[mindy]

i just got a job teaching kindergarten

i would like to bring my old 10 gallon tank to school for the kids. i am planning to do silk plants rather than having to deal with live plants.

what fish would you suggest for the tank? i was thinking guppies because the kids would love the baby fish but i don't think that is a good idea. i don't want to have to deal with all the babies.

it is just a standard little walmart job, no great filter, just a hob.

what do you think?

 

[NStarr]

Platies, Guppies, Small Tetras, maybe even Shrimp. :icon_bigg

 

[BudHop]

Swordtails are so easy in every way to tell male from female, take care of, and watch have babies. Plus they are pretty colors for the kids.

 

[mindy]

Thanks guys.

I would love to get some shrimp! I wonder if I could get the shrimp breeding in the tank? That would be cool.

I will have a look for swordtails.

 

[VadimShevchuk]

I say either platies or swordtails since the females look nicer the guppy females.

 

[jreich]

i would say shrimp bc what r the chances the little guys saw little shrimp like that. plus shrimp r awsome, easy to breed, easy to care for, cheap and you can cram a ton of them in a 10 gal. i would stay away from the livebearers bc you kind of need something to do with the 1000's of babies. kids like diffrent. i think fish would b booring, but shrimp would get an o wow cool reaction.

 

[DaveK]

This is a project I would do, but since it's a new job, just worry about doing the job for the moment. You can do the aquarium later on.

 

[aa79606]

Congratulations!

My husband is doing his student teaching this semester, and he's got a kindergarten class right now too! He would prefer third or fourth grade, but you know how it is. Anyway we've been thinking about whether he will put a tank in his room, when/if he ever gets hired... I asked this question on another forum the other day, asking for suggestions... I learned a lot!

First things first, check with the administration to be sure you're allowed to have a tank. If so, you should probably mention to the maintenance staff that you will be setting up a tank in your class, so they can give you any guidelines they have, and they can also help you keep an eye on it after hours.

You can do guppies, just do all males. Voila, no babies! If you do shrimp, you could do ghost shrimp, 'cause they look cool, are super cheap, and seem to be pretty much indestructable.

And, if you want to go super-SUPER-easy, what about snails? Apple snails come in all kind of cool colors, and then of course nerites will keep the glass clean for you! Kids love to watch the nerites scrape the glass with their cute little mouths!

Just a few suggestions, hope they help! Good luck and have fun!!!

Amy

 

[koebwil]

Jap trap snails are much larger and thus more stimulating for the kiddos. I think the kids would just be a little disappointed if there are no fish, and guppies seem the easiest for that. I just set up a tank for a little kid and the more life the better.

 

[mindy]

thanks for all the tips guys!

Amy, congratulate your husband for me kindergarten is exhausting but extremely rewarding. when i did my internship i really wanted a younger grade but got grade 6. i was terrified but it was so SO great. it is great to get out of your comfort zone to push yourself to see just what you can do. i am sure your husband will love it!

thank for the tip about checking with the admin. i am sure it will be ok, but i will definitely check.

i can't get snails, they are illegal to sell in newfoundland. they are considered an invasive species.

i am really leaning towards shrimp. i just have to find some. my lfs doesn't usually have many shrimp. they seem to be in high demand now and i guess the store i go to isn't high on the list for getting shrimp. they usually have red ones (not sure what they are) and bumble bee ones and amano shrimp. the amanos are so cool but don't breed in fresh water so i will skip them.

shrimp will be ok with silk plants, right?

 

[jreich]

shrimp will be ok with silk plants, right?

sure, as long as they have plenty of biofilm to munch on, and plenty of hiding spots. You may want to consider fake plants and real java moss. the babies like to hide out in the moss pluss its almost maintence free.

 

[mindy]

Thanks I have tons of java moss in one of my tanks now.

