Other Activities

Cuc Phuong National Park
Grade 6 Field Trip Week, March 2007

Grade 6 students and teachers had one of the best trips ever in Cuc Phuong National Park this year. The cool and dry weather kept the leeches away so that we could enjoy long hikes in the Rainforest and Survival games in the Botanical Gardens. Students had the amazing opportunity to speak to many experts in Conservation in Vietnam while visiting the Civet Conservation Project, The Turtle Conservation Project and especially the Endangered Primate Rescue Center (EPRC).  At the EPRC students were given the opportunity to get to know many native species of primates and to learn about the many threats to their populations, as well as what is being done to help them. Information gathered at the EPRC and in Cuc Phuong is being used in Science class where we are reporting on Endangered Primates. Lots of fun was had by all, students nurtured their creative sides during ‘these Beans are BAD’ and ‘The Myth of the Leech.’  New friends were made, new experiences were had by all and we all left feeling itchy from the mosquito bites but that we had experience Vietnam’s unique Rainforest. 

Itinerary included:

• Boat trip in Van Long en route to Cuc Phuong
• Cuc Phuong Visitors Centre
• Visits with experts to three conservation projects that take place in the park:
  • The Turtle Conservation Project - students learned about various species of Asian turtles that are endangered
  • The Civet Conservation Project - students observed these nocturnal small carnivores whose population is being brought back from the brink of extinction in Asia
  • Endangered Primate Rescue Centre- students met with International Zoologists and Veterinarians to learn about the 15 species of endangered primates that live at the EPRC. They also saw the nocturnal Loris’s and had time to observe the behaviors of specific primates.
• Hikes to the ‘Cave of Early man,’ ‘The 1000 year-old Tree’ and to visit a lake
• Visits to the Botanical Gardens
• Various group games and activities including drama activities, Survival and creative writing.

This trip complemented our current unit of study in Science ‘Human Impact on the Environment.’ Students will be examining the tropical rain forest biome, being involved in conservation and preservation projects which look at our natural resources and examine species diversity.

Students kept a journal of reflections of all of their activities during the trip. This journal will be used as an assessment tool in Science and Language Arts.

Work that the students did during observations at the EPRC were used to help them in a project on Endangered Primates.