Vision

This year, our students really wanted to focus on growing their own produce and learning gardening skills, to promote sustainability and to address food insecurity and affordability issues within our school community. As such, the theme of our project this year was “Local, sustainable food: Grow your own!” Our project included three components: 1) Indoor Food Gardening; 2) Cleaning Up the Outdoor Courtyard; and 3) Outdoor Food Gardening.

Action

With the help of a new indoor growing system, our students were able to plant seedlings in the colder months and nurture their growth into the spring. Students planted several varieties of vegetables and herbs, including, but not limited to: tomatoes, cucumbers, peppers, strawberries, lettuce, basil, thyme, chives and dill. In this phase of our project, students learned about heirloom varieties, ideal soil moisture and PH levels, planting seasons, and healthy eating habits.

Our Eco Team wanted to extend this learning to the whole school, and so they collaborated with our Library Staff to create a “Gardening and Sustainability Workshop” that classes could sign up for. 15 teachers signed their classes up to participate in the Gardening and Sustainability Workshop, which included 450 students from across several disciplines (e.g., Geography, Food and Nutrition, Science, Indigenous Studies, and Learning Strategies)! Students were encouraged to bring a recyclable container to repurpose into a pot for their plant. The workshop included a lesson that covered concepts such as the personal benefits of gardening and growing your own food (e.g., physical health, mental well-being, new skills; food security and affordability; and health and nutrition), as well as environmental benefits (e.g., minimizing packaging and waste; reducing transportation costs and emissions; providing habitats for pollinators and other wildlife; improving local air and water quality; and helping to mitigate climate change). It also taught students the basics of planting their own seeds, and provided them with the opportunity to select a seed or two of their choice, to go through the associated growing guide, and to actually get their hands dirty by planting and labelling their seeds! Students then took care of their seedlings in their classrooms for a period of time, before taking them home to share their learning (and the fruits of their labour) with their families.

Our Eco Team also collaborated with our Library Staff to create a public “Seed Library” that is open to all staff and students at any time. The Seed Library provides all materials, free of charge, for students to learn about growing their own seeds, and to take these resources home to their families. This includes pots, soil, gloves, seeds, and growing guides.

As the weather got warmer, we wanted to extend our learning and initiatives outdoors, and so Part 2 of our project involved cleaning up our outdoor courtyard space to be able to plant in it! Students participated in an Earth Week clean-up where they raked, collected yard waste, picked up litter, and pulled weeds to get our garden beds ready. We then transplanted some of our indoor seedlings that we grew, outdoors. In addition to the herbs and vegetables that we transplanted, we also planted other plants directly into the ground, including native flowers (e.g., Sunflowers, Sumac), and a tree (e.g., Eastern RedBud).

Reflection & Celebration

Our students are so proud of what they grew this year, and because we were so successful with our indoor seedlings, we actually have dozens of extras that we are going to sell at our upcoming outdoor plant sale! All proceeds from the sale will be used towards funding Eco initiatives next year.

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