Orchard Garden, UBC, University Endowment Lands, BC, Canada
“T Being an overseas settler, I think the Community Field Experience (CFE) at UBC Orchard Garden was the perfect place for me to start my land-based education journey. Throughout the CFE, I explored that there are endless opportunities to learn and teach in the Orchard Garden, or for that matter, any other gardens. Together, we learned how to weed, prepare garden beds, and plant. We learned how to measure garden beds using different body parts; how to code with nature items; make music with our senses; explore geometry through nature items and group activities; and we learned about medical herbs from the garden. As a future teacher, I can see many possibilities and advantages of land-based teaching from this wealth of experience. Also, I found that the outdoor is an excellent place for SEL learning and medication. As said by Lilian Wataka earlier, “the land welcomes everyone.” The land is accessible to people of any diversity, and the land does not judge us. If we take care of the land, the land will take care of us. (Reciprocity).
Referring to our inquiry question of “How Can We Enhance Community in Connection With the Land?”, we can replicate some of the learning activities and teaching experiences in the Orchard Garden to our venue.
“K During my practicum, I chose to have a strong focus on community and land-based learning. One unit I designed and implemented was a unit about birds, during which we were able to go visit a migratory bird banding station as a class. I made a point of inviting any parent chaperones who wished to join us, and connected us with ornithologists (staff and volunteers) who work at the bird banding station. To me, taking students out on the land to engage in real-world activities as a class and with important adults in their life, is a great way to build a sense of pride, community as well as love and respect for place – through shared experience, and the sharing of knowledge. It was very enjoyable to watch the students connect with their adults through a shared sense of wonder and excitement, and as a class, to bond over the fun of this unique opportunity.
Involving parents in the classroom, and perhaps especially out on the land, helps situate and ground the students as part of a unit that extends beyond the classroom, into families, communities and this beautiful land where we live.
“O During my practicum I taught a cross curricular unit about owls which inspired great interest and critical thinking in the students of my class. The owl unit came with an owl puppet which helped to enhance the classroom community as students all interacted and cared about the puppet named Mr.Hootsworth. This classroom community was able to connect further to the land through their own inquiry led action. In the unit I made sure to highlight the human effects on the environment which are effecting owls and other animals. The students who had become incredibly invested in the owls came up with the idea of taking action to help the owls. With teacher assistance they took a leadership role and came up with the idea to engage in a community clean up of a local park. This action was beneficial for the students as they came up with their own action to assist the community and restore the land from the negative impact of human pollution. This action also inspired a deep sense of pride in the students as they came up with and executed a plan to help the land and community.
“N During my practicum at General Gordon Elementary I taught an inquiry based unit on local plants and animals. The first few lessons in my unit consisted of my students exploring what they already know, and what they would like to know about different plants and animals that preside in our local environment. I formed the rest of my lessons taking their interests and questions into account. I also worked hard to teach the unit from an Indigenous perspective, focusing on Coast Salish knowledge, uses, and the cultural importance of the various plants and animals in the area. I concluded this unit by having a day where my students shared everything they had learned while we hiked around Pacific Spirit Park. Identifying the different plants we had learned about, and discussing their importance to Coast Salish people while in our beautiful local forest was an incredibly rewarding and humbling experience for both me and my students.
“J During our Emily Carr artist student, we learned about the artist and the locality of her art to our surroundings. When we began to explore sketching trees, I took the students to a nearby forest where we took our time sketching trees from different points of view. During this activity, we stayed quite quiet, listening to the nature all around us and after sketching we took some time to have conversations about the elements of the land that we were able to notice during our quiet drawing time. Students noticed small bugs on the trees they drew, the sounds of birds that sat perched on the branches, and the fresh smell of the plants growing all around us. The students had the opportunity to recognize the sense of community that exists within the land without us and how we can become positive members of this community so long as we are respectful of one another. We began to explore the relationship between us and the land and how that creates a bonded sense of community
“M My CFE this summer was with Pacific Canada Heritage Centre – Museum of Migration (PCHC-MoM) Society. Traveling to and from their offices in historic Chinatown, watching the comings and goings of all the people who have made this place their home was eye-opening. Never before had I spent so much time at such a crucial juncture of Asian-Canadian heritage. Never before had I learnt in such detail the sacrifices and resilience of a people, in the face of staunch racism and discrimination. Visiting historical locations such as the Shanghai and Canton alleys, Hon Sing building, various heritage houses, shops and offices housed within what seem like ancient buildings steeped in Asian-Canadian history, brought on an appreciation for the important role this land has played in advancing Asian-Canadian identity (along with a disdain for commercialization and gentrification of historic Chinatown).
I sought out experiences that brought me closer to the community in Chinatown. As part of a team, I worked in a building that has been a fixture of the community for decades and hosts galleries, offices, dining and event spaces, recreation activities and community events, all in one! I visited local businesses that are prominently featured in Asian movies and television shows, ate at restaurants frequented by local residents and toured museums, galleries and gardens that feature Asian-Canadian heritage and stories. I sought out lunch meetings with people whose ancestors have helped make Chinatown as we know it today, and who continue to keep Chinatown going all these years – fighting discrimination and banding Asian and immigrant stories into a modern Asian-Canadian identity. When taken together, the sum of these experiences helped in connecting community with the land during my (regrettably) limited time in Chinatown.