AquaVan team member tells youngsters about whales, dolphins, polar bears and caribou at Exploration Place Sunday. Photos 250News

Prince George, B.C. – The Vancouver Aquarium’s travelling AquaVan is visiting Prince George with a fun approach to teaching people, especially young folks, about the world of aquatic life.

Co-ordinator Tamara Loney says “we travel all over western Canada visiting schools  and making connections with the ocean for the children.  We have all sorts of animal artifacts as well as live animals” which children can interact with, mostly invertebrates like sea stars, sea cucumbers, hermit crabs, anemones and sea urchins.  The creatures are kept in “touch tanks” (photo right) and the kids can put their hands in to learn what the animals feel like.

Loney says in addition to appearing at schools, AquaVan visits community events, such as Sunday’s stop at Exploration Place, where her four-member team delivers programs for people of all ages.  “Kids from zero to 99,” she says.  “It’s really for everybody, there’s something in here that everyone can kind of learn and experience.”

She says “on this tour we’ll be seeing twelve schools” in Prince George, Williams Lake and 100 Mile House.  “This is a three-week tour so we’re in the region for about three weeks, so a school a day.”

Loney says if anyone wants the AquaVan to come to their school “you can check out the Vancouver Aquarium’s website, which is www.vanaqua.org and if you go to the Learn section you’ll be able to find when our upcoming tours are and where we’re headed.”