Pond dipping

With three ponds on site, the study of freshwater habitats and invertebrates is very well catered for. Using nets, magnifiers and other equipment pupils can become familiar with the variety of life that can be found in different types of ponds. Supplied with colour identification sheets, pupils all have the opportunity to use the equipment then identify their catch, making a note of the many different species that they come across. If studying more than one pond, comparisons can be made between the habitat and the invertebrates caught, pupils may also study the quality of the water by using the invertebrates as pollution indicators.
The study of pond invertebrates also links well to the teaching of life cycles, some of which may be seen in action. Many groups may find evidence of midge larva, midge pupa and midges themselves. Alternatively, they may come across damselfly and dragonfly nymphs in the pond and witness their next stage of development as the damselflies and dragonflies fly around the pond as they dip!