6th-Graders to Give It College Try for a Day : Learning: A trip to UC Santa Barbara is one of several ways Conejo Valley Unified School District exposes students to higher education.

Sixth-graders in Thousand Oaks are packing their bags and soon will be heading off to college--for a day.

In an effort to get students thinking about higher education, the Conejo Valley Unified School District is taking every sixth-grade class on a tour of UC Santa Barbara during the spring semester.

“This will give them the understanding that the choices they make right now provide a foundation for future learning,” said Jean Beaman, a sixth-grade teacher at Walnut School who organized the trip. “The kids can look around and say, ‘Hey, this is a pretty neat place. What do I have to do to get there?’ ”

The trip to UCSB is among a handful of district programs designed to plant a seed of higher learning in youngsters even before they reach high school.

It was inspired by teachers at Madrona Elementary School who have been taking their classes to UCLA for several years. Nancy Joly-Cause, who team teaches with Michael Kay, said the trips to UCLA started as a visit to a pre-Columbian art exhibit. The children were so thrilled being on campus that teachers decided to bring them back year after year.

“It opens their eyes to how big the world is,” Joly-Cause said, “that there is something beyond Thousand Oaks.”

Last year, her class ran into the UCLA men’s basketball team, which eventually went on to win the NCAA title. The team was walking through campus and stopped to give the class autographs.

“It’s a social-learning theory,” Joly-Cause said. “It’s exposure. The students can see a college student and say, ‘I can be like that.’ ”

Early college exposure is also the theory behind two other district programs.

The district began its Advancement Via Individual Determination program last year to encourage more low-income and minority students to pursue a college education.

The program brings seventh- and eighth-graders together after school for tutoring and sessions on improving study skills with high school and college students. The group also tours college campuses and teaches students how to fill out college and financial aid applications.

District officials say that contact with older students can fuel a child’s desire to attend college.

Sequoia Intermediate School started a program in September where sixth-, seventh- and eighth-grade students meet after school with tutors from Cal Lutheran University. The program, called Activities for Teens; Education and Recreation, provides homework assistance and activities for children after school.

Josh Erquiaga, 14, an eighth-grader at Sequoia, said the program teaches him about college life, as does Cal Lutheran junior Matt Creech, a history major who hopes to become a teacher.

“We’ve talked about what classes he takes and what homework you get,” Josh said. “He’s always studying for tests.”

Creech, who is a member of the track team and a volunteer for the program, said just being around the younger students makes them think about college.

“Hopefully, I can give them a good role model for a college-type person,” Creech said. “I think it’s a positive outlook for kids. Instead of sitting around doing nothing, they’re here working on their schoolwork.”