Aquarium/Zoo Trip

The second and third grade classes from T.E.A.R.S. School were given a unique and exciting opportunity last Thursday, hopping on a bus and heading out on a filed trip. For many children, this was their first school trip and it was an unforgettable one, as they went to the Aquarium and the Zoo in Santo Domingo.

They did really well on the long drive out to the capital, patiently anticipating their destination and commenting on cars as the bus rolled along. Each student brought their notebooks along to sketch the various marine animals and mammals, as well as record what they learned throughout the day.

The children were fascinated by the variety of fish- big and small, colored and blank- leaning over the edge to get a better view of the turtles and reaching out their hands to touch the starfish. The level of joy and freedom seemed to grow; by lunch time everyone was in a state of ecstasy, leaping off ledges, climbing rocks and running up trees; gazing upon the coast, chasing pigeons and giggling as they erupted into flight, peering down at the rocks below and exclaiming with juvenile awe that they appeared to be giant turtles and enormous sharks lurking underwater. I envy their imagination.

Next stop was the zoo. I was entertained by many of the initial replies as we walked into the courtyard to wait while the teachers paid. Several students began complaining: but there aren’t any animals here! I laughed to myself, imagining a zoo that was merely an information center adorned with pictures but empty of any real specimens. Soon, however, we descended into the bird sanctuary and jumped on a nearby train to go on a tour.

Children shouted out conflicting guesses on what various animals were named as we drove past, being quickly corrected by the teachers: that’s not an eagle, it’s a falcon; that’s not an albatross, it’s an ostrich; that’s not a zebra, it’s a gazelle. Other comments also sounded out amid the ruckus: ooh, a buffalo…how ugly; let’s throw a rock at this crocodile to see if it moves; hey I think this is the giraffe cage- look how tall it is! Nah, that’s just the owl’s atrium.

As we were gathered around the flamingo pond, Gracie announced we were running quite late. The children immediately raced up the hill back up the bus, leaving the teachers to shout for them to come back and wait. You told us we had to get going, objected one boy, booking it around the corner. I decided to run along to make sure nobody got lost.

This was definitely a special trip for both staff and students. It is my hope that such excursions can continue in the future, as long as the staff are up to it. Keeping them all under control for a day was certainly a handful, but it was worth it to watch their faces light up and hear them recount stories to one another about the new horizons that had been opened to them, expounding on the glory of God’s creation. It is my dream and prayer that each one of these children, out of this grand new sense of wonder, would be brought into harmony and intimacy with the Source of such beauty, enjoying his presence forever.

This entry was posted on Monday, March 31st, 2008 at 7:43 am and is filed under T.E.A.R.S. School. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.