Vision

How might we use our knowledge of the land and environment and our obligation to it to explore sustainable technologies?
The purpose of the project is to get our students to connect to the land they inhabit and to appreciate it’s gifts and teachings, which we intend to explore through an Indigenous lens. Understanding the reasons we need to take care of the land will naturally lead students into exploring the use of sustainable technologies and how we can use our understanding and appreciation of the land to design, create, and support sustainable technologies. We are planning on engaging in learning of current sustainable technologies that are in use, through partnering with conservation authorities, who will engage students in programming that shows current uses and ideas for the future. We also hope to explore with students building actual models that run on sustainable technology. Our culminating task for students will be for them to design and/or create prototypes that use sustainable technology that reflects an appreciation for the land. We are excited to provide this authentic learning experience for students that is rooted in a real world issue that will affect their future.

Action

Due to Covid-19, our project was greatly affected and had to be modified. Before the school shutdown, we were able to explore the following with students:
1) Learning about the land on which we live and the land we go to school on
2) Learning about Indigenous relationships to the land and analyzing and reflecting on how we can use these teachings to take better care of our planet and the land we live on
3) Exploring the Giant Floor Map of Canada and beginning to understand the ways in which climate change is impacting Canada, it’s people, animals and natural resources
4) Reflecting on the question: What is our responsibility to the land?
5) Introduction to different types of sustainable technologies and how we can use these technologies to address some of the problems caused by climate change
6) Building robots that use solar and/or salt water to work. Considering the question: How might I use this technology to solve a real world problem?

Reflection & Celebration

We had such a grand vision for this project, and while we are proud of the work we completed, it is disappointing that we were not able to fully complete it the way we had intended. Due to the school shutdown, the initial group of students that we began the project with last winter/spring, were not able to complete it with us this fall, as some of them had graduated from our school.
This project was an amazing opportunity for our students. We were able to see how they engaged and were invested and excited in this topic. Because of the funds we were given, students were able to engage in hands-on activities (building robots) that they would otherwise have not been able to, and that opportunity is so valuable.

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