Here is the entire article, as it's been moved to the next page of the
paper's link:
Sorry Mr. Aney, with all due respect, I don't see how this can be turned
into a positive activity in ANY way.
***First, formaldehyde is a serious environmental toxin that students
shouldn't be exposed to. Second, the frogs were once alive and should be
respected as such. Third, launching and burial may or may not be
disrespectful, depending on how it was interpreted by the teacher. Fourth,
the implication is this was a Christian school, and I've always liked
amphibians as a metaphor for life after death -- the tadpole
lives in a dimensionally restricted aquatic world but advances into a
dimensionally less restricted terrestrial world. So maybe the teacher could
have used the frogs as a religious teaching point. Fifth, an improper use of
this exercise could lead students to practice live frog launching --which
might not be such a bad idea for alien and intrusive bullfrogs but would
certainly be a bad idea (and illegal) for protected and at-risk native pond
frogs.***
Please tell me you're not serious with these extremely weak
rationalizations?
Personally, I find your comments to be about as off-base as the activity
itself. At least this teacher (I'm guessing) is young and very
inexperienced.
Mike Nolan...
Frog-launching fun flies for science at CKA
By Bill Mickelson
Oct 04 2006
POULSBO - Upon stepping into the classroom in her first year at Christ
the King Academy, junior high science teacher Robin Breakey was surveying
the science room closet, when she found an old bag of dead frogs.
The formaldehyde-soaked frogs - typically used for rudimentary
dissection projects - had been sitting in the closet for years and were past
the point of being productive tools for students. So, Breakey wanted to get
rid of them, but she wasn't quite sure how.
"Then I thought ... we could launch them," she said.
And launch them they did.
Monday, the CKA seventh, eighth and ninth graders, gathered on the
school's field, armed with homemade catapults which propelled the lifeless
amphibians through the morning air.
"We've had these frogs for quite a while, and now they are too old to
do any dissecting with, so we wanted to bury them," said CKA principal
DeAnna Henning. "But we didn't want to just bury them, we thought we'd give
them one last hurrah."
Students were tasked with building catapulting devices out of whatever
materials they could find, using whatever research resources were available
to them, Breakey said. And when the kids hauled their creations into the CKA
gym Monday morning, she was more than impressed.
"They are way bigger and better than I had thought they would be," she
said.
The catapults, were mostly made of wood with bows ranging from
surgical tubing to bungee cords strapped to swinging arms comprised of
wooden two-by-fours, while some students utilized PVC pipe.
The builder of the winning catapult - Mitch Watland, who launched his
frog more than 80 feet - built his device under the watchful eye of his
older brother, piecing together a wooden box, a wooden arm and surgical tube
springs.
Through the catapult construction and subsequent frog launching, the
goal of the lesson was learned, and made apparent by the students' smiling
faces and the positive banter which flew back and forth between frog
departures.
"This is like the coolest science experiment we've ever done," eighth
grader Dominique Bozarth said while watching another volley of frogs fly.
"This has algebra in it in terms of the angles as well as science, but
I'm all about fun," Breakey said.
Call weekdays, evenings and weekends. Leave your phone number/best time to
return your call and/or your e-mail address if we are on another line or
away from our phones.
Sincerely,
J. Michael Nolan, Director
Rainforest and Reef 501 (c)(3) non-profit
************************************************************************************
"Outstanding-Affordable Field Courses in Rainforest & Marine Ecology"
"Spanish Immersion offered in Mexico, Costa Rica,
Nicaragua, Panama, Bolivia, Ecuador and Peru"
Web: http://iwanttolearnspanish.org (being updated for 07)
United States:
Rainforest and Reef 501 (c)(3) non-profit
P.O. Box 141543
Grand Rapids, Michigan 49514-1543 USA
Phone: 1.616.604.0546
Toll Free: 1.877.255.3721
Skype Phone: mikenolan1
Live Chat and Phone MS Live Messenger: [EMAIL PROTECTED]
E-mail: [EMAIL PROTECTED] or [EMAIL PROTECTED]
Web: http://www.rainforestandreef.org
Latin America:
P.O. Box 850-1150
San José, Costa Rica, Central America
Att: Juan Pablo Bello C.
Program Director, Latin America
Phone: 011.506.290.8883/011.506.822.8222 (Cell)/Fax: 011.506.290.8883
E-mail: [EMAIL PROTECTED]
Europe:
Att: Marion Stephan
Frankfurt, Germany
Phone: 011.49.172.448.3899
E-mail: [EMAIL PROTECTED]
************************************************************************************
----- Original Message -----
From: "Warren W. Aney" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
To: <ECOLOG-L@LISTSERV.UMD.EDU>
Sent: Saturday, October 07, 2006 1:34 AM
Subject: Re: catapulting frogs is a school activity
>I read the article (go to http://www.northkitsapherald.com/ -- the link
> Malcolm provides doesn't seem to work) and I have mixed feelings similar
> but
> somewhat different from Malcolm's. So you might want to also read the
> article before reacting to the editor and school. (I've copied the article
> below in case the link doesn't work for you.)
