Grasmere School Principal Trish Muir and staff are excited to introduce students to a new Learning with the Land component this school year. 

Land-based Learning involves meeting curricular outcomes in outdoor settings, in ways that enhance physical and mental well-being, connect students to nature, provide opportunity for students to engage with their broader community, and honour Indigenous values, including the value that the land is deeply connected to spiritual, physical, mental, and social wellness.

Principal Muir was attracted to the holistic aspect of land-based learning and is looking forward to seeing how students respond as the year unfolds. Each month, the entire school community will spend a portion of an afternoon, outside, learning from the land. 

On September 27, students and staff acknowledged the National Day for Truth and Reconciliation and had their first outdoor learning session. Students moved among four stations: 

• Physical - students played a game of "Chasing Coyotes", learning about the way Indigenous people used to source their food.
• Art - students painted at this station and talked about the cultural importance of beading in Indigenous communities.
• Building - students worked in teams to build mock Mêtis sledges, learning more about the way Indigenous people lived in early times and how they moved their food, supplies, etc.
• Critical thinking and Literacy - students collaborated on a Scavenger Hunt, finding elements from nature and learning the Michif or traditional Métis name of the items.

An amazing afternoon of learning, acknowledgement of First Nation and Métis cultures, and awareness of the wonders in the environment all around us! Students were thoroughly engaged in their learning and are looking forward to next month!

Learning with the Land and Grasmere School