SD64 Gulf Islands

Southern Gulf Islands Schools

pender

Pender Youth in CBC Music Challenge

Tagged With: ,

This email just in from CBC:

Hi Steve,

Congratulations! Your class videos are live to the world on our CBC Music Class YouTube channel:


Great versions!

Please feel free to share that link with the hashtag #CBCMusicClass.

Here’s what happens next:

On December 11, the top ten classes each of our six categories will be announced.

On December 18, our celebrity judges will announce the winners in each category.

Thanks for taking part in the 2018 Canadian Music Class Challenge!

All the best,

Grant Lawrence
CBC Music Class

—
Steve Dunsmuir
Ecological Educator
Pender Islands School
MA Environmental Education & Communication (RRU)

Submitted by: Steve Dunsmuir

YOU’RE INVITED: Gulf Islands School Gardens Learning Circle

Tagged With: , , ,

Thursday, November 29th, on Pender and Salt Spring Islands

(FREE; Transportation & brunch provided; Teachers, please consider using your consultation time or Pro-D funds.)

Register .

Join us for a school gardens gathering for all teachers, staff, plus parents and community volunteers involved in these projects in the Gulf Islands. It’s an opportunity for us to share and learn from one another.

Goals for the gathering are to:

  • share our school garden experiences with one another (and tour several)
  • learn about regional trends & examples from Farm to School BC
  • gather ideas for the Gulf Islands School Garden Activity Guide
  • make plans for March 1, 2019 workshop about Garden-based Learning, as part of the District-wide Pro-D Day

Participants can take the early morning ferry from their respective islands to arrive in Otter Bay, Pender Island by 7:30 am, where we’ll be shuttled over to the Slow Coast Cafe (Pender folks meet there at 7:30 am). We’ll introduce the day, ourselves, and the garden projects we’re each involved with, why enjoying cafe treats.

Then, we’ll take a tour of the Pender School Garden with Julie Johnston. Following the tour, we’ll work on the Gulf Islands School Garden Activity Guide in small groups.

At 12:10, we’ll ferry over to Salt Spring Island, arriving at 12:50 and eat lunch on the boat (bring your own or buy it on the ferry).

Then, we’ll shuttle over to Ganges for a presentation by Aaren Topley, Farm to School BC, followed by a tour of the Salt Spring Elementary School Gardens, and if time allows, the Phoenix School Garden.

A survey will be passed around to get input and suggestions for the March 1, 2019 District-wide garden-based learning workshop.

A ferry at 3:35 pm will take people back to Galiano, Mayne, and Pender, with another shuttle boat available on Pender for Saturna Island participants.

Looking forward to seeing you there! ~ the organizing team (Robin Jenkinson, Julie Johnston, Toby Carson, Katharine Byers, Shelly Johnson, and Jenny Redpath)

More info at schoolgarden.ca and facebook.com.

story and photo: Robin Jenkinson

Youth Leadership Project Connects Tsawout & Pender Youth

Tagged With: , ,

The Tsawout Learning House in Saanich and Pender Island School came together to nurture new connections and understandings between youth.

This reconciliation initiative involved twelve middle years students who came together weekly for eight full days of learning, connecting, understanding and creating friendships. This occurred through many shared experiences. Students learned about their shared and different histories, and heard first-hand experiences from a residential school survivor and Elder. Participants were active in drumming, canoeing, hiking, having fun together, singing, making music and many other hands-on activities.

They were guided by two teachers, an Elder, and a mentor. As part of the project, they also presented a final project with songs, skits and their documentary film to their school, community and families. This was very well received.

A traditional salmon pit cook was part of the project—feeding an entire school—with all the Youth Leadership Project students taking a leadership role. Read more about the pit cook here.

The story is currently being shown on Shaw Cable Channel 4, on the program Indigenous Voice (nine times per week until April 10), with a short interview with Elder Willard as an introduction. To find the program airtime check the TV Guide for Channel 4. You can also view this feature on YouTube.

Pender Pit Cook Day

Tagged With: ,

The October 12th traditional First Nations Pit Cook at the Pender School brought drama, special knowledge and a delicious salmon feast to the nearly 140 students. Tsawout Elder Earl Claxton Jr. and Knowledge Keeper John-Bradley Williams shared W̱SÁNEĆ culture and tradition while engaging the students in constructing the steam pit and preparing the salmon for cooking over hot coals.

The drama came when John-Bradley released the steam cloud and the pit was enthusi-astically closed in near record time with everyone following their assigned task. Earl Jr worked one on one with older students preparing the salmon for the fire pit while John-Bradley shared W̱SÁNEĆ stories with the younger ones. One class had prepared a special selection of indigenous teas including rosehip, huckleberry and spruce for eve-ryone and shared information on the health benefits of each tea.

Opening the steam pit was an exercise in anticipation and participation. The reward was a bounty of steamed potatoes, carrots, yams, onions, squash, artichokes and apples, some of which were harvested directly from the school garden. All the rest of the vege-tables and some of the salmon were generously donated by Pender Tru-Value and manager Mike Gray. The maple wood smoked salmon was done to perfection and many came back for seconds and some for thirds.

The Pit Cook was first recommended by Tsawout Chief Harvey Underwood when mem-bers of the Historical Society, the Pender Reconciliation Circle and St. Peter’s Parish met with the Tsawout leadership team in May to discuss ways to share cultural knowl-edge. A modest grant-in-aid from the CRD helped support the event.

School staff embraced the event and the students and some parents participated with enthusiasm. Many students enjoyed a unique cultural experience and some learned a new skill. Before the feasting began, John-Bradley Williams and Earl Claxton Jr. taught everyone how to say thank you, HÍSW̱ḴE in the SENĆOŦEN language with palms gen-tly raised upward. The whole event felt like a second thanksgiving with a First Nations cultural theme and a focus on Pender youth.

Story: Paul Michael Petrie
Photos: Anna Herlitz

PENDER STUDENTS AWARDED FIRST PRIZE BY SHAW OCEAN DISCOVERY CENTRE

Tagged With: , ,

Living on an Island Surrounded by the Sea

 

While looking at local biodiversity at Medicine Beach the spark of excitement and curiosity began. My students extensively explored the beach with buckets and field guides in hand. The sharing and identification was declared, debated, and proved. They collected and identified different species of seaweed, shellfish, eels, and other inhabitants. They noted the birds flying over head and eating in the intertidal zone. They had a lust and passion that was inspiring.

I took their excitement and extended it into a cross curricular unit that included writing, art, public speaking, and science. Then a competition was announced and we created this video to show all our hard work and excitement about the sea.

Some students were challenged by the artwork, some were terrified by the recording of their poetry, but they were all willing to move beyond their comfort zone to create a dynamic collection to present to Shaw Ocean Discovery Centre.

We entered the competition and waited. We waited for what felt like an eternity… And today we found out that we won first prize in the Shaw Ocean Discovery Centre’s beach day competition.

—Kaz Lundgren, Teacher, Grade 2/3, Pender

Here’s the video they produced:

*If you are having trouble seeing the video above, try this link