>
> The basic question is, what does a teacher do with a bunch of old
> formaldehyde pickled frogs? First, formaldehyde is a serious
> environmental
> toxin that students shouldn't be exposed to. Second, the frogs were once
> alive and should be respected as such. Third, launching and burial may or
> may not be disrespectful, depending on how it was interpreted by the
> teacher. Fourth, the implication is this was a Christian school, and I've
> always liked amphibians as a metaphor for life after death -- the tadpole
> lives in a dimensionally restricted aquatic world but advances into a
> dimensionally less restricted terrestrial world. So maybe the teacher
> could
> have used the frogs as a religious teaching point. Fifth, an improper use
> of this exercise could lead students to practice live frog launching --
> which might not be such a bad idea for alien and intrusive bullfrogs but
> would certainly be a bad idea (and illegal) for protected and at-risk
> native
> pond frogs.
>
> Anyway, I'm not ready to condemn but I am hopeful this incident can be
> used
> as a hinge point for teaching respect for our other natural living
> neighbors.
>
> Warren W. Aney
> Senior Wildlife Ecologist
> 9403 SW 74th Ave
> Tigard, OR 97223
> (503)246-8613 (voice)
> (503)246-2605 (fax)
> [EMAIL PROTECTED] (email)
>
> ******
>
> Frog-launching fun flies for science at CKA
>
>
> By Bill Mickelson
> Oct 04 2006
>
> POULSBO - Upon stepping into the classroom in her first year at Christ the
> King Academy, junior high science teacher Robin Breakey was surveying the
> science room closet, when she found an old bag of dead frogs.
>
> The formaldehyde-soaked frogs - typically used for rudimentary dissection
> projects - had been sitting in the closet for years and were past the
> point
> of being productive tools for students. So, Breakey wanted to get rid of
> them, but she wasn't quite sure how.
>
> "Then I thought ... we could launch them," she said.
>
> And launch them they did.
>
> Monday, the CKA seventh, eighth and ninth graders, gathered on the
> school's
> field, armed with homemade catapults which propelled the lifeless
> amphibians
> through the morning air.
>
> "We've had these frogs for quite a while, and now they are too old to do
> any
> dissecting with, so we wanted to bury them," said CKA principal DeAnna
> Henning. "But we didn't want to just bury them, we thought we'd give them
> one last hurrah."
>
> Students were tasked with building catapulting devices out of whatever
> materials they could find, using whatever research resources were
> available
> to them, Breakey said. And when the kids hauled their creations into the
> CKA
> gym Monday morning, she was more than impressed.
>
> "They are way bigger and better than I had thought they would be," she
> said.
>
> The catapults, were mostly made of wood with bows ranging from surgical
> tubing to bungee cords strapped to swinging arms comprised of wooden
> two-by-fours, while some students utilized PVC pipe.
>
> The builder of the winning catapult - Mitch Watland, who launched his frog
> more than 80 feet - built his device under the watchful eye of his older
> brother, piecing together a wooden box, a wooden arm and surgical tube
> springs.
>
> Through the catapult construction and subsequent frog launching, the goal
> of
> the lesson was learned, and made apparent by the students' smiling faces
> and
> the positive banter which flew back and forth between frog departures.
>
> "This is like the coolest science experiment we've ever done," eighth
> grader
> Dominique Bozarth said while watching another volley of frogs fly.
>
> "This has algebra in it in terms of the angles as well as science, but I'm
> all about fun," Breakey said.
>
>
> ----------------------------------------------------------------------------
> ----
>
> © Copyright 2006 North Kitsap Herald
>
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: Ecological Society of America: grants, jobs, news
> [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] Behalf Of Malcolm McCallum
> Sent: Friday, 06 October, 2006 15:58
> To: ECOLOG-L@LISTSERV.UMD.EDU
> Subject: catapulting frogs is a school activity
>
>
> I recently became aware of a school which decided to promote catapulting =
> dead preserved frogs as a school activity! Do you ever wonder why we =
> have problems with animal cruelty in the world? Below I have the link =
> to the article, the newspaper's letter to the editor online submission, =
> the school where the activity took place, and the email to the school =
> should anyone feel as disgusted as was I. =20
> =20
> Here is the link to the article: =
> http://www.northkitsapherald.com/portals-code/list.cgi?paper=3D95&cat=3D2=
> 3&id=3D741789&more=3D
> The link to the online letter to the editor submission form: =
> http://web.bcnewsgroup.com/portals-code/lettersform.cgi?paper=3D95
> The School: http://www.christmemorial.net/schools/cka/
> Schools email: [EMAIL PROTECTED] <mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]>=20
>
> I cannot think of a more conservation minded activity than making the =
> school aware that this was an inappropriate school function. I have =
> already transmitted my letter to the editor and email to the school. =20
> =20
> Hope some of the more responsible parties will join the fight against =
> ignorance.
> =20
> VISIT HERPETOLOGICAL CONSERVATION AND BIOLOGY www.herpconbio.org =
> <http://www.herpconbio.org>=20
> A New Journal Published in Partnership with Partners in Amphibian and =
> Reptile Conservation
> and the World Congress of Herpetology.
> =20
> Malcolm L. McCallum
> Assistant Professor
> Department of Biological Sciences
> Texas A&M University Texarkana
> 2600 Robison Rd.
> Texarkana, TX 75501
> O: 1-903-223-3134
> H: 1-903-791-3843
> Homepage: https://www.eagle.tamut.edu/faculty/mmccallum/index.html
> =20
