The B次元官网网址淥n the LandB次元官网网址� learning facility at Skeetchestn Community School west of Kamloops saw the grand opening of the Skeetchestn Stables on Oct. 17, a major addition to the school which will provide students with an immersive and "hands on" learning environment where it's OK to get dirty.
The Skeetchestn Stables is part of a program which connects youth to the land, and fosters in them an appreciation for agriculture, animal husbandry, and sustainability. By getting their hands dirty, students cultivate more than just the land: they cultivate knowledge, responsibility and respect for the environment.
The latest addition to the On the Land facility is more than just stables, but Bryce Ross B次元官网网址� principal of Skeetchestn Community School B次元官网网址� says he couldnB次元官网网址檛 resist the alliteration.
B次元官网网址淲e also showcased the new pit-house, smokehouse and tanning shack, as well as the school barn, which has animals like chickens, goats and pigs,B次元官网网址� he explains.
B次元官网网址淚tB次元官网网址檚 all part of a push for food sovereignty thatB次元官网网址檚 been going on for about six years. ThereB次元官网网址檚 been money and effort put forth for raised garden beds and a food forest near the school, and the Skeetchestn Stables has been in the works for the last two-and-a-half years. ItB次元官网网址檚 the next layer to food sovereignty, teaching students about the symbiotic relationship between gardening and farming.B次元官网网址�
Ross says the facility is an attempt to regain the connection people have lost with their food. B次元官网网址淣obody goes to the grocery store and picks up a bell pepper and thinks how much work went into this; they just toss it in the cart.B次元官网网址�
Students have been planting and harvesting potatoes, carrots, tomatoes, herbs and other items that are used in the school kitchen, and there is a community garden as well that the school is promoting. Students have also prepared baskets of food and delivered them to Elders, a tradition that Ross wants to keep up.
B次元官网网址淭he food forest is based on the swale system up the side of a hill, with many different fruit trees. The system makes sure each tier uses water efficiently, and the water cycles through and down from the top. It was planted about six years ago and is quite well-established.B次元官网网址�
Ross says that the animals wonB次元官网网址檛 be butchered. B次元官网网址淲eB次元官网网址檙e teaching empathy, and how to raise them properly and look after them.B次元官网网址� He adds that the surplus from what the students grow will benefit the animals, while what they can get from the livestock will benefit the garden and food forest.
B次元官网网址淲eB次元官网网址檒l get manure from the barn, and can use it in the garden after it sits long enough. We can use bunny manure right away, but how long does chicken manure have to sit before we can use it? Students are learning that aspect, and about feeding and watering the animals. TheyB次元官网网址檙e also lifting hay bales and doing heavy work, and the animals will be a therapeutic addition to school work. ItB次元官网网址檚 multi-faceted.B次元官网网址�
Skeetchestn Community School is a KB次元官网网址�12 facility, and Ross says students' experiences will vary depending on their age.
B次元官网网址淭he kids in Kindergarten through Grade 5 love the fact that they get out with the animals, so itB次元官网网址檚 more therapeutic, social, emotional. Kids in Grades 6 through 12 are more interested in helping, and getting their hands dirty.B次元官网网址�
The pit-house, smokehouse and tanning shack are also a part of language and culture learning.
B次元官网网址淥ur pit-house is a modern take on a traditional one, and we envision having 80 per cent of our language and culture classes occurring there, as part of an ongoing story of getting kids outside in an authentic manner. Everyone talks about B次元官网网址榦n the landB次元官网网址� learning, but what does that look like? WeB次元官网网址檙e trying to do it in an authentic manner.
B次元官网网址淭he smokehouse is intended to smoke meat or fish from hunters who donate to the school, or from the community during fishing season, and weB次元官网网址檙e teaching students to brine fish. The tanning shack is for when someone donates a hide, where students can learn to clean and stretch and prepare it.B次元官网网址�
Ross adds they also have a root cellar for storage, and a food processing hub (B次元官网网址淓ssentially an outside kitchen with a coverB次元官网网址�) where they hold events teaching people how to do pickling and canning.
B次元官网网址淎nd itB次元官网网址檚 always B次元官网网址榳hatB次元官网网址檚 nextB次元官网网址�? It would be really neat to get some bees, to expand and grow in that way and continue to grow community interest. We picture this as a living document where we can add to it.B次元官网网址�
Ross says he hopes more school districts, and the provincial and federal governments, fund more initiatives like what Skeetchestn is doing.
B次元官网网址淲e need funding for these projects to come to fruition, and people need to lobby for this. We need to employ people like agricultural coordinators, because teachers and principals canB次元官网网址檛 do this off the side of our desk. And we need to act fast and teach kids to look after themselves, because the next 25 years arenB次元官网网址檛 looking so good.B次元官网网址�
He adds itB次元官网网址檚 great to see kids forming an authentic engagement with the land.
B次元官网网址淜ids are really excited to get into the barn and work with animals and get their hands dirty. A bunch of kids raise their hand when I say I need someone to help muck out a stall. As educators weB次元官网网址檙e competing with technology, and we need to be more entertaining than that screen a lot of students are in front of for long portions of the day.B次元官网网址�
