Getting Started with TIC

Trout-in-the-classroom is an exciting, inexpensive, multi-disciplinary project that is enlivening year-round curriculum planning at schools all over the United States.

If you are an elementary, middle or high school teacher or curriculum planner, everything you need to know to get started is available via this website, including the following Frequently Asked Questions.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do I get started?

Your first step in becoming involved with this program is to secure your funding. Once you have recieved your funding, purchase your equipment. A list of equipment can be found on this site. After you have gotten your equipment, its time to register for your eggs. Contact Jessica Griglak, TIC Coordinator, for your form. You can reach Jessica at 908-637-4125 or via email at (JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address).

How much will my school need to budget for this program?

The cost of the equipment is approximately $1,200. This price includes the tank, stand, chiller, filters and related items to raise brook trout. Ongoing maintenance is very inexpensive after the initial set-up is procured - approximately $50 per year. A recommended equipment list and purchase location can be found on this site.

When does my tank need to be set up?

Tanks need to be set up by mid-September. This gives you a chance to make sure that all the parts are working correctly, gives the water time to cool down to 50 degrees, and gives the beneficial bacteria, which are needed for a healthy tank, time to grow.

Is there an activity guide or curriculum?

The activity guide has been developed for New Jersey schools with the help of the NY TIC guide and NJ Fish & Wildlife fisheries biologists with input from NJ Trout Unlimited. The TIC Activity Guide can be found on this site. It is geared towards middle schools, but can be easily adapted for an elementary or high school level.

Can we run our TIC program in the spring?

No. This is because the brook trout eggs that are raised are only available in October here in New Jersey.

What services are provided by Trout Unlimited?

Teachers and students work together with their local Trout Unlimited chapters across the state of New Jersey to bring into the classroom such things as “Onion Sack Projects” which is simply an onion sack filled with leaves and anchored in a local trout stream for several weeks. The sacks are then removed and brought in to the classrooms where students identify the numerous caddis, mayfly and stonefly nymphs as well as the other organisms which live in our streams and rivers and make up the bulk of the trout’s diet. Other services offered include fly tying and casting lessons, stream bank restoration, hydrology and entomology. Some classes have visited the state’s Pequest Trout Hatchery in Oxford, NJ to learn more about trout rearing and biology.

Are teacher-training resources available?

The NJ Division of Fish and Wildlife provides at least two TIC workshops each year. Look for the training dates to be posted. Questions can be addressed to the NJ Division of Fish and Wildlife’s Trout in the Classroom Coordinator, Jessica Griglak via email at (JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address) or by phone at 908-637-4125.

Where do we get fish eggs?

The eggs will be provided by the NJ DEP’s Division of Fish & Wildlife’s Pequest Trout Hatchery and will be delivered to your school by Trout Unlimited volunteers in mid-October. The eggs will be in the “eyed” stage of life.

How should we organize our faculty program team?

Most TIC classes are run by one or more science teachers at each school, using a single tank.