Haenam-gun Hosts 'Ttangkkeut Hwangtonara Komjirak Camping' for Elementary Students

‘Enjoying Ecological Experiences with Nature, Moving and Exploring’

Playing forest rope games at Haenam Ttangkkeut Komjirak Camping. (Photo by Haenam-gun)

[Asia Economy Honam Reporting Headquarters Reporter Kim Hyun] “Wow~ They made a face with stones and pine cones, how about making bangs and a beard with pine branches?”

The laughter of children under the pine tree is lively. These are 5th and 6th grade elementary school students who came on a forest outing after a long time and participated in the ecological experience program ‘Kkomjirak Camping’ held at Ttangkkeut Hwangto Nara Theme Village.

According to Haenam-gun on the 17th, Kkomjirak Camping is being actively conducted this year after being selected for the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism’s ecological green tourism promotion project.

Centered around Ttangkkeut Hwangto Nara Theme Village, children play forest games such as rope play and pine cone art, and experience mudflat activities at the Daejuk-ri clam catching site.

From the 14th to the 16th, all grades of Songho Elementary School and affiliated kindergarten students enjoyed listening to and answering fun stories about marine life and the sea linked to their grade-level curriculum through orientation. In the main experience, they received the energy of the forest by swinging on a swing, playing tug-of-war, and jumping rope using just a single rope.

At the Daeseom mudflat experience, they explored mudflat creatures such as clams and large jewel snails. The children learned that the holes in clam shells were traces left by large jewel snails trying to eat the clams, and they enjoyed lively learning while searching for clams.

What is a mudflat, what creatures live in mudflats, and how to distinguish between resident and migratory birds living in the forest. The children’s eyes sparkled at this experiential program outside the textbook.

The county promoted experiential learning linked with nearby elementary schools with the intention that, as COVID-19 prolonged, local children would first learn about local resources and feel pride rather than outside visitors.

The result was a great success. Children and teachers were surprised that such an interesting experiential learning site existed nearby, and they felt that the mudflats, which are their parents’ living environment, are precious resources.

Nam Ha-hoon (28), a teacher in charge of the 6th grade, said, “It was regrettable that various learning activities could not be conducted in parallel after COVID-19, but I am glad to be able to provide children with a living ecological class through Kkomjirak Camping,” and added, “I expect this to be an opportunity for children to see their living environment differently and value it.”

A county official said, “Along with the regular Kkomjirak Camping program, we are planning a special program for forest experiences with companion dogs,” and added, “We will investigate the distribution of various vegetation resources centered on Ttangkkeut Hwangto Nara Theme Village and produce promotional materials and white papers to establish it as a genuine ecological base.”

Meanwhile, the county plans to operate the program for Songji Elementary and Seojeong Elementary students in October. Considering the COVID-19 situation, it will be conducted in small groups of no more than 20 people, featuring pre-education on mudflats, mudflat exploration, ecological trail walking, forest meditation, forest rope play, flap glider making, and Hwangto dyeing experience, allowing participants to feel ecological sensitivity.

The participation fee is 5,000 won, and inquiries can be made to the Haenam-gun Tourism Division.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.