Hello everyone--

I am an environmental educator in Newark, NJ. The organization I work for serves those students in the surrounding urban areas (Newark, Elizabeth, Irvington, Jersey City, etc). I am researching the best way to create a setup for a few green frogs for a new program we are developing. We would like to make it look as naturalistic as possible, but still have the students be able to view the frogs easily during the program. I have a background in animal husbandry but have never created an enclosure myself, so I'm looking for some advice!

We were hoping to have three green frogs in one enclosure. I was told a 40-gallon breeder tank set up as half land/half water would be a good start. Should it actually be a 50/50 ratio or should one of the sides be larger? What is the best substrate to use for the land side? What types of plants do you recommend? We have a lot of native plants on site & in our greenhouse that I would be able to use if they would be ok for the frogs.

I'm planning on getting a canister filter, is there one that anyone can recommend? I also plan on doing water changes 1-2 times a week. Does this sound correct or should it be more often? Is there anything specific I should look for (thickness, etc) when buying a piece of plexiglass to divide the tank? Where can a get a piece cut? Is there a specific sealant that you found works well for attaching the plexiglass? How deep should the water be? Should I try to set up sand to make a gentle slope into the water?

I'm thinking that it would probably be easier to breed crickets for them to eat, rather than have to buy them every few days. Any advice on this? Also, any "accessories" I might not be thinking of (thermometer, humidity gauge, etc)?

I know this is a lot of questions, but I am trying to make this as attractive as possible for the students without stressing out the frogs. (And don't worry--the students will NOT be handling the animals!)
Thanks for the help!
--Jess