NORTH VAN has a unique school which takes
place not in a stuffy classroom but under the
wide-open spaces of the outdoors.

For the past 16 years,

North Van school kids have .

loaded onto buses and head-
ed out to North Vancouver
Outdoor School to study the
earth sciences the way they
should be studied — in a
natura! setting.

NVOS is located on the
banks of the Cheakamus
River in Paradise Valley. The
school is sited on about 460
acres of forested land.

By CHARLES MAYER

During the course of the
school year, about 3,000
primary and elementary
grade students visit NOVS.

Since NVOS is a residential
Prograin, each group of
students spend one week —
from Monday to Friday —
taking part in the comprehen-
sive environmental program.

““When the kids are here 24
hours a day,’’ says Don
Robertson, director of
NVOS, “‘the students get top
value out of the residential
program.

“Once the student has
spent time here, I think he
has a greater appreciation of
the environment and natural
science.”

No student is excluded
from participating at NVOS.
In fact, the school has
teaching staff qualified to
deal with special needs
children and facilities to ac-

commodate physically han-
dicapped students.

Staff at the school is small
but dedicated with only two
teachers, a recreation direc-
tor, a matron and Robertson.

Together they manage to
implement a solid in-context
education experience that
gives students ‘‘upportunity
to examine the topics of en-
vironmental awareness and
ecological balance
firsthand.”

All the topics covered,
which include geology,
forestry, forest and stream

EVERGREEN HOUSE resident Bertha Breedon took a big breath to blow out the candles on her 105th birthday cake. She
gets a little help from LGH volunteer Stella Squires. Members of the Auxiliary to Lions Gate Hospital entertain at the

monthly birthday party held to honor residents of Evergreen House.

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ecology, outdoor living skills,
salmon studies and farm
techniques, are integrated as
a whole into academic studies
such as math and science.

Robertson recalls that
when the outdoor school was
first proposed in 1969, it was
touch and go as to whether it
would ever get totally off the
ground.

But with the combined ef-
forts of parents, teachers and
students pressing North Van-
couver school board for
backing, the trustees finally
agreed to support the idea.

Initially NVOS used
facilities at Paradise Valley
leased by the United and
Anglican churches who sub-
leased the buildings to the
school.

When both the United and
Anglican churches
quished their lease to the
facilities, North Van school
board decided to become the
primary leaseholder.

“We considered at least six
alternative sites before we
realized that Paradise Valley
was the best of all choices,’”
Robertson says.

Popularity of such
academic outdcor programs
is wide-spread throughout
Canada.

Unfortunately, B.C. is lag-
ging behind most other pro-
vinces in the number of out-
door schools operated by in-
dividual school districts.

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PAGE 26 A

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“*Howe Sound has an out-
.door program and facilities
up at Pemberton while the
West Van school district uses
a variety of different sites,”
explains Robertson.

He adds that other schools
in the province just have to-
settle for ever fewer facilities
and have to set up programs
in temporary. (camp) sites.

Whereas weather certainly
may affect the times other
school districts can operate
their outdoor program,
Students in the North Van
school system are never
stymied because of
inclemencies.

NVOS ha: ‘a number of
panabode cabins in addition
to the main structure which
houses the kitchen, dining
room, lounge and activity
areas.

“We never close due to
foul weather. We operate
regardless,’ Robertson points
out.

B.C.’s education system
during the past few years has
come under the restraint gun
of the provincial govern-
ment. But despite the
wholesale slashing of pro-
grams in schools throughout
the province, NVOS has
managed not only to escape
severe funding cuts but main-
tain strong support from
school board members.

See School
Page 24

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