L’Observateur / July 5, 2000

VACHERIE – St. James Parish children are experiencing something unique thissummer. Those attending the Great River Camp 2000, presented by the St.James School Board and Elvis Cavalier, director of student programs, are not only enjoying a fun-filled summer camp, they are also learning about their parish environment and all the animals that thrive in it.

The camps are spread out through the parish to service children on the west and east banks. Romeville Elementary hosted two camps in June. VacherieElementary hosted a camp in June and has one coming up July 10-13. LutcherHigh School is also scheduled for July 10-13 and July 17-20. The last set ofcamps are at St. James High School July 17-20 and July 24-27.The focus of the camp, environment, is special to Cavalier.

“The environment is a legacy that my parents left behind, the concern of the land. If you take care of the land it will take care of you,” he said.The design plan follows appropriately: develop appreciation for the environments and acceptance of an environmental ethic; educate students in order that they may accept their role as stewards of the earth; explain that some human behavior may be detrimental to the local environment; motivate students to be more environmentally conscious; make students aware of their unique culture and way of life; create partnerships with local industries and promote teamwork to improve environmental education; help students understand how offshore oil and gas companies protect the environment and safeguard the future; apply the arts in a curriculum designed to transform environmental awareness into education and action and examine nonpoint source pollution.

If that seems a little complicated for 5-year-olds, Cavalier and the River Camp staff have made the exercises and projects simple to understand and easy to enjoy. One experiment involves cutting up three potatoes to look likefish. One fish is placed in salt water, one in fresh water and one on a drytowel. The result displays the effect of salt water on freshwater fish. Thefish on the towel turns brown, like a fish out of water. The fish in thesaltwater turns slimy and bendable. The fish in fresh water fish stays crispand fresh.

Other activities teach the children about the creatures in the swamp and their place in the circle of life. One experiment teaches the effect of oil spillsand how to clean them out of the environment. Another experimentdemonstrated the effect of accumulating pollution in the water supply. Mostof these experiments are taught in the classroom, but many field trips are taken to show the kids physically what it is they are learning about. Thedesign of the camp is oriented toward a hands-on learning experience, said Cavalier.

The complexity of the lesson plan varies between age groups. Cavalier hasdivided the attending students into three classes. Five- to 7-year-olds aretaught the red track, the simplest course work. Eight to 10-year-olds learnthe white course work. Blue, the most complex course work, is taught tostudents 11 and older.

The camps have been so popular and successful already that Superintendent of Schools Edward Cancienne hopes to expand the camps to three weeks long at each of the schools for next year. At the June 27 St. James Parish SchoolBoard meeting many board members praised the work they had seen at the Romeville camp. They expressed their gratitude and appreciation to Cavalierand thanked him for the program.

The program is free of charge to the students and includes lunch and transportation. The St. James Parish Council helped fund the camps to allowall children interested in the camps to attend.

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