Mayfly in the classroom
Overview; Getting started; Further information
Mayfly in the Classroom is the Wild Trout Trust's flagship education programme programme. It aims to connect school children to their local river habitats and uses the lifecycle of Mayfllies to teach them about the broader themes of biodiversity, ecology and the links between aquatic and terrestrial biodiversity. For more information on mayflies and the Mayfly in the Classroom concept, see the following PDFs:
Teachers introduction to Mayflies
Mayfly in the classroom: Concept
How Mayfly in the classroom links with the natonal curriculum
A prime example of MiC was piloted by the WTT & Eden Rivers Trust (ERT) in Cumbria and MiC is now taught in 11 primary schools in that county.
Click here for details of the ERT MiC programme.
Click here for examples of successful MiC projects
Aquatic invertebrates lend themselves to education about aquatic conservation very readily. The lifecycle of Mayflies perfectly illustrates requirements for good aquatic habitat. They also play a pivotal role in linking aquatic and terrestrialbiodiversity. A whole variety of other activities can be tailored to highlight local issues including:
- How land-use affects stream ecology
- Efficient use of domestic water supplies and the impacts of over-abstraction
- The importance of "indicator species" like mayflies and trout
- Diverse and healthy food-webs
These less well known aspects of their biology would (for most people) include the way in which mayflies are a crucual food sources for their many predators. All activities will be linked (differentiated accordingly) to specific National Curriculum Key Stages.
Once you have undergone rudimentary training, MiC is both cheap and easy to set up (right).
3. Looking after your Mayflies
Once up and running, a variety of activities can be run alongside, to make the expereience as hands on an interactive as possible, here are some examples:
Please use the links and information below to help you get your own Mayfly in the Classroom projects off the ground.
Primary 6 amazing mayfly facts
If you need help obtaining nymphs, the Riverfly partnership (click the image below) may be able to put you in touch with your nearest Anglers Monitoring Initiative (AMI) group.
