CAL Celebrates The Year Of The River

Reading on the River

CAL celebrates the Year of the River

The Center for Adult Learning spent the month of May celebrating the St. Johns River.  Classes took field trips to the river to see it firsthand.  Each week of the month a different topic associated with the river was discussed. 

 The first week concentrated on the seven bridges.  Many of the English Second Language (ESL) students did not know the name of the bridge they cross every week to get to class but they knew the color. 

Next, the classes concentrated on the wildlife and the impact on the environment associated with the river.  Students wrote about the river and Jenny Busey from the St. Johns Riverkeeper came and spoke to the classes about the river and its wildlife. The students had many questions for the Riverkeeper especially about fishing.  We never knew we had so many fishermen and women in our classes.

Here is a poem from one of our ESL students from Russia:

Florida’s Springtime

I like Florida’s springtime.

Flowering bushes, flourishing trees

Renovation of nature.

I live on St. Johns riverside

Here, evening is the most beautiful.

I see the city

The luminous bridges, the sparkling light.

The varicolored lights of the city.

My soul rejoices.

Ludmilla Kahan

A student’s answer to –Why the St. Johns River is important for me?
The big reason for me moving to Jacksonville is the St. Johns River. I intend to live in waterside.  Good view make me pleasant and relax.  St. Johns River is also a busy channel for ships coming and going.  I feel like the St. Johns River becoming vivid. It is alive. - Thursday a.m. class- Mei Long-China

Finally, the classes looked at the economic and industrial impact of the river on Jacksonville.

May was a great month for “Reading on the River” at CAL.