SPSSEG partners with elementary schools in Mason, Thurston, and Pierce counties to raise salmon in school classrooms! SPSSEG provides all tanks, supplies, fish egg coordination with WDFW, lessons, and a fish release event. Participation in the SITS program is subject to our funding availability (e.g. grants and donations).
Students will
- learn about Pacific salmon life history,
- predict egg hatch date,
- learn the species of Pacific salmon,
- explore what makes good salmon habitat,
- test water quality,
- dissect fish,
- write salmon haiku poems,
- create a salmon bookmark,
- get hands-on experience identifying stream bugs,
- play games to learn about salmon survival, and
- release the fish they’ve raised from egg to fry into a local stream.
Videos of our lessons are linked below.
Explore our page or feel free to contact us to find out more.
SPSSEG is happy to present in-person salmon lessons to schools in our SITS program. We also have video lessons (linked below) available to everyone regardless of whether you are part of our official program or not.
Students follow along the presentations in their Salmon Science Journal
Teacher Curriculum Resources
(Optional) Salmon Spawning
Unit 1: Salmon Life Cycle
- 🎞️ Video Lesson: Salmon Life Cycle
- 🎲 Salmon Life Cycle Guessing Game Cards (print single sided, cut out cards, pair ? backs to fish fronts, laminate)
- 🎞️ Salmon Life Cycle Song Video from theFrizzlives
- 🎞️ SciShowKids Salmon Life Cycle Video
- 🎞️ Salmon Life Cycle Animation Video
Unit 2: Egg Delivery
Unit 3: Salmon Species
- 🎞️ Video Lesson: Salmon Species
- 📄 Juvenile and Adult Salmon ID Posters from Clean Water Kitsap
- 📄 Juvenile Salmon Species Coloring Sheet from Fisheries and Oceans Canada
- 📄 Spawner Drawing Card Examples
Unit 4: Fish Dissection
Unit 5: Salmon Habitat
Unit 6: Salmon Survival
- 🎞️ Video Lesson: Salmon Survival and Importance
- 🎞️ The Salmon Boy – story told by Native American Storyteller
- 🎞️ Culture of Salmon – short video about tribal salmon culture/identity, hatcheries, future of salmon and work to save them – created by Washington RCO
- 🎞️ Saved by Salmon – video about a fisherman and a Suquamish elder working together to save salmon – created by the Northwest Treaty Tribes
- 📄 Salmon Haiku Poem Lesson PDF
KCST Field Trip
Fish Release Field Trip
Here is a video of the salmon eggs arriving at the schools in January:
Here is a video of salmon being released as fry in March (no student field trip allowed this year):
Here is another video of salmon being released as fry in March (weekend student field trip):