Now, a little problem. I live 250 km from the lfs so I can only go on the weekend. What should I do with the shrimp until i can get them to school on the following Monday? My school is about an hour drive from where i live in the other direction so I can't really go there until I go back go work on Monday. I can set up a small Rubbermaid container with a heater and an airstone. Will that be ok?

Also, what should I get to feed the shrimp since there won't be much algae in a new tank?

Thanks!

 

[firefiend]

Cherry barbs or white clouds and some shrimp and snails.

 

[RandomMan]

One thing to keep in mind, the kids will put their hands, toys, coins, etc in the tank. You'll want to keep an eye on the tank, and the better the lid, the less chance of the kids doing it. Whatever you do, don't leave the fish food out where the kids can see it, because they'll decide they want to feed the fish while your back in turned and dump a TON of food into the tank.

My mom donated several tanks to the school when I was growing up, and even 3rd and 4th graders couldn't seem to keep their hands and foreign objects out of the tanks.

 

[astrosag]

I would reconsider shrimp only because shrimp are small. This means that the kids will have to get close to the tank to see them and enjoy them. This means that the tank is accessible to them (potentially) and they can touch it.

If you can somehow manage to keep the tank visible enough to spot the shrimp and still maintain it in a safe, out-of-reach space, then go for it. Otherwise, I would consider putting a larger, more attractive fish in there that they can see from afar. Shrimp hang out on the bottom of the tank and even then, they're not easy to spot unless you're close up. Either way, closed top is pretty much necessary to avoid objects being dropped/thrown in there.

My GF's nephews (just two boys) need to be watched constantly when it comes to the fish thank..a larger 20G. A 10G won't put up with much abuse. If you had a very large tank, then this wouldn't be much of a problem - even they won't be able to harm the thing.

 

[mindy]

thanks guys.

i will be putting the tank on the counter in the back of the classroom. it is not a big classroom. i have 13 students

i won't be putting the tank in the classroom right away. i will wait until i know the personalities of the students and i will decide then if they can handle it. a person i know had a tiny (maybe 2 gallon) little plastic thing in her classroom last year with a adf in it. the students loved the responsibility of taking care of the frog and didn't over feed it or throw things in the tank. her class was bigger than mine and a kindergarten/one split. they did good.

i think that once i get the rules down with them and they are comfortable in the classroom i will bring it in. don't worry, the food won't be anywhere near the fish!

if i was to get swordtails how many should i get?

i do have an extra 20 gallon too... i will have to have a look at the classroom and see how much space i can spare for a tank. like i said, it is a small classroom!

 

[Jim Miller]

coins = copper = dead shrimp

guppies are a great choice. breed easily. nice colors. no heater required. more tolerant of water quality.

your local pond snails should also be available and non-invasive.

java moss, needle leaf java fern and an anubias would add interest and not require any special attention.

jim

 

[wendyjo]

I would do male guppies or male endlers, or both so there are different sized fish in the tank. They are both beautiful fish, come in a variety of colors and patterns, occupy all levels of the tank, and if it's all males they won't breed of course. I keep only males in my community tank and they do quite well.

I think java fern, glued onto some rock, driftwood, or store bought decor, would be a nice addition as well. Live plants are always beneficial in a tank, and java fern is very low light, low maintenance. If you glue it to decor you can have it at all levels of the tank. If you glue it to the top of a tall piece of driftwood or onto a store bought stump decoration you can create a nice tree with it.

 

[mindy]

thanks! i may go with male guppies. they are easy for me to find and i have kept them before. i am not sure what endlers are, i don't think i have ever seen them before.

i will look for java fern. also, i have tons of java moss that i can put on a piece of driftwood to make a tree looking thing too. i really hate the idea of silk plants but i am worried about plants. i think i will go with some easy to keep plants and the moss. i think that should be ok. i'll have to see how it goes.

 

[JSA]

Maybe a school of something colorful, like serpae tetras?

Like several other posters, my first thought also was livebearers, but then you have the issue of the babies being eaten.... Older kids might deal OK with that, but the little guys could get upset.

Julia