Halve It Component:

My design focuses largely on the wellness pillar, which we have been focusing largely on in our school work.

• Wellness means looking after, not just our physical states, but our mental states as well. Students in schools all over the country are suffering severely from stress levels and anxiety, meaning that on days of tests or essays, they may not be able to do the best they possibly could. In adolescents, support through hard times is encouraged as it will help a lot with these feelings. It is extremely important that students are feeling safe and calm at school, not worried about the day ahead.

Sustainable Development Goal: 

SDG 3: Good Health and Wellbeing

• The World Of Fish meets SDG 3 (Good Health and Wellbeing) because students will often need something that stimulates their rational brains. Often this means that adolescents are on their phones out of school hours, but in school, they have no solution. Sitting in front of a large fish tank full of cool-looking fish captures attention, and stimulates brains. Research shows that spending time with animals can relieve stress and anxiety, as well as improving teenager’s moods.

School Context:

Most middle schools are small, not giving our bodies a healthy way to grow. Thirty-five screaming adolescents fighting over three basketballs in a tiny carpark is not healthy. Some students need a space to chill out, talk in low voices or even be silent. According to “The Conversation” (2022), in New South Wales alone, at least forty-three schools have smaller than recommended playgrounds.

 Furthermore, when students feel sad or lonely, they need a quiet place to mull their feelings over. This could be that quiet spot. Moods improve dramatically when spending time with animals, and fish also capture the eye. In a 2026 Middle School survey, approximately 29.07% of students voted for animals in their school. 

In Middle Schools, students always enjoy playing games and having a great time, but some individuals often are sitting on their own, trying to get away from the loud noise. Smaller areas often impact a person's time in the playground, as well as their overall stress and anxiety levels.

How do we decrease the anxiety and stress levels of adolescents through an interactive fish tank that calms the nervous system, stimulates the brain, and provides a quiet and safe place for students?

My tank idea will be two or three fish tanks inside any available room. A few beanbags will be on the floor, and there will be no shoes allowed. This is a designated quiet space, so if anyone is yelling, or being loud, they will be asked to leave the room. On their third warning, they will not be allowed back in. The tanks will be around 180 litres, and hold some unusual fish, as well as some colourful individuals to capture attention. There will also be living plants, as well as logs and rocks on the bottom to provide the fishes their very own quiet space.

I will look after the fish and bring them home while I am in Brown and Jolly, but when I move to the academy, I will choose someone who will look after them well throughout the week. If a fire or a flood pops up on the radar, I will instruct a teacher to grab the fish, and put them in a bucket.

Kids will spend their recess and lunch sitting quietly with their friends, watching every small movement the fish make. A swish of a tail, the bubble of a breath, the calming “drip, drip” of the filter. Anxiety, GONE.