from the concept of a Touch Tank is a testament to what the physical presence of one will bring to TCHS.

Students have already fabricated plans for an extensive curriculum of study, while also planning to organize special seminars to assist in tutoring younger students. The Touch Tank is the cornerstone of this plan. Not only is it obvious that students in the classroom will benefit from studying the Touch Tank, but we as a school hope to make it blatantly clear that even younger elementary students can benefit from this as well. A Touch Tank would not only improve the school, but the entire school system. Children learn best by adopting a hands on approach; a Touch Tank would undoubtedly increase their disposition towards the sciences exponentially. The entire school system would most certainly work to cultivate a strong interest for education in everyone, especially in our youngest, freshest minds.

This type of interest will easily be sparked when County High’s passionate teachers are coupled with high-tech equipment. As a smaller school, our passionate teachers have been forced to utilize their creativity with limited resources – this Touch Tank will easily multiply the creative options for our science teachers. Both our students and teachers are already working to utilize the expected boom that will arrive with the Touch Tank by spreading our education beyond the political and physical borders of our school system. Many people are already anticipating the arrival of university professors to make use of and discuss our Touch Tank when it arrives. There is a team of students in place who are researching similar prospects via teleconferences over the web. Yet another team is working on placing our Touch Tank lessons on networking websites like YouTube and Facebook. This will not only educate local students on marine science and biology, but it will allow our teachers and professors to elucidate on the subject on the global stage. The opportunity here for world-wide erudition is invaluable.

Educational utilization is not the only type exposure a Touch Tank will receive at Tuscaloosa County High. There are plans to have the Touch Tank mentioned on local news stations. TCHS is also planning to ask Wells-Fargo, our Adopt-A-School partner, to assist in sponsoring our Touch Tank. The TCHS science students are working on future sponsors for our Touch Tank by making use of a simple and easy-to-use Environment Sustainability list.

With the passionate teachers and workers in our local school system, a Touch Tank could increase education in the area exponentially whilst generating a national (and potentially global) awareness on marine science and safe environmentalism. A single Touch Tank here could touch many minds everywhere.