There are many schools in Calgary with successful, sustainable naturalization projects. The following profiles shed light on their strategies and offer ideas for your project:
Dr.
E.W. Coffin Elementary
School statistics
Calgary Public School Board
Kindergarten to Grade 6
Located in community of Brentwood
182 students
Project details:
- 1995 - Sun Circle designed including a raised brick planter for each classroom with a custom crafted sundial in its centre
- 2004 - Prairie Amphitheatre added
- 2005 - Centennial Natureground designed in collaboration with Olds College landscape design students
Stewardship story:
Dr. E.W. Coffin Elementary has an environmental focus that infuses curriculum, influences the activities of the school and how it interacts with the wider community. Their focus ensures their landscape is always a part of the school plan.
They were fortunate to have an incredibly passionate, enthusiastic parent group, led by one individual who has been a parent at the school for many years and conveniently lives next door. Combined, these elements help to create a continuity that allowed a seamless transition to a new principal. Dr. Coffin was the winner of the Emerald Award for Education in 2005 (click here for the details). Some of their tips for other schools are found in the document ‘Success Strategies at Dr. Coffin’ presented at a city-wide ThinkTank in 2005.
Activity examples:
- Art projects often relate to the naturalized area, including posters that profile native Alberta trees and an artist-in-residence program where students drew weeds in the newly planted areas to help with identification
- Plant rescues were carried out by the students to populate the Natureground
Wildwood Elementary
School statistics
Calgary Public School Board
Kindergarten to Grade 6
Located in community of Wildwood
517 students
Project details:
- The Wild Woods was one of the first Calgary Zoo pilot projects for Grounds for Change
- 1996 to 1998 creation of an outdoor learning area representative of the boreal and montane natural regions of Alberta
- 1998 to 1999 planning and development of the Aspen Parkland region, and addition of a vegetable garden
- 2000 to 2007 addition of the Prairie natural region
- 2008 boulder amphitheatre
Stewardship story:
The Wild Woods at Wildwood Elementary has been and continues to be an important area for the students and the community. A Spring Clean-Up is scheduled every year for Wildwood families to familiarize, maintain and take ownership of the area.
The project is used as an outdoor classroom for a variety of subjects and projects. Every spring, the grade one classes plant the vegetable garden. The harvest takes place the following fall when the students are in grade two, and the vegetables are used to make stone soup. Over three years, grade fours developed "The Wildwoods Guide" for visitors to the natural area. A resident artist, Laura Yearwood, taught and inspired students to paint the plants they researched in medium watercolours. These works art can be seen along the hallways of the school.
Wildwood Elementary has been a participant of the GroundWorks program offered by the Calgary Zoo's Grounds for Change Program. GroundWorks is a year round training and support program designed to encourage teachers from every grade level to make the best use of a schoolyard naturalization project using hands-on curriculum focused activities. In all seasons, students have been engaged in a wide range of curricular activities from math to social studies in the Wild Woods.
