LANSING STATE JOURNAL (Michigan) 16 September 03 Students snap into action as turtles hatch - Discovery of eggs at St. Mary School sparks new lessons (Sally Trout)
Williamston: Newborn snapping turtles, 53 in all, wriggled up through 8 inches of wood chips to the delight of St. Mary School students.
It provided an impromptu nature lesson last week at the Williamston parochial school, which serves 110 students in pre-kindergarten through fifth grade. The turtle birthing area under the playground swing sets was off limits to children as school staff and parents picked up turtles as soon as their heads popped up.
"It was just an incredible, once-in-a-lifetime learning experience for the children," principal Kit White said.
A turtle was spotted on the playground last spring. It's thought the turtle laid her eggs and returned to the Red Cedar River nearby.
Children acted as spotters from classroom windows, directing last week's turtle rescues.
Seizing on the learning opportunity, teachers shifted gears during the school day with talk of the turtles filling halls and classrooms.
"Every turtle and reptile book flew out of the library," White said. "Children were excited about learning."
White said the staff is now planning ways to incorporate the turtles into the school's curriculum, especially the areas of math, science and writing.
The excitement started Thursday just as the school was about to start memorial ceremonies for the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks and the late Bishop Kenneth Povish.
"On a day when the focus was on so much death, there was all this new life," White said.
What to do with the turtles became the question.
Williamston residents Jim and Carol McGrath, who own a wildlife interpretive center known as Nature Discovery, came to the rescue.
Ten turtles will stay at the school until spring. The school is looking for aquariums to house them, one for each class. While snapping turtles are not endangered, the DNR does track the population of the animals.
Jim McGrath, a naturalist, released the other 43 turtles Monday in a shallow lake area.
"Turtles have a lot of natural enemies," McGrath said. "The ones I released will be lucky to survive winter."
Some of the hazards include freezing and predators, such as blue herons and raccoons.
McGrath said the children will learn valuable lessons from the turtles.
"This will be a positive experience for the students, which should encourage healthy attitudes and appreciation of nature," he said.
Students snap into action as turtles hatch