Greenwood Gator Farm

On Friday, June 6th we visited Greenwood Gator Farm. We saw real live alligators up close and personal at this full time working alligator farm. We saw gators of all sizes, from new hatchlings to full grown monsters! Greenwood Gator Farm houses and hatches 5,000 - 10,000 alligators each year. We took a guided tour of how Louisiana alligators are born and raised and learned about the centuries old art of alligator hunting from real life hunters. We found out how they go from an egg to boots and purses and sauce piquantes!

Besides a full, inside, a/c tour, Greenwood Gator Farms offers a large covered pavilion area for picnicking along with a turtle pond, a fish pond, a turtle in which the you can feed, a petting area, and a play area for the kiddos. 

   

 

Getting ready for our tour!

 

We started our tour in the hatchery where we learned about how they raise the gator eggs along with how gators out in the wild build there nest and return to the same one each year.  Gator hunters will mark the nest with a flag ( as seen below) to mark the gator nest.

      

 

Next, we went into the processing area which demonstrates the process. They will bring the gators into a large cooler to which they must process within a 24 hour time.  Then, they will skin the gator.  The skinners will get bonus money based on how well they skin the gator.  They can also lose their job if they have too many incorrect cuts in the skin because they are not able to sell those skins.  Also, this is where they will process and salt the gator meat.

In the gator den, we got to see various size gators.  Then, we had the opportunity to hold and kiss some gators:)

   

Random pics from the outdoors of the farm:

 

 

 

(Mr. Tim buys alligator from Liz on the History Channel show "Swamp People".)

BCH Homeschool Forum

On Thursday, May 29th Bayou Cajun Homeschoolers hosted a homeschooling question & answer forum. We had a panel of 7 moms from all different backgrounds.  Some had large families, smaller families, had graduated some, still teaching some, along with moms with many young children.  We had over 100 moms and dads from the surrounding area attend this evening. Our mom panel answered many various questions from how to get started all the way through graduating high school.    I hope this was a night of much encouragement and knowledge pass along to all of our attendees. 

 

Lined up to sign in, get their name tags, and enjoy some food and fellowship before we got started.

We had many local businesses donate food, door prizes, and items for Thank You bags that went to the moms on the panel for this event along with some of our moms.  Thank you to Chick-Fil-A Mall of LA, Alexander’s Highland Market, Angel Britches, Oak Point Fresh Market, Gambino’s, Las Palmas (Highland Rd.), Italian Bowl Restaurant, PF Chang’s, Sylvia’s Sweet Boutique, The Homeschool Lounge and Baton Rouge Moms,  Vielka’s Jewelry Box, Charleston’s Candles & More, SBJames Photography, Andilynn’s Elderberries, Dr. Susan Bankston @ The Baton Rouge Clinic, Thirty-one Gifts ~ Vielka Valdez,  Avon ~ Elisa Bankston, Mary Kay ~ Genedi Shamburger, and Bath Blends and Beyond. 

Thank you to the moms who helped set up everything for this event!!!  This was, by far, the largest event that we have hosted.

(Amy, Anita, Angela, and Candi)

 
Below is video of the Question and Answer Session:

Clink here for a link to our resource page which was part of the handout that evening.

LSU AgCenter Botanic Garden at Burden

On Tuesday, May 13th,  we had a field trip to LSU AgCenters Botanic Garden at Burden.  We participated in the program called “Trees and Trails.”  We started with an ice breaker and then split into 3 groups that hiked the short trail.  Along the trail we stopped for 3 hands-on/interactive stations:  Tree Cookies, Life on the Edge, and Invasive Species. 

About the Stations:

Tree Cookies - Students learn about resources that trees need to live, how trees compete for resources, and how to read tree rings.

 

Life on the Edge - Students learn that habitat loss is the primary reason for the loss of species through a game a game called Habitat Scramble in which each student plays the part of an animal that loses its habitat.

 

Invasive Species - Students learn how invasive species disrupt life cycles, through the example of the Chinese Privet and the story of the European Starling and the Eastern Bluebird.

 

 

After we had our learning time out on the short trail, we took a break for lunch.  Then, those who hung around went on a nature walk/scavenger hunt on the long trail (1 1/4 miles).

On our way back, it started raining pretty hard.  I caught a ride with one of the tour guides in the golf cart (I was taking Rob to therapy later that day!) but these other great moms endured the rain. 

 

Homeschool Question & Answer Forum

This event is FULL!!!  Sorry for any inconvenience.