Winchester School
Contact Info:
15 Prospect Street
Toronto ON M4X 1C7
416-393-1270
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This little garden in the big city has grown against the odds. Organized by the Toronto District School Board, the Winchester School Garden has become an important feature in the Toronto's Jamestown/Cabbagetown neighbourhood.
The garden was designed to teach kids about environmental sustainability through participation. The garden teaches waste minimization, energy conservation, school ground greening, and ecological literacy.
The garden covers only 500 square feet but produces over 300 lbs of food! Produce from the garden used in the Hot Lunch program at the school, which includes a fresh Salad Bar two days per week.
Students are in charge of the garden and are responsible for all garden activities, including planting, weeding, watering and harvesting. Some of these tasks are done during class time while other jobs are taken care of by the Garden Club at the school.
Beyond student's role in taking care of the garden, teens at Winchester are encouraged to take initiative in the larger EcoSchools project. The school board realizes that for real environmental change to occur that kids and teens must be in charge of creating programs and initiatives.
The EcoSchools Program fosters leadership, team building, and creating environmental campaigns. Kids take part in exercises which teach trust, consensus building, and good communication. The workshop on Taking Action and Designing Campaigns teaches students to communicate with teachers and other staff at their school about what changes they would like to see in their school.
Photo Credit: http://kidsgrowing.ca/
Kids Sow, Hoe and Grow their Way to Healthy Food!
Want to know more? Check out the ecoschools link on the following website: