By Suzanne Hodgson
Staff Writer

“Science is an awesome subject, learning out of textbook doesn’t do it service,” said Kennebunk Middle School teacher Mike Denniston.
Denniston and his group of seventh- and eighth-grade science students celebrated the launch Thursday of a new Web site, www.vitalsignsme.org, they helped create with well-known scientists and politicians during an online conference.
The program, called Vital Signs, was developed under Portland’s Gulf of Maine Research Institute to bring together scientists and students. More than 40 schools in the state participate in the Vital Signs project.
The students and conference attendees were able to talk back and forth across the Internet using Skype, a service that allows people to turn their computers into videophones. The groups asked each other what was working with the new Web site, what needed more improvement and their favorite part of being a researcher.
The Skyping event was the first for the students and the science program, even though the students had met many of those working for Vital Signs on previous field trips.
During the fall and spring, Denniston and his group of teachers and students break up into four groups and visit four different local bodies of water: the Kennebunk, Mousam and Merriland rivers and Branch Brook. The groups study each individual body and share their results with the class.
The students work under the tutelage of their teachers to help find invasive species in the Kennebunk water sources.
“It’s connecting scientist and kids in the field,” said Denniston.
Using cards with different descriptions of invasive species like milfoil and Asian shore crab, students log in their findings to Vital Signs website, which can also be accessed by the public. This spring the students found the crab had invaded some tidepools in Kennebunk.
Acid levels, water temperature and river pollution are also tested by the students.
The students have been looking for a type of invasive crayfish in four local rivers. So far this year no river has turned up any crayfish, but in the Kennebunk River some students found an eel.
In Maine there are 30 bodies of water that have invasive species in them, according to the Department of Environmental Protection.
All four rivers being studied are considered excellent or good with little pollution.
The Branch Brook has consistently tested excellent for the past 10 years, since Denniston started the water science program.
“It’s really great because that’s the town’s water supply,” said Denniston.
The student teams are made up of a principal investigator, the students in charge of the team, and photographers and data collectors who wade into the water and use homemade nets to collect species.
All the data collected is posted to the Web site to share with other students and scientists in the state.
“In classrooms across the state, Vital Signs is helping transform how teachers teach and students learn science,” according to the Vital Signs Web site.
During the conference, 50 students filled the library, seated row after row staring at a wall with a projected image of a conference room.
Three other schools were able to “Skype in” during the meeting. Former Maine Gov. Angus King, who helped initiate Maine’s laptop program for students participated in Vital Signs meeting to talk about how the laptop program played a key role for Vital Signs.
“It’s not about technology it was about teaching and learning, in the 21st century it’s all about innovation,” said King.
King compared the laptops to a “port key” from the Harry Potter series. A port key allows whoever touches it to travel anywhere.
“We’re giving kids a hands-on experience in science who knows where they’ll go with it,” said King.
The young scientists were most excited about taking the class out of the classroom.
“I like going into the rivers and finding the data. Getting everything together and putting it into a project was quite a hassle,” said student Ben Broughton.

Staff Writer Suzanne Hodgson can be reached at 282-4337, ext. 233.