Hands on Eco-learning, school-wide collaboration and creative expression all wrapped into one fun project!

Professor Buddle Presents to Students at Mt. Pleasant Elementary

This past month, the children of Mount Pleasant Elementary School participated in a unique and interactive learning project lead by Christopher Buddle, a professor at McGill University, who works in the field of Biodiversity Science and is a parent of three children at the school.

This “Backyard Biodiversity” project was part of the school’s Earth Day celebrations and its Green Team program, which promotes environmental literacy and leadership.

According to Buddle, “The project’s aim was to help define the concept in an accessible manner, and illustrate why biodiversity is important to all of us, and to the well-being of the planet”.

The project started with a presentation from Buddle, which included a beautiful and gripping photographic journey about biodiversity, from the rainforests of Panama to the high Arctic tundra. The students marveled as they watched the diversity of life presented on the screen.

Buddle explained to the kids why biodiversity is so important. “It gives us food. It helps make our environment healthy with clean water to drink, clean air to breath and soil to grow our food. And it’s amazing!”

Buddle’s infectious excitement about the topic engaged the children as he outlined the school-wide biodiversity challenge. He asked each student to produce a natural history card about a species of interest from their local environment.

He explained,“There are many different options, from birds you see in the schoolyard, to trees, to butterflies passing through, to grass on the playground.”

Species Index Card

He encouraged different grades to adopt individual approaches, and challenged the children to come up with as many different species as there are kids in the school. “There are more species just around the school property than there are children in this gym,” he explained.

The Green Team purchased field guides for the school library to help the children identify and learn about the variety of wildlife close to home. The school then posted all the species index cards on a large poster created by the Green Team members.

According to Jennifer Weir, who is the lead teacher on the project,“The biodiversity project has gone really well. The students are enthusiastic and engaged. My Grade Four class was thrilled to have seen two adult garder snakes. My Grade Three class classified four different types of frogs and were excited to show me the huge bull frog. This hands on approach is a great way for them to learn about and appreciate nature.”

Biodiversity Poster

This project is a beautiful example of the benefits of parents and teachers working together in the eduction of their children. By tapping into the resources of the parents, such as Professor Buddle and the parent volunteers of the Green Team, Mount Pleasant has been able to bring a rich and diverse learning environment to their children.

Lianne Bridges is the co-founder of the  Awakening Festival in Hudson, which focuses on holistic human and planetary health, with a special emphasis on ways to make positive impacts in local communities.