Clear Creek Trail Interpretive Center is organizing volunteers for the Twelve Days of Salmon in the Classroom beginning in March. There will be a volunteer orientation Tuesday evening at the Clear Creek Barn beginning at 6:00 p.m. The agenda will include an overview of the Salmon in the Classroom Program; Station Orientation for each of the four stations; and sign up for the field trip

Around 800 elementary students will visit the Clear Creek Trail to release their salmon that they have been raising in the classroom since Jan. 3. Field trips consist of four stations the students cycle through to learn about water quality, stream bugs, how to plant a tree and release salmon into the creek.

Volunteers are needed to assist at each of the four stations. Not everyone who wants to volunteer needs to attend the orientation, but it’s helpful, according to the Interpretive Center. There is a potluck planned for dinner while coordinating this year’s volunteers, and volunteers are asked to please RSVP.

In March, volunteers are needed for the field trips. On these field trips, about 700 kids cycle through four stations and learn about water quality, stream bugs, plant trees and release their salmon fry. Seven days of field trips are offered with approximately 75 students attending each field trip. Field trips are held mornings from 10 a.m. – 12 p.m.; afternoons from 12:30 p.m. – 2:30 p.m.

The Salmon in the Classroom project was started over 20 years ago by the Central Kitsap Kiwanis Club. It is now a partnership with the Clear Creek Task Force, Silverdale Kiwanis Club, Kitsap County Health District, Kitsap Public Facilities District, Suquamish Tribe,Kitsap County Surface and Stormwater Management (SSWM), AMS Refrigeration and over 30 local classrooms with the shared goal of enhancing the salmon population in Clear Creek and educating students on the importance of ecosystems.