Native trout species have called the Eastern Slopes of Alberta their home for thousands of years but are now facing increasing declines in population and distribution. The ‘Being Trout’ edu-kit is designed to introduce students to the world of Alberta’s native trout and inspire collective action. Through interactive games and activities, students will come to understand native trout habitat needs, threats, recovery actions, and much more.
This kit provides free resources to help educators incorporate environmental themes into K-12 learning plans. These activities are specifically designed to align with Alberta education curriculum.
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Where’s My Trout?
Learn about angling in Alberta and how anglers can protect Alberta’s native trout for generations to come. In this fun game, students try to sneak up on their teacher to catch a trout from the...
Trout Tipping Point
Through this fun and challenging game, participants will learn about ecosystem balance, what humans are doing to push trout to the tipping point, and how we can protect trout habitat.
Trout Migration Game
In this active game, participants will try to swim upriver past various threats, to make it to their spawning grounds. Participants will learn about trout migration, habitat, and human impacts.
Stories From the River
In this poetry activity, participants will listen to “Stories from the River” told by Indigenous scientists, conservationists, anglers, ranchers, recreationalists, and naturalists. While listening to the stories, the youth will jot down words that stick...
Shrinking Habitat
Discover what it feels like to be a trout in an ever-shrinking habitat. Brainstorm ways to protect trout habitat and keep it cold, clean, complex, clear, and connected.
Shelter Shuffle
Dive into Alberta native trout habitat, learn about trout needs, and explore how humans can harm or help trout populations.
Rock, Paper, Scissors, Trout
In this game, participants will put themselves in the fins of Alberta’s native trout and try to survive to adulthood. Learn about trout lifecycles and the human impacts that make it challenging for them to...
Nature Says
Participants will learn about the four main needs of animals (food, water, shelter, space) and discover how Athabasca Rainbow Trout meet these needs.
Happy Trout, Sad Trout
With this movement game, find out what bull trout need to survive and what might be threatening their survival.
Downstream Demonstration
In this activity, participants will visualize cumulative effects of pollution on our river systems and those that rely on them. What happens upstream – bad and good – affects everyone (every person, plant, animal, ecosystem)...
Coldwater Camouflage
In this game of camouflage, participants will learn about basic animal needs and discover why trout build redds to lay their eggs.
Apex Takes the Lead
Using this calming, movement-based game, participants will test their observational skills while learning about our provincial fish – the bull trout.
The Alberta Native Trout Collaborative is a group of partner organizations, including CPAWS Southern Alberta, Cows & Fish Riparian Management Society, Freshwater Conservation Canada, fRI Research, Alberta Conservation Association, and the Government of Alberta.
Together, we coordinate resources to mitigate threats and promote recovery of Alberta’s Threatened native trout via watershed prioritization and on-the-ground habitat restoration and monitoring. However, these efforts are unsustainable if they’re not supported and maintained by everyone. For this reason, we work together to educate, engage and inspire all Albertans to take pride in native trout, and to take action to help care for their habitats.
The Alberta Native Trout Collaborative receives funding through the Canada Nature Fund for Aquatic Species at Risk (CNFASAR) from Fishers and Oceans Canada.