Metamorphosis in sixth grade
Sixth graders, left to right, Paige Adams, Josh Gabriele and Sam Myers watch the progress of the changing pollywogs. Courtesy of the Wiscasset Middle School
Sixth graders, left to right, Paige Adams, Josh Gabriele and Sam Myers watch the progress of the changing pollywogs. Courtesy of the Wiscasset Middle School
One day, Wiscaset Middle School students were learning the definition of metamorphosis, and the next thing you know a pod of frog eggs appear in the classroom.
Several days later, they were magically turned into polywogs. Isn’t science great?
According to Thorndike-Barnhart Student Dictionary, metamorphosis is “a marked change in the form and usually the habits of an animal in its development after its embryonic change.”
Now the polywogs are forming buds near the front of their bodies that will eventually grow into legs, and they are breathing through gills. Soon they will have short legs, a long tail and will be considered young frogs.
Eventually they will go through more adaptations. When metamorphosis is complete they will have no tail, lungs to breathe, two strong back legs for travel, big eyes and a long tongue to see and catch prey.
The school plans to release most of the tadpoles back into the wild long before this happens.
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