Classroom Earth

Students leave their city ways behind when they join the crew of Sunship Earth, a 'science immersion' program that gives hands-on lessons in a summer-camp atmosphere.

By Aesha Rasheed (staff writer/The Times-Picayune)
Staff photos by David Grunfeld

While their schoolmates were indoors poring over school books last week, Y'Mine McClanahan and Malarie Boudreaux were thrusting their hands into dirt and flapping through the woods in brightly colored bird masks.

"This is so much more fun than school," Malarie said.

Even though their activities were designed to look and feel more like play than study, Y'Mine, Malarie and 34 of their classmates were actually in school -- a school in the woods.

The students, all from Lusher Elementary School in New Orleans, were whisked off to the piney woods near Covington for a five-day science immersion program called Sunship Earth. The science camp takes students out of city surroundings and into nature for hands-on lessons about the environment.

"It's not a field trip, it's not summer camp -- it's school," said Angela Herbert, assistant director of Teaching Responsible Earth Education, or TREE.

TREE is the nonprofit New Orleans group that sponsors Sunship Earth and three other similar environmental education programs. All the programs are based on curriculum designed by the Institute for Earth Education, a West Virginia environmental education group. TREE also sponsors Earthkeepers, a three-day program for fourth graders at Jean Lafitte Park; Lakekeepers, a day-trip program for fourth through sixth graders; and Sunship III, a five-day program for seventh and eighth graders.

The goal of Sunship Earth and its sister programs is to teach the students science concepts such as photosynthesis and energy transfer while grounding them in the conservationist philosophy.

"We could say recycle, recycle, recycle all day but it wouldn't have the same impact as if we show them why it's important," Herbert said.

To do that, Sunship Earth teaches science in a summer-camp atmosphere. Along with lessons about adaptation and food chains, students learn about cooperation and teamwork.

"It's an excellent way to teach children about the Earth and it allows them to learn some independence and self-reliance and maturity," said Peggy LeBlanc, a teacher at John Dibert Elementary School. Dibert has been sending students to the camp since it was started in 1985 by former Dibert teacher Sue Brown.

"They're learning from the moment they get up to the time they go to sleep," Herbert said. "But they don't even realize how much they're learning until the end."

And because the program uses a hands-on teaching approach, the lessons stick, Herbert said.

To learn about photosynthesis, students climb inside a giant cloth leaf to watch how plants transform water, sunlight and carbon dioxide into energy. To get an idea of how many years it will take today's leaves and grass to decay into topsoil, the students try to make some dirt of their own by pounding away at pine cones, dead leaves and fallen tree bark.

"These are concepts they learn all year but they come out here and it's like 'Eureka,' and they get it," said Herbert.

"The light bulbs have just come on out here," said Jodi Palmer, a fifth grade teacher at Lusher Elementary. "They understand the concepts because they're seeing them firsthand."

Palmer said she'll be able to use the Sunship experience as a reference when she is expanding on those concepts back in her classroom.

At Sunship there's no Cartoon Network, no Game Cubes or MP3 players -- not even watches are allowed -- just the sights and sounds of nature. "We want them to focus on what we're doing out here and not worry about all those distractions," Herbert said.

At first that was hard, the Lusher students said. Leaving behind all the modern trappings, learning to look out for poison ivy and especially sitting still for long stretches of time each morning for reflection were challenges for them.

But by camp's end, they were filling journal pages with insights and looking forward to days spent communing with nature.

"I can't wait to wake up so I can go to my quiet place," said Gabrielle Wren, 10.

"I could stay here for five more days," said Joshua Brown.

TREE (www.treetalk.org) conducts Sunship Earth sessions only in the fall and spring, hoping to avoid the hottest and coldest times of the year. Although this year's students have been primarily from Orleans Parish Public Schools, the program is open to all and has played host in previous years Jefferson and St. Tammany private and public school classes.

The camp costs about $500 per student but most of that is offset by various state and federal grants TREE has secured to help support the programs. Schools use fund-raisers to pay for most of the rest so that little cost is passed on to parents, Herbert said.

"They've grown so much out here," Palmer said of her students in the Sunship Earth program. "I think they've gained years in maturity and they've really bonded into a community. It's really amazing."