Being an eco-interpreter means exchanging, listening and trying to make people feel nature. Being in symbiosis with what surrounds us and transmitting the desire to know and observe Understanding others and awakening them is enriching, nothing is ever acquired there is always a little more to discover in the marsh Audomarois, the place is so rich.
La Maison du Marais, a place of discovery and learning
La Maison du Marais is an interpretation center of the Marais Audomarois resolutely focused on education. It is with our professionals that children will discover an exciting adventure which will tell them the essential: we are all essential to the balance of our environment. Our examples are there to help children become aware of their place in this “chain” and understand that it is essential to respect and protect biodiversity.
An interpretation center for the Audomarois marsh and the main educational themes
The town and the Audomarois marsh
What would the Audomarois marshes be without human intervention? What would the town of Saint-Omer be without the presence of the marsh? Here are two inseparable questions. The Audomarois and its marshes, which extend over more than 3,700 hectares bringing together 15 municipalities spread between the departments of Nord and Pas-de-Calais, are two geographical entities which have coexisted for 13 centuries.
The town and the Audomarois marsh
What would the Audomarois marshes be without human intervention ?
The Audomarois marsh, a fragile and sensitive space
29 species of fish, 240 species of birds, 250 species of insects, 33 species of mammals including 14 species of bats, 400 varieties of plants and 490 species of mushrooms make up a rich and varied fauna and flora. This biodiversity represents a fragile environment to observe, understand and protect, which blends into a splendid setting combining landscapes of market gardening, areas inhabited by humans and wilder nature.
The Audomarois marsh, a fragile and sensitive space
Entering the water labyrinth of the marsh is crossing the threshold of an extraordinary world.
The vernacular heritage of the Audomarois marsh
13 centuries of history have allowed Audomarois to build a strong identity: a country with multiple facets united over time, giving rise to an original vernacular heritage. From the stories passed down from generation to generation to its unique market gardening culture, including the festivities on the water and the living environment of the inhabitants of the marshes and suburbs, the traces of this heritage are still alive and appreciable. The collections of the Maison du Marais are a strong testimony to this.
The vernacular heritage of the Audomarois marsh
13 centuries of Audomaroise history and the construction of a strong identity
Create your visit according to your wishes!
A complete educational offer
You will be able to carry out your educational project, adaptable to all school levels and benefit from the tools and technical means made available to you.
Welcome to Yves Capiau” presents a market gardener on the last day of his long career.
45 minutes
Welcome to Yves Capiau" presents a market gardener on the last day of his long career.
It is the meeting of a market gardener who bears virtual witness to life, history and biodiversity, of each day spent in the heart of the Marais Audomarois.
It is one man’s view of the past, present and future of a sensitive natural area and its inhabitants.
It is also for your class the opportunity to compare our time to the living and working conditions of our ancestors.
"Underwater Adventure" immerses you and your class in a fantastical universe.
Designed with a spectacular 24m long machine, open to visitors while waiting for the next dive and its specialist crew, who left traces of their most recent research and experiments, this exhibition allows you to approach in a way playful the notion of imagination in the service of knowledge.
As if immersed in the depths of the waters of the Marais, children will be able to take turns playing captain by operating the controls of the Under-Marais or be interested in the characteristics of each aquatic species that crosses their path, like the biologist
The expedition to the heart of the Marais Audomarois with our guides and their bacôves
Duration 1 hour
The most beautiful way to experience nature is to surround yourself with it.
The Maison du Marais guides will take your class aboard their bacôves, traditional flat-bottomed boats, in the heart of the wild area of the Marais Audomarois, paradoxically located less than 1km as the crow flies from the heart of the city.
The bacôves, designed at the time when the marsh was only passable by boat to move loads of up to 4 tonnes, are today the ideal way to explore the narrow winding canals of the Marais Audomarois in small groups. and go to places where our feet cannot take us. There, nature opens its doors to us and reveals its secrets to us, in the greatest calm and in complete safety.
For your class, this will be the ideal place to discover the animal and plant species present in a wetland, the history of this natural space and the town of Saint-Omer which are intimately linked, but also, among other things, the human activity which takes advantage of this formerly impassable place.
Self-guided walk in the Maison du Marais park
Duration 1 hour 45 minutes
Our park is a green setting at the foot of the city, working to protect biodiversity and safeguard local heritage.
During your walk in our park, following the only path designed for easy walking and safe movement for your class, you will enjoy a green space, completely disconnected from a very urbanized space located at the other end. of the Marais House.
On your way, you will cross paths with an old land reclamation mill, the last representative of these mills made of wood and designed to manage the level of the Marais using the force of the wind.
You will certainly have the chance to meet many animal species; Insects, birds but also sheep, working every day towards more ecological and natural management of our green spaces.
On the way, don’t hesitate to open the door to our conservatory vegetable garden! A growing space with multiple vocations: Producing fruits and vegetables in a short circuit, maintaining in cultivation certain local and regional varieties which are today more discreet among producers but also raising awareness among all audiences, from a very young age , to the importance of healthy, local and sustainable production.
Workshops for all levels
Small, medium and large kindergarten section
CP, CE1 ET CE2
CM1, CM2 et 6ème
5ème, 4ème et 3ème
Earth
DiscoverCarry out your educational project...
Your contact
Your contact: combined offer
La Maison du Marais, in partnership with SPL TOURISME EN PAYS DE SAINT-OMER, welcomes you to the Audomarois territory and offers you a twin offer, in order to discover the territory along the water:
In addition to your visit to the Maison du Marais, choose to discover a major site in the area, unique in its kind, [The Fontinettes boat lift,](https:// elevatorabateaux.com/) in Arques, for a guided or independent tour led by the voice of Jacques, the last guardian of the elevator who tells you its story from its origin until its closure in 1967, but also practical activities designed in line with your school programs and the themes of inland navigation, human engineering and water.
