A group of Flin Flon students are hoping community work could bring them a serious reward.
The Grade 7 and 8 engaged learners class at École McIsaac School is in the running for a prestigious prize through Parks Canada’s My Parks Pass contest.
To enter the contest, the class registered online, then submitted five photos that showed stewardship of the community and the environment.
For the Engaged Learners class, that meant first building organic birdhouses and leaving food for small birds, many of which migrated south toward Flin Flon after forest fires last summer burned their natural habitat.
“We also noticed, talking about wildlife, a lot more birds – like ptarmigans and snow chickens – are around and in our communities, affected by the forest fires,” said teacher Jodi Pawlachuk.
After that, the class partnered with the Flin Flon Aboriginal Friendship Centre to help create plarn mats – mats crocheted with yarn made from plastic bags – for their homeless shelter project.
“We did some research with homelessness in Flin Flon. We read an article talking about the need, about how it’s increasing in our area,” said Pawlachuk.
“We asked the school to bring in some plastic grocery bags. We did some research about the dangers of plastic and how that’s been affecting our environment, so we thought, two in one, let’s help save the environment and put these to good use, helping some community members.”
The McIsaac contingent is the only group from Manitoba to enter the contest and will face off against four Saskatchewan-based schools.
One lucky school will receive an all-expenses-paid trip in June to a number of national parks in Ontario, which will include an ironworks workshop at the Rideau Canal, firing a cannon at Fort Wellington National Historic Site and staying at the Laurier House, the former residence of two former prime ministers.
The engaged learners class is small compared to some other groups who have entered the contest. Pawlachuk said the students have had to work harder to compensate.
“It’s a small group. Most classes entered in this have 20-30 students. We’re a small group, so we had to do a little extra work to pull our weight,” said Pawlachuk.
Other prizes, including a variety of gifts from Parks Canada and the Canadian Wildlife Federation, are up for grabs for honourable mentions.
Award or no award, Pawlachuk said the students have learned several lessons from the hands-on work.
“There’s a lot of teamwork, collaboration and community engagement, helping others in need. It’s getting involved in the community, helping people and learning new skills from one another,” she said.
