Snacks from the Garden

Snacks from the Garden

Richmond Regional High School CLC

Danielle Hamel

Richmond Regional High School has a beautiful community garden, which Math and Science teacher Danielle Hamel decided to incorporate into her lessons.

Secondary-one science students started seedlings in March and transplanted them in the garden outside before the end of the school year.  When the students came back after the summer, they harvested what they had planted.

 

Throughout the summer, Ms. Hamel, a local resident of the community collected the most abundant fruit and vegetables which included zucchini, black berries, strawberries, tomatoes and garlic and placed them in her freezer at home.

When October came, she was teaching proportions in her secondary-two math class and had the students double or triple recipes for smoothies, muffins and dips. The class then spent a period cooking and baking.  Surprisingly, for some students, it was their first experience and some found it quite a challenge, but most students enjoyed it.

Through an annual survey of students, it was discovered that the healthy eating habits of teenagers could be improved.  The genuine service the students provided was the promotion of healthy, locally grown food. 

Students were asked to make pamphlets that included the recipe, nutritional facts and fun facts about the fruits and vegetables. The class then shared the snacks with the students from the high school, the elementary school, the nursery school, the day care and two local senior homes. The class wanted to promote locally grown, healthy snacks as well as reaching out to our community, showing positive things that the teens are doing at the high school.

To read more about the project, click here.

Lachute Healthy Heritage Project

Lachute CLC

Students of Laurentian Elementary participated in a character-building workshop for at-risk students to feel more connected to their family and school.

This initiative was executed through an “Intergenerational Gardening Project” which teamed up an at-risk student with their grandparents to help teach the students how to grow flowering plants, which requires technical and timely support to harvest and finally sell their flowers as a part of a school fundraiser.

 

The overall aim was to have the student’s work at something they could see through to the end, while being invested throughout in order to help them develop the lifelong skills necessary for success while creating a positive connection between family and school.

The workshop went off brilliantly and students found themselves invested throughout, learning that patience and dedication are virtues worth cultivating. The initiative was a great success that the children and partners involved can both be proud of.

The project was successful through the irreplaceable help of partners Benoit Mallet a Teacher at L.E.S., Erin Traynor L.E.S.’sSpecial Education Technician, and Rola Helo at 4Korners Family Resource Centre.  

Growing up Green at Parkdale

Parkdale CLC

This past year nearly 100 children of Parkdale Elementary had the opportunity to participate in a great new program called “Growing up Green at Parkdale”, which had several interesting components woven together.

The heart of the project is the vegetable garden, and a focus on the mutual importance of both healthy eating habits AND a healthy community. We tried to make the garden a non-stressful environment. Through the initiative children got to work along side their friends as well as teachers, including ALL of Parkdale’s French teachers, which was a great experience considering the English dominant environment of Parkdale elementary. The project was a great success exposing our children and their families to healthy habits; which is an identified goal at Les Tables de Concertations (Youth Planning Table) in our region.

During the project children involved themselves by not only choosing which vegetables the school would plant but also planting with their grandparents helping aid in the strengthening of family and community while learning the importance of healthy living with a particular focus on both French and English.

The booming success of this project was a direct result of our collaborative efforts through our various partners that allowed us to apply for more grants and allow this idea to develop. Of those who made the entireendeavor possible as well as successful EMSB, CHSSN, Quebec en Forme, Vert-Cité (Éco-Quartier of St-Laurent) and AREQ du Ruisseau Raimbault  are amongst the most notable.

Also, the highly knowledgeable horticulturalist hired by the Éco-Quartier  and graphic designer Don Royer (for helping with the creation of the Calendar) were invaluable aids throughout the entire project. No partner is greater than another and thanks to the efforts and contribution of everyone involved the children benefit most of all taking with them not only some soiled hands but also the seeds of success.

 Parkdale created two 2013-2014 School Calendars... Click Here to view!

St Willibrord School-Community Garden

For the third year in a row, teachers at St Willibrord School and CLC have been developing a school-community garden that allows for hands on learning opportunities about plants in French and Science.  In addition, students have the opportunity to grow food that is shared with families in the community. The work of students and teachers promotes healthy eating and awareness of growing vegetables and eating healthy snacks straight from a garden.

In an innovative partnership, the responsibility for the garden is given to a local camp during the summer and returned to the school in September.  This past year featured a partnership with McGill students in urban horticulture who researched the garden, analyzing the current situation and making suggestions for future developments.

Click here to learn more about St. Willibrord’s School-Community Garden.

School and Community Garden

For the third year in a row, teachers at St Willibrord School and CLC have been developing a school-community garden that allows for hands on learning opportunities about plants in French and Science.  In addition, students have the opportunity to grow food that is shared with families in the community. The work of students and teachers promotes healthy eating and awareness of growing vegetables and eating healthy snacks straight from a garden.

In an innovative partnership, the responsibility for the garden is given to a local camp during the summer and returned to the school in September.  This past year featured a partnership with McGill students in urban horticulture who researched the garden, analyzing the current situation and making suggestions for future developments. Click here to view the McGill report.

Click here to learn more about St. Willibrord’s School-Community Garden

Gardening Containers

Gardening Containers

Harrington Harbour CLC
Joyce Foreman

Harrington Harbour is a small island off the coast of the Lower North Shore of Quebec.  The growing season is very short and there is not a lot of green space for gardening since the topography is Canadian Shield, featuring a lot of rock. Students decided to address the lack of plantation by building gardening containers and placing them around the community. Two main benefits include beautifying the village and engaging the community members in a collaborative project. The engagement was of utmost importance during the summer when the school is closed and the containers would need to be watered. Future goals would include growing vegetables to help support healthy food choices.

The project was linked to the curriculum in science through the study of plant growth and in technology was incorporated through the building of the planters.

According to teacher Joyce Foreman, This project met a community need because there is a strong interest in gardening within the community. As the climate changes, gardening is becoming a more and more viable activity. The beautification of the community can only help the tourism industry. This project also allows for the interaction between the generations, for example when the 50 + Club helped the youth build four planters. The United Church helped bring two groups together to build the planters and various businesses around the small island agreed to have a planter placed at their establishment with the promise that they would help maintain it.

To learn more about the project, click here.