A taste of fishy therapy

Like Reuben, Jeremy stumbled onto Innofishion by accident. Now a seasoned caretaker, he explains how Innofishion's fish spa evolved. "We had started with chin chin fish, a kind of spa fish," he shares. "But after much research, we found that this fish doesn't actually cure skin diseases, so it's not suitable."

According to Jeremy, a fish called Garra rufa is proven to help treat skin diseases like eczema and remove dead skin cells. The team switched to this species and students wanting a taste of fishy 'foot reflexology' can book spa sessions with Mr Ten or the Innofishion volunteers.

"If you put your hand in, you will feel the suction," says Jeremy, pointing at a pool filled with lively fish. "It nibbles. It has no teeth, so it's quite safe."

Keeping the fish in good health was a learning journey. "They need fast-flowing and hard water," remarks Jeremy, who explains that hard water contains certain minerals the fish need to thrive. "We make hard water through biological filtration with lava rocks," he adds.

Another requirement, which the team discovered thanks to a broken heating light, is warm water. "If it turns cold, they might jump out," says Jeremy of the fish's response to low temperatures.

Learning responsibility and teamwork

It's a relaxing environment, but there is a serious side to Innofishion. The facility was set up by Mr Ten about three years ago as a place where he could reach out to emotionally troubled or at-risk students.

Growing vegetables on the school's rooftop.

"Working with small animals is a form of therapy," explains Mr Ten. "They start to open up a bit more, and as they play with the hamsters, they are more relaxed and confident." And as the students assume responsibility for the wellbeing of the animals, they learn to work together as a team to feed, clean and maintain the tanks and cages.

The place then caught the eye of Mr Kom Mun Siong, HOD for Science. Together, he and Mr Ten explored how the rooftop sanctuary could also serve as an outdoor classroom for students of different needs. Spurred by the possibilities, they developed a comprehensive teaching programme and with financial support from Seagate Technology, gave Innofishion a makeover into "a platform for authentic learning, hands-on engagement and leadership building."

Part of Innofishion is literally a platform, as the team used old cabinets and sturdy planks to build an elevated lounge over an existing air-conditioning duct. To save resources, the aquaria use rainwater from a catchment tank and the wastewater is used to water the vegetables that grow on a sunny balcony.

Reuben shows how rainwater is channelled to the fish tanks.

"We use this rooftop to grow valuable food crops in a high rise urban farm," says Mr Kom of one way students learn via experience at Innofishion. Besides staples like kangkong and chye sim, the students even cultivated sunflowers for sale as tokens of friendship during Valentine's Day.

Urban farming isn't just about botany. Sometimes, students neglect their crop by failing to water or fertilise regularly. "Of course, the vegetables will die," states Mr Kom. "And that creates an opportunity to talk about why and what they can learn from this, and how they can do better."

Through such experiences, Innofishion has, according to Mr Kom, "helped our kids develop resilience by teaching them how to overcome failures." Once-shy students such as Jeremy, he adds, have also "gained confidence through these activities and by taking ownership of what they are doing."

From counselling to caring

This sense of achievement is infectious. Amelia Tan, for one, set her eyes on Innofishion when she once approached Mr Ten for counselling. "I found this place very interesting," she recalls. By the end of the session, she was asking if she could join as a volunteer. Later, she even roped in her Sec 3 classmate, Jasmine Kua, and the two now work together to weed the vegetable plots and wash the fish tanks.

Mr Ten (first on the left, front row) with his team of Innofishion volunteers.

From a curious visitor, Reuben is now one of the students in charge of making sure that Innofishion's residents are well taken care of. Most volunteers take about two hours to maintain the place. But Reuben spends about four hours each time. "I have to check if everything is ok," he says, adding that other duties include ensuring that there are enough supplies of food for the animals.

It's no chore though. "I love science and nature," he declares. "It's quite fun and I learn a lot of things, for example, about the chemical reactions, filtration and how the plants remove the ammonia from the water."

In the future, there are plans to set up an al fresco mini café. But come the year-end holidays, the students can look forward to a camp where they will stay over to enjoy the rooftop garden under the stars. There will also be outings to fish and vegetable farms to round off what Mr Kom promises will be "an experience that most students would not get to have in an urban setting."