The newts go to pre-school

[Molch]

I set up a newt tank for the preschool and the kids were very much into it. I donated the tank, fittings etc, some frozen bloodworms, a white-worm culture and of course the newts, which are some of this year's alpine youngsters. I will visit regularly to bring some interesting newt-related stuff, help them to feed/clean and to check on the newts.

Now, in my spotted life I have raised anything from newts to muskoxen, but juvenile H. sapiens are a new species for me. They are pretty hilarious. Well, they are three years old, so you can't expect a coherent scientific discourse, but still...

The kids couldn't get enough of the newts. All were fascinated, except one little girl who got scared and had a screaming fit (scared of two little 3-inch newts? Oh well...), but the next time I visited she was all into the newts just like the other kids. Then I got out the earthworms, and she had another fit. I'm told by the teacher that the same morning, she had a screaming fit because she got scared of the carrots in her lunch box, so there you have it.



For example, here is me explaining the nitrogen cycle to a bunch of 3-year olds:


Me: so, where do you go when you have to pee?

them: to the bathroom!

me: very good! So, where do the newts go when they have to pee?

- wide-eyed silence -

me: well, has anyone ever seen a newt in the bathroom?

- blank stares and a few giggles -

me: okay, if they can't go to the bathroom, where do they go? (pointing at the aquarium)

little boy in the back: in the water!

everybody: EEEW!

me: that's right! They just go right in the water!

little girl: where do they go when they have to poop?

me: (pointing at the aquarium)

everybody (more excited now): IN THE WATER!! EEEEW!

another little girl: what do they do when they have to blow their nose?

little boy: they blow it in the water!!

everybody: giggles, screeches of delight.

me: so, they poop and pee and blow their noses in the water. What happens to all that poop and pee in the water?

- <blank faces> -

me: well, I'll tell you what: there are tiny little bugs in the water who eat the poop!

- everybody: EEEW!

me: Here is what we call those little bugs: they are called bacteria.

- blank faces -

preschool teacher: can everybody say Bac-tee-ree-uh?

everybody: Bac-Tee-Ree-Uh

little girl: can I see the bacty-ruh?

me: I'm afraid they are much too small to see! But here's the thing. After the bacteria eat the newt poop, what do THEY do (points hintingly at aquarium)

bright little girl: they poop in the water!

me: yes! that's exactly right. so who cleans up the bacteria poop?

- <blank faces>

me:well, if you poop and pee all over your bed sheets, what happens to your bed sheets?

- <giggles>

- bright little boy: My Mom changes them.

me: aha! so...maybe someone has to change the newt's water too, right?

- little girl (very excited): cause it gets all stinky!

me: very good! So that's why I brought you the bucket and the hose. Now, shall we change some water for the newts?

little girl: what does a newt poop look like?

me: (turkey-bastes a newt poop out of the tank and hands it around in a petri dish)

everybody: EEEw! Yuck!

somebody: it looks like m and m's.

somebody else: can you eat it?

everybody: EEEW!!!

and so on......

[Otterwoman]

I admire your courage.

[Kaiseric]

I love this thread. I would've been #1 happy boy if someone came to my pre-school with newts! You ROCK Molch!

[Rodrigo]

Every kid in the world should have the chance of first going "eeeewww" when they see a newt and then fall in love with them.
I had great fun reading the reconstruction, Molch, it reminded me of one time i was entrusted with passing around a milksnake through a group of barely older kids (at a zoo). In my case there wasn´t a little girl who would cry because air got in her lungs, but the opposite, there was a girl with mischief in her blue eyes that just wouldn´t let go. She kept the snake in a professional death grip for who knows how long and kept asking her parents to keep it. Even after we got her to let go, she insisted on staying around the snake room and saying things like "i don´t want to see the lions, i want to see the gigantic snake eat something". I could have adopted her right there right then...xD

[Angie]

That girl sounds brilliant

[Alejandro]

I loved this thread! Molch, you are a great instructor!

[Molch]

thanks all.

incidentally, the local news paper lady e-mailed if she could do a story on the "nute lizzards" (yes, her spelling) I donated to the preschool.

You can guess we have a lot of slow new(t)s days around here...

[Zoe]

Good for you Molch!!! I love bringing up my now 3 & 5 year old with some "different" pets (that being axies & newts) think it is far more interesting for them (although they also have the furries, dog & guinea pigs).

Think its great what you have done, spread the amphibian love

[Shadow]

Really considerable of you Molch! I don't think I could give up my babies!

[Molch]

Originally Posted by Molch

thanks all.

incidentally, the local news paper lady e-mailed if she could do a story on the "nute lizzards" (yes, her spelling) I donated to the preschool.

You can guess we have a lot of slow new(t)s days around here...

well, the new(t)spaper wrote up a little story about the preschool newts.

The Nome Nugget is the oldest newspaper in Alaska - it dates back to the rough gold rush days of the early 1900's, when Nome was populated by scoundrels, claim jumpers, loose ladies and Wyatt Earp - and I'd bet anything that these are the first newts to ever appear in its pages

[mr cyclone]

That's brilliant!.My son carries earthworms and spiders in his pockets to feed the newts with.He's 7 and newt crazy has named all my newts strange names."Squidgy,Hamish,Aaron,Rj newt,Non fiction and Pumpie" The Tylo's are his favourite because their fatties.Needless to say he got brain washed from me into a Newt fanatic