Published June 7, 2001

A resounding chorus of "ewww" rose above the tent at the Eastport Yacht Club as about 60 students picked through hundreds of oysters spilled out before them on folding tables.

The fifth-graders from Kelly Fortune's and Betty Kirchner's classes at Hillsmere Elementary School had one last task to complete before their school year could finally end -- counting their oysters.

Working in conjunction with the Eastport Yacht Club Foundation and Chesapeake Bay Foundation, they have been learning about the oysters since placing a spat, or baby oysters, in a floating cage below a dock at the yacht club marina in early October.

Almost immediately Monday, complaints about the stench arose through some pinched noses.

"I thought it was nasty, but cool," said Corinne Welker, a student from Ms. Fortune's class.

While sifting through Chesapeake Bay bugs and mud, the children diligently pulled the survivors from among the dead oysters and measured their growth, calculating a body count.

Ms. Kirchner estimated about 60 percent of the six to eight bushels of oysters made it, but she won't know how that compares with average survival rates until the students' figures can be compared with water samples.

Monday's findings were turned in to the Chesapeake Bay Foundation, and she hopes to receive final results sometime this summer.

"I wish we had more time. It'd be a really neat thing for the kids to explore," Ms. Kirchner said.

Through their project, the students have learned the role oysters play in cleaning the bay by filtering its waters. The Chesapeake Bay Foundation is among several organizations trying to re-create oyster bars around the bay.

The Hillsmere students returned to the marina at the end of October and November to clean their oysters and to tally their growth to that point.

After recording some final information, a flotilla of eight powerboats and sailboats piloted by yacht club volunteers escorted the students to the mouth of the Severn River, where they planted the oysters on their new bed among cheers of "Heave ho, oysters overboard!"

Mayor Dean L. Johnson and Dawn Reilly, captain of the America's Cup sailing team America True, were on hand to watch the children plant the oysters. Both lauded the students' efforts, assuring them that their hard work will make a deep impact in a community defined by water.

"The water will be just a little bit cleaner every day, every week, every year," Mr. Johnson said.

Anthony Gray, a student in Ms. Kirchner's class, had his own assessment.

"Oysters make good soup," he said.

Ms. Kirchner said the project was a great way to give kids first-hand experience with the bay while showing them its ecological and economic impact in the community.

The Oyster Kids program was developed in conjunction with Hillsmere Elementary School and Ms. Kirchner, a member of the yacht club.

Dick Hoagland, who helped to start the program, said he would like to see it expand to other Annapolis schools in the future, and is talking with Germantown Elementary about plans for next fall.

Published June 07, 2001, The Capital, Annapolis, Md.
Copyright © 2001 The Capital, Annapolis, Md.

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