Our fish friend Brookie was featured in the news!
Rhode Island Monthly featured the beloved brook trout used in the WRWC’s Environmental Education programming with elementary schools throughout the Watershed. Created by Greenway Manager Jacob Gorke and Environmental Education Director Amanda Peavey, Brookie has grown in popularity among students in the Fish in the Classroom programs and is helping teach kids about wildlife in the Woonasquatucket River Watershed.
Amanda spoke on why this plush model was being used in the WRWC’s Environmental Education programs: “We were finding that the little kiddos when they used to do fish dissections with actual fish — some kids were OK with it, some weren’t. And that’s totally understandable.”
Jacob, who was a former art student and muralist, helped Amanda in creating the brook trout, which took over 36 hours to make. Brookie’s exterior has markings consistent with real female brook trout, and she features a zippered pouch that contains organs crocheted by Amanda–as well as plastic beads, which help teach the students about the dangers of microplastics and pollution in the river.
You can read the full story here: https://www.rimonthly.com/a-seven-foot-trout-is-rhode-islands-newest-environmental-educator/