The Outdoor Education Academy is the centre of attention at J.L. Crowe Secondary School since the second batch of ducklings arrived earlier this month. This program, for grades 11 and 12, provides life-changing experiences for students through a variety of activities such as wilderness cooking, trip planning, and mountain navigation. The students also help out...Read More

“I want a garden where my students can go out and learn about where their food comes from.” That was part of teacher Jessica Mann’s goal when she started her Carihi garden initiative. Mann teaches the cafeteria program at Carihi, as well as the baking class, and she runs the school’s Gardening Club. The garden...Read More

At Brant-Argyle School in Argyle, Man., the chicken club is not a tasty sandwich — it’s a program that teaches kids about raising chickens. The school has received a conditional use variance that allows children to keep chickens in an outdoor coop in the schoolyard in the hamlet of Argyle, 40 kilometres northwest of Winnipeg. Grade 5 student...Read More

It’s not unusual to see classes held outdoors at Alonsa Community School. Students regularly eat their lunch there too. That’s because what they’re learning — and what they’re eating — comes from the school’s yard. Two years ago, this tiny school of 130 students decided to dig up part of the schoolyard lawn and fill...Read More

Beyond connecting with local farms and farmers, Haida Gwaii schools are incorporating hunting, gathering, foraging, gardening and greenhouses into their schools’ food supply. This idea emerged naturally in a place where wild foods are so plentiful and the culture of feasting and sharing food is central to the island culture. This remote archipelago along the...Read More

Vancouver Coastal Health Authority dietitians and public health nurses are helping students get interested in growing and enjoying healthy food. They are members of the Farm to School Vancouver Area Regional Hub (F2SVA) that oversee Farm to School activities in the Vancouver area. A Vancity credit union grant provided the funds to hire a local...Read More

Above: Eight L-shape raised beds provide lots of growing opportunity for the students of Grosvenor Elementary School, Winnipeg. Photo: Mark Klassen It’s great to see how many people in Winnipeg want to engage youth and community in the act of growing food. We are fortunate to be able to help some of those folks in their...Read More

For the volunteers who came out April 12 to prepare the garden beds at David Thompson secondary school, it was about supporting environmental causes in any way they could. Volunteer Barbara Bradbury said there’s a huge need for individuals to help out. “The Vancouver Park Board doesn’t have enough money,” she said. “They can’t hire...Read More

Last week, while spring flurries flew around us, we built a new school food garden. Dundas Public School and First Nations School of Toronto now have a shared school garden! The process has been in the works for over a year, but last week the physical garden build finally happened! I work at Dundas and...Read More

Food For Thought is a great example of how many of the food-related programs commonly found in Vancouver’s schools- from gardening, to cooking, to healthy eating- can be combined to give students a garden-to-plate look at an essential topic.   Published on Jan 9, 2013 Vancouver School BoardRead More