3rd Grade Worm Study

Mrs. Jacobs-Smith's third grade class at Breck School is participating in a Citizen Scientist Great Lakes Worm Watch involving the documentation of invasive earthworm occurrence on the Breck School's campus. The project is directed by Dr. Cindy Hale, U of MN, Duluth. Students began their study of worms by learning that there that earthworms are not native to this area. They learned how and when earthworms first arrived in Minnesota and what the worms do when they invade ecosystems that never had worms before. Then, student collected data by sampling earthworms in three study plots. Students chose to use a mustard extraction method to collect earthworms. As students collected data, they began to ask questions about the information they were finding. The most popular questions were:  Is there a significant difference in the number of earthworms we would find in a grassy area as opposed to a plot in the woods? Why or why not?  Would the number of earthworms we found on November 12 (when the average outdoor temperature for the week prior was 38 °F) differ significantly from the number of worms we would find on November 28 (when the average temperature for the week prior was 28.5 °F)? Why or why not? The third graders designed and carried out experiments to answer their questions. Their hypotheses, procedures, data and conclusions are included on a classroom display board. They submitted their data along with basic habitat and location information to the Great Lakes Worm Watch program in Duluth. Their results will add to the growing database of earthworm occurrence, which is the goal of this Citizen Scientist project. Students participated in the insect fair at the University of MN. http://www.monarchlab.org/InsectFair/InsectFair.aspx