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Braeside School

Braeside is a K-6 school located in southwest Calgary with a student population of over 225 students. For several years the school has been committed to developing curricula to help students become environmentally literate citizens. Braeside's motto is "Be the Best that you can be" - through the many innovative environmental learning initiatives at the school, students and teachers are really embracing their motto. Here is an overview of some of the learning projects underway.

Destination Conservation

For the past 5 school years, teachers and students have embraced the Destination Conservation (DC) program to help their students reduce their impact on the earth. In 2006-07, Braeside received an award from DC recognizing the school 'Innovative Campaign'. As part of this campaign, students researched recycling of 'tetrapaks' in Alberta, and discovered that although tetrapaks can be taken to recycling depots across the province, there is no recycling facility for these items that currently end up in landfills as waste.

As part of DC, students have conducted energy audits and water audits in their school. Working with the CBE's Education*Energy*Environment team, students are currently part of a pilot project focusing on waste reduction in schools. This has led students and teachers to organizing a garbage free lunch week in their school.

Sunship Earth - Living in Harmony with our Planet -

For the past six years, Grade 6 students from Braeside have taken part in a unique natural world based environmental learning experience called Sunship Earth. Braeside has been part of a select group of schools working on resources called 'The Earth Harmonies Project'that are designed to springboard off of the Sunship Earth program. This set of resources focuses on six ways that we can live in harmony with the earth that include student generated tasks

• to reduce our impact on the earth systems of life by reducing the amount that we consume and waste,
• to continue to learn about the earth and its life,

This project has been integrated into the entire year of cross curricular studies for grade 6 students, and has been an important stepping stone in the development of environmental literacy in Braeside students.

Outdoor Experiences -

Braeside students are provided with opportunities to participate in offsite excursions that help them to learn about and experience the natural world. From money received by the school in recognition of their energy conservation efforts a set of sketching stools was purchased that students can use when visiting a natural area to observe and draw nature. Students also participate in a school garden where they have planted and tend perennials.

Environment Fairs

Adele Arnold, a grade four teacher at the school, and a key player in environmental initiatives at Braeside, has organised an 'Environment Fair' to coincide with one of the parent-teacher-student conferences. Here students displayed projects that demonstrated their understandings of ecological processes, and how human behaviour affects those systems of life on our planet.

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Web Administrator: L. Diemert
Last Modified: September 24, 2011