Zoo Camp

During the month of August, the Guyana Zoo offers an exciting, educational day camp programme for children between the ages of 6 and 15 years of age.

• Camps last for one-week
• Separate programmes are offered for primary aged students (6 to 11 years of age) and secondary aged students (12 to 15 years of age).
• To arrange attendance, parents may contact Donald Gunraj, Nature School Lecturer, at the Guyana Zoo (tel: 225-9142).
• There is a fee attached to the one-week camp and parents are encouraged to register their children early; Zoo Camp 2002 was sold out in three weeks.
  
  
  What did parents think?

"Thank you for spending time with Maria. She came home with a big smile each day. It's a job well done and I learned a lot from Maria too."

"Thank you for helping to further Kelly and Kyle's education and love for animals and the environment."

"This is a wonderful programme for all to enjoy. You have a fantastic staff. Keep up the good work."

The Guyana Zoo first offered its camp programme to Guyanese youths in 2001. Children participate in a number of activities with a wildlife or nature focus. This year's programme offered bird watching, presentations by guest speakers, field trips, animal games, stories and crafts, tree planting, fishing, animal handling, zoo tours, nature films, pony rides (for the younger children), and shadowing the zookeepers. When asked what their favourite activity was for 2002, campers responded with different answers but fishing was definitely a big hit!

We like parents to be involved in their child's experience whenever possible. To this end, parents were invited to a concert/science fair at the end of the 2002 weekcamp

We hope that children leave camp with new-found knowledge about their natural world and are excited about learning. Experiential education allows the child to develop an inquiring mind: by exploring nature in a practical way, children are able to find an outlet for their curiosity. These children are our decision makers of the future and their interest in the animals of Guyana, and the wild spaces in which they are found, will potentially impact their ability to make responsible resource management decisions in the future.

Zoo camp brings together a number of organizations and resources in order to create a dynamic, high quality programme. For this year's camp, thanks go to the Iwokrama International Centre for Rain Forest Conservation and Development and the Calgary Zoo who provided assistant instructors, Deirdre Jafferally and Donna Sheppard, and to the enthusiastic, animal-loving Guyana Zoo education volunteers who proved indispensable in their assistance to the camp. The National Zoo in Washington D.C. also helped with school supplies, and zoo toys and games.

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