Just thought I'd see how many big words I could use in my thread title ROFL But seriously, we've spent the last month setting up a 33 gallon fish tank, and it's been such an awesome learning opportunity for the kids! Before even putting any fish into it, we had to cycle the tank, which involves letting the tank go through the Nitrogen Cycle. We set up the tank and filter, bought a test kit, started adding food to decompose, and every other day we tested the levels of ammonia, nitrites and nitrates in the water and discussed how they relate to the cycle (different types of baceria growing to process them, how the plants help in the cycle, etc.), keeping notes in a notebook. It's been an awesome hands on experiment. We've also used it to discuss ecosystems/habitats and how all the different parts (substrate, plants, light, temperature, rock, driftwood, bacteria, fish, water) all have a part to play in keeping the ecosystem healthy. Anyway, I just thought I'd share. If you're looking to get an educational pet, fish definately count! Our Nitrogen Cycle: Our tank. Inhabited by a single Cherry Barb since this photo was taken. Once we're sure our cycle is complete and isn't going to spike with the addition of the fish, we'll start slowly building our fisy community
Don't you just love those trails? We've been thrown off track so many times, and it's great! I think the longest side track was when we studied honey bees. I had no clue what I was in for when I planned that!
Animals really are a wealth of education material!!! We just LOVE setting up new habitats! Lovely tank, by the way!
That looks (and sounds) fantastic! I've wanted to do a fish tank, but keep chickening out when I think of maintaining it. We're a family with a "black-thumb" in pet care. Our previous experiences haven't been very successful! I think some fish should be very happy to live there. I just read an article about the fun of adding dwarf african frogs to your tank. Said they were easy to please and entertaining. Have fun!
Oh, yes, ADF's are great additions, just make sure you target feed them.... they can't see very well and the fish tend to eat all of the food before they find it.