Jan Flandro and her gifted and talented class at Franklin Middle School raised about 30 rainbow trout inside a fish tank during the 2007-2008 school year.

They released the fish into Mink Creek at Cherry Springs Nature Area after they grew from hatchlings to about 3 inches long last spring. The program was so popular with the students, Flandro is raising another batch of trout - this time from eggs - this school year.

The Wild about Trout in the Classroom program, sponsored by Idaho Fish and Game, is geared to get today's youth interested in something beyond electronic gadgets. It is intended for students in the fourth grade and up.

"I think it's really important to kids to have a connection with the outdoors," Flandro said. "They like computers, and technology has taken over a big chunk of their free time."

Jennifer Jackson, a Fish and Game education coordinator, instructs a course for area teachers who want to use the program in their classrooms.

Jackson said retired Fish and Game fisheries manager Dick Scully started the program at Lewis and Clark Elementary several years ago. Last year, the department decided to expand the program and held the first workshop for teachers. Since then it has expanded from one classroom to 12, which are scattered throughout Southeast Idaho.

"Programs like Trout in the Classroom give kids exposure to wildlife in a personal way and helps them understand what healthy fish habitat is and why it is important," Jackson said.

Jackson usually gets a call every few months from another teacher interested in Trout in the Classroom. In fact, she instructed Flandro.

Fish and Game will host another workshop on Jan. 30 from 4 to 9 p.m. at Snake River Junior High on Highway 39 near Blackfoot. It will continue Jan. 31 from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. The registration fee is $20.

Teachers can attend the workshop for college credit at an additional cost. In those cases, an outside assignment will be required.

Each participant will receive a curriculum guide that includes a list of innovative activities tied to aquatic education.

The program is funded mostly through donations and grants. The Southeast Idaho Fly Fishers, the J.R. Simplot Co. and the Chubbuck Petco store are some of the main contributors.