Written by Ms. Laura Miedema (Grade 9 Geography Teacher)
“The Earth is the Lord’s, and everything in it, the world, and all who live in it”.
– Psalm 24:1
Throughout the first month of school, Mrs. Miedema’s grade 9 geography class has been working with the concepts of stewardship, sustainability, and ecological footprints. In late September, students were given the unique opportunity to take their learning outside of the four walls of the classroom and to partner with two different community organizations to put these concepts into practice.
On Tuesday, September 25, the class went to Growing Chefs in downtown London to learn about urban agriculture and the work that is done within this organization. Students were engaged in learning about the importance of sustainable living when it comes to growing local food sources in urban areas, the benefits and drawbacks of eating local versus global diets, growing their own food, and were even given the opportunity to create their own locally sourced meal which they shared together as a class. Many noted how much fun they had and what a unique and exciting opportunity it was for them to make a meal alongside professional chefs using locally sourced food, but also to eat the fruits of their labour! It was a great day of learning and community building! Read a student’s reflection of the experience.
The very next day, students were also given the opportunity to put into practice the Christian call of being stewards of God’s creation. The class spent the better part of the afternoon on Wednesday, September 26, partnering with the Upper Thames River Conservation Authority and the Home Hardware on Dundas Street to plant just over 100 different coniferous and deciduous trees at Bellwood Park East. The class was given a short lesson on the importance of planting trees to make sustainable communities and how to properly plant a tree. After this, they were able to engage in the planting experience to benefit the local community. One grade nine student noted this about the experience, “The new trees will benefit the community, and planting them was also a great team-building activity to help students get to know each other. I think it’s great that our school participates in activities like this! Planting trees benefits both the community and the students who did the work”. It was another great day of putting into practice what we have been learning in class.
