Citizenship
Students from Greenwood and Regent Park: Learning Together
Close to 50 students from our school head out to Regent Park/Duke of York P.S. every Wednesday morning prior to the start of school as part of our community partners program. We have been involved with the staff and students of Regent since Greenwood’s inception, but this year’s program has taken on a new look.
I had the opportunity to see the program first-hand this morning and was really impressed with the interaction of all the students. Our students board the bus at 7:30, accompanied by two Greenwood staff members and two parent volunteers. Once they arrive at Regent, they break into four groups. One group plays low-organization games in the gym–today was mostly some 5-on-5 basketball. A second group works in the computer lab, while a third group leads the Regent students on some art activities. The final group had our students giving guitar lessons to the Regent students. The array of choices seems to appeal to students from both schools.
At 8:45, classes begin at Regent. Our students then fan out to various classrooms and for the next half hour serve as reading buddies. The students take turns reading pages from a variety of texts and then complete a short worksheet summarizing what they have read.
The mood on the bus ride back to Greenwood was really positive. It was evident to all that our students appreciate the opportunity to lead and to meet children from other parts of the city.
Grade 7/8 Community Service Fair
The year end here at Greenwood brings with it a number of celebratory events. Our Grade 7 and 8 students presented their community service projects this morning, which explained what they had learned through their year-long, weekly participation at one of our six community service locations. It was inspiring to see the high level of dedication that students directed towards this project. They had created scrapbooks, videos, and slide presentations that they shared with a range of visitors. One group, the students who partnered with the Claremont Retirement Residence, created a bound book, which provided a nice permanent document of the experience. We also had some of the seniors from Claremont and students from Regent Park attend the event. Both of these groups commented on how much they look forward to working with our students.
In my remarks to the students, I encouraged them to remain active in service learning throughout their time at Greenwood and beyond. As one of our senior students, Maddie Cappe, reminded them, Greenwood students are a privileged group. One of the values that we try to emphasize here at Greenwood, is that privilege brings responsibility. Specifically, our students need to use the socioeconomic advantage they have inherited to make a positive contribution to the world they inhabit. Based on what I witnessed this morning, I would say our students our indeed doing just that.
Community Partners at Dundas P.S.
Because we have had two late nights here at school this week (due to parent-teacher conferences), we dispensed with our regular Thursday morning staff meeting. This gave the teachers a chance to sleep in and me an opportunity to board the bus and head to Dundas P.S. For the past five years, Dundas has been one of our community partners. Seeing 65 Greenwood high school students working with students at Dundas, who range from ages 4 through 10 is a wonderful thing to witness. Greenwood students either read to or are read to by a Dundas student–this process is age-dependent. We do this to support their literacy program. Working with students from Greenwood also allows Dundas students to develop social and communication skills. Our students also benefit as well, particularly in the area of empathy and communication. It truly is a mutual exchange–we learn from them and they learn from us. I was also impressed by the ease with which the two groups interacted. Seeing as it was the first snowfall of the year, one group of Greenwood students went outside and played in the snow with the JK students. Many of these Dundas students are new to Canada, