Eelgrass Mural & Muralists School Program
In 2009 the grade 4-7 class participated in a sand lance activity in the classroom. After a slide presentation of images of sand lance the students panned for eggs (beads) and participated in a food web game. In 2010 All classes got out for field trips as noted below:
Tree Planting on Henderson
- Toby Snelgrove
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The 4-8 Classes Visit Henderson Park
The 4-8 class rode their bicycles and hiked Punches Alley to join Miriam and Leanna at Henderson Park. Miriam led a talk about Garry Oak ecosystems and colourfully described the types of flowers you would typically see in the spring. She also spoke about how the First Peoples cultivated camas as a food crop, maintaining the conditions for Garry Oak to thrive. The students participated in stewarding the park by planting trees in the restoration site. They will monitor the trees over time, charting their growth rate.
Clam In Digestion
- Sheila Boyer
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Preschoolers & K-3 Visit the Beach
Wide eyed and enthusiastic Mayne Island children ages 6 months to 5 years joined us on the beach for low tide exploration. The children learned about how the tide rises and falls and the creatures that become exposed. The highlight of the morning was the discovery of a sunflower star eating a clam by sticking it’s stomach between the shells and digesting the contents! (see picture).The grade K-3 class joined us the next day for another exciting low tide. We explored the beach and talked about adaptations of the exposed creatures, while we scavenged the beach to create a habitat aquarium, and we made time to play some games!
Thanks to all parents, teachers and friends who volunteered to assist the kids on these trips! See our Gallery for more pictures
Leanna Boyer has met with Jessica Willows and Jessica Reveley (school teachers) to plan an extensive outdoor learning program for 2011. Very exciting indeed!
The 4-8 Classes do Ecological Research on Gallagher Bay
In May 2010 the grade 4-8 class, along with volunteers, counted the intertidal eelgrass in Gallagher Bay. The afternoon's work involved counting the number of stems in plots (which were randomly located along a 60 m transect) and measuring and calculating the "Leaf Area Index." The purpose was to expose kids to the methodology of a real scientific project in marine ecology/biology. See photos below.
Preschool Program
In 2010, preschoolers joined us on the beach for an exploration into eelgrass and shoreline critters. A mini-report on one of these expeditions appears in the section above, together with a link to more pictures.
Home School Program
Home schoolers have been invited to participate in volunteer training and activities. This past winter a home schooling family joined us on the beach and assisted with a sand lance spawning survey in Gallagher and Bennett Bay.
Summer Program
Last summer youth were invited to paint a mural for our eelgrass display at the Saturday Market. Tina Farmilo, a local educator and community organizer, led the event.
This summer we will offer activities for children and youth at the Saturday Market.
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