Class in the Clouds ’10: another chance to learn and explore at 1086m!

• By Camilla Bath
• 1 March 2010

There’s no better way to learn about the wonders of Table Mountain than from its summit – and scholars from Grade 1 to Grade 12 are, for the ninth year in a row, being offered the chance to do just that.

Table Mountain Aerial Cableway’s Class in the Clouds programme kicked off again this morning. It will see thousands of pupils exploring the iconic destination as part of a one-of-a-kind school outing.

Teachers have the opportunity to take youngsters out of the classrooms, and introduce them to the fascinating environment on top of the mountain.

The programme is focused especially on outings related to travel and tourism, environmental sciences or geography. Table Mountain is the perfect venue for such lessons; there’s an extraordinary range of fauna and flora on the summit, with almost 1 500 naturally occurring plant species alone. What better way to explore and learn, than in an environment that boasts such impressive species diversity?

More than 150 000 school-goers have taken part in the Class in the Clouds programme since its inception in 2001. They’re among some 19-million visitors who’ve taken a ride in a cable car to the top of Table Mountain over the past 80 years or so (the first cable car travelled to the summit on October 4, 1929).

For just R30 per pupil, any South African school can join Table Mountain Aerial Cableway’s educational programme, from March 1 to October 29, 2010. Additionally, grade-specific worksheets for teachers’ use are available both online and through the postal system. A teacher’s assistant, who is familiar with Table Mountain and everything it has to offer, will also be available on the day of an outing.

The Class in the Clouds programme does not run on weekends or public holidays, but is active during school holidays.

Booking is compulsory and no provisional or telephonic bookings are accepted.

For more information, call (021) 424 0015, or email cic@tablemountain.net.

You can also download application forms, grade-specific worksheets and facilitators’ notes here.