The Shambhala School honours the Earth!

The Shambhala School had a full week of celebrating the Earth during Earth Week. Here’s what happened:

The students had a lot of fun going for a walk together to school during one of the mornings. Mr. Traill, the school’s principal, even dressed up as a tree!

Then the students had a lovely ‘honouring the earth’ ceremony at Needham Park. During the ceremony, the whole school was divided into four groups to represent the four elements. A story was told and then students collected items from around the park to represent the four elements. At the end, everyone gathered in a huge circle.

The Grade 6/7s and the Grade 1s were paired together to make ‘Andy Goldsworthy’ style outdoor art projects, which turned out to be really fun! 

Ms. Susan Williams’ Grade 1 students inspired Engagement Officer Josée-Ann Cloutier with their ideas, enthusiasm, and concerns on how to help the planet during a visit. The same day Josée visited, the students had a litterless lunch and Josée demonstrated the effects of a wasteful lunch to them. They discussed how much time it takes for certain materials to decompose, and talked about how some materials don’t ever deteriorate! This led the students into another discussion on the importance of recycling and sorting waste appropriately. The children chose a timeframe and guessed which items they thought best associated with the time it takes to decompose. They also sang a few songs together about saving energy and water.

The children ended each day by singing songs that honour and thank the Earth. A real example of honouring the Earth everyday! 

This is the verse to one of the songs:

The Earth is firm beneath my feet
The Sun shines bright above
And here I stand so straight and tall
All things to know and love

Way to go Shambhala School!