Seventh graders this fall engaged in a sweeping interdisciplinary unit that bridged English and science, asking students to deeply explore this question: “How does the complex web of stakeholders in Rhode Island's quahogging and fishing industries impact the state's coastal communities and the fragile marine ecosystem?"

Teachers Yulie Lee and Caitlin Smith are the guiding hands behind what amounts to many weeks of collaborative learning. 

The most intensive portion of the unit tasks each student to represent the perspective of various stakeholders, including quahoggers, aquaculturists, bordering community members who own businesses, the Department of Environmental Management (DEM), and ocean biologists. During a full final day, each student must portray their stakeholder in a detailed presentation. A group of finalists are asked to present in front of the entire class as well as a handful of faculty judges. The winners of each stakeholder category earned a commemorative water bottle labeled with their stakeholder name. 

"I learned how instrumental something so small, like the quahog, can have such a big impact in our everyday lives,” said Wyatt O., quahog winner. “I also learned how quahoggers are a key component to keeping the RI community and economy running." 

In addition to the economy, the stakes are very high for the Rhode Island coastal environment. 

“When I first read Swim that Rock, I thought the DEM was too harsh and put out too many regulations,” shared Kendric P., bordering community member winner. “As I kept learning, I realized that shellfishing regulations are actually necessary for the ecosystem and for our economy. If we overfish the quahogs, we won't have any left!”

In preparation for these stakeholder presentations they undertook a variety of smaller sub-projects. In English they read the book Swim That Rock that tells the story of the Barrington river in the 1970s, which was closed for quahogging at one time significantly impacting  the state.

Students also studied the The Value of Rhode Island’s Blue Economy publication to get a sense of local community economies and how regulations impact the state economy. 

In science, they begin with activities such as a food web, where students had a chance to understand the delicate balance taking place in all ecological systems;taking one element away – such as a predator – impacts the rest of the system. 

Yulee and Caitlin also aimed to provide students with opportunities to learn from direct sources, one of which was an MB alumna. Students were able to visit Island Creek Oyster Farm in Duxbury, MA. Hannah Pearson '09 hosted the students and talked about her work at the oyster farm. Students learned about the aquaculture process for growing oysters, clams, and scallops. The group found it very interesting to see the lab, nursery, and beds and to hear about how they culture phytoplankton to feed their growing bivalves (aquatic, invertebrate animals).

Yulee and Caitlin utilized both movement and discussion to explore community interrelationships. Lea Darminio, MB's dance teacher, guided a structured movements activity designed to explore themes of interdependence, adapting to pressure, and the idea of collective buy-in for collective success. Student groups discussed how the movements represented what was happening in the RI Coastal communities and the intricate web of stakeholders. 

All in all, this is a multi-faceted and dynamic exploration of issues that are key to ongoing sustainability of Rhode Island and the local region, with regard to businesses, communities, and the environment.