Students from seven schools squared-off Friday in the 34th Annual Vermilion County Conservation Olympics. Those competing are all sixth-graders.
Lara Darling, an educator with the Vermilion County Conservation District staff, says the students study hard for the event. She described one of the games they were playing.
‘’What we do is I give clues to a certain animal that’s native here in Vermilion County. And so what the kids have to do is take that clue and race to me – and whatever team… guesses the animal correctly the first time will move on to the next round. And I keep giving more clues as the game goes on,’’ said Darling.
And those clues can be pretty tough. Darling gave us an example.
‘’The animal might have been bluegill, and the clue would have been that ‘it spawns over shallow nests in the water in the springtime’. That might be clue number one. And then clue number two would be something like ‘they prefer well-vegetated water or feed on small aquatic organisms.’ So each clue you just add on and build onto that same animal until they get it right,’’ added Darling.
Other games included an obstacle course, nature race, nature hike, an environmental relay race, and more. Students participating were from Schlarman Academy, Rossville-Alvin, Oakwood, Potomac, Salt Fork, Mary Miller Junior High in Georgetown, and Judith Giacoma Elementary School in Westville. (***Note: You can click on the photos to enlarge them.)
[Story posted May 12, 2017].
