As a first for our school, six senior senior students interested in pursuing trades after high school attended the Level Up! Trades Fair. The Mississauga International Centre had 144 different trade vendors spread across Hall 2, ready and eager to talk about their trades. Students had a two hour slot to walk around and explore a multitude of trades and vendors. Most of the vendors had fun, hands-on opportunities for students to engage with. From learning how to lay bricks and patch drywall to welding pipes, braiding hair and applying make-up, there was no shortage of tactile experiences for students to explore. There was even a mini helicopter and full sized TTC buses to explore. Whichever trade a student is interested in, the Trades Fair had something for everyone. This is a trip worth returning to next year with even more students.
Building a Roman style Aqueduct
In Middle School, the students collaborated to build a wetland and replica Roman style aqueduct. One student explained, “With hard work and dedication, we made something remarkable.” The students planned, constructed and adjusted the designs in order to model their cross-curricular learning between science and social studies. Together, we have been investigating the features of wetlands including the biodiversity that maintains the cycles within these diverse habitats. The Toronto Wildlife Centre most recently visited the Middle School, delivering the program Kids Go Wild and providing insight on how to protect wildlife in urban spaces including decorating windows and keeping cats indoors.
The students continue to investigate natural wild spaces in the city for inspiration including Ramsden Park. One wetland, explains a student, is more realistic with dirt, seeds, rocks and the sponges represent how the wetland acts as the absorbent for pollutants from the atmosphere. The other wetland is a model of a wetland with plasticine and plastic to represent human impacts on the environment.
For the aqueduct, the students used cardboard, hot glue, and wax paper to construct a functioning system that channels water. A student described their tremendous efforts and how they had “fun” participating in the build. The opportunity encouraged them to maintain their motivation and inspired their individual creativity.
Exploring Ecosystems through Experiential Learning
It is my privilege to be teaching a grade 12 geography class called Living in a Sustainable World (CGR4E/M) this semester, and we have had a busy month! Here is a recap of what and how we have been learning about Species and Spaces, and exploring the challenges and wonders of ecosystems, conservation, and the impact humans have on the environment.
We started by building water filters to explore the UN’s Sustainable Development Goal 6: Clean Water and Sanitation. Students learned about an ancient water purification system from the Nile Region called a Kilga, built gravity based water filtration systems, and connected their learning to the Elevated Wetlands Sculptures by Noah Harding that contribute to the restoration of the Don River ecosystem. By testing their designs, they gained a firsthand look at the challenges of accessing clean water and the innovative solutions needed to ensure water quality for all.
Next, students explored the biotic and abiotic factors that influence ecosystems by hatching brine shrimp. They monitored salinity, water clarity, hatching rates, and temperature, collecting valuable data to understand how environmental conditions affect living organisms. We then moved on to creating self-sustaining terrariums. Students built mini ecosystems with drainage layers, moss, plants, and small invertebrates like pill bugs and springtails. These terrariums provided a tangible way to observe the balance and interconnectedness required to maintain healthy environments.
A highlight of the unit has been a visit from a Scientist at Large, from the Ministry of the Environment and Climate Change Canada. Wildlife biologist Jennifer Thompson visited us in person and spoke about species at risk and the importance of indicator and umbrella species in monitoring ecosystem health.
To bring all these concepts together, our students created a collaborative map highlighting endangered species and ecosystem conservation efforts, emphasizing Indigenous stewardship. This project not only taught students about biodiversity and conservation but also highlighted the people who are on the frontlines of ecosystem defense and conservation globally: Indigenous people.
There were hiccups and challenges along the way (RIP our first brine shrimp hatchlings) but through these activities we collectively developed critical thinking and problem-solving skills while learning to become responsible stewards of our planet.
Student Newscast – Politics in Action
Last semester, the students of the Grade 11 Politics in Action class at YMCA Academy took on a new role as journalists and news anchors. They headed a project in which they produce an audio Newscast every two weeks in an effort to inform and entertain their fellow students. Stories ranged from upcoming school events, to the weather, to interviews with members of the community.
From brainstorming the content, conducting research, drafting the scripts, recording the segments, and editing the audio files, the grade 11 Politics in Action class put in the work to bring upcoming events, sports, weather, and news to their peers.
One of the installments of Student Newscast included an interview with the then interim Head of School, Steve Saunders. Student Newsroom connected classes to the school, and the school to the world of political change around them.
The last installment of Student Newsroom included a feature piece on National Day for Truth and Reconciliation, and the school’s Orange Shirt Day assembly.
Viking Shield Games
The Grade 12 Adventures in World History class engaged in some hands-on-experiential learning in the park near YMCA Academy. Students have been learning about the adventures of Norwegian, and Danish societies of the Viking Age roughly one thousand years ago. Students researched the lives of everyday Norwegians during the 10th Century, learning that their daily experiences were focused largely on farming, trading, and textile production. Students examined primary evidence to learn that Norse technological developments in ironworking, carpentry, and shipbuilding at the gradual warming of the climate made exploration of the North and Baltic Seas possible.
Students read selections from Egil’s Saga to gain some insight into how later Norwegians perceived their own heroic figures of the Viking Age. They learned about shield heraldry, and Norse symbology in order to design their own Viking Round Shields. Then it was time to test drive the strategies of Vikings on a raid. Students hoisted round shields to test the viability of individual combat as compared to formation tactics, and the benefits of speers over swords. Students employed their round shields, foam swords, and foam-tipped spears to play a variety of games including adaptations of tag, mock duels, and pushing matches that resembled a reverse tug of war. They quickly determined that coordinated formations and polearms provided much better chances of survival against warriors fighting as individuals.
The activities gave students a view into one aspect of the world of the Viking Age; raiding. But in class the students learned that the vicious stereotype of terrifying pillagers only highlights one aspect of Norse culture. Far more often the medieval people of Scandinavia were traders, poets, farmers, and craftspeople. The daily needs of Norse society placed much more focus on food production than on swinging axes at Saxon monks. The class still had a blast testing their combat skills during a day of Viking Shield Games.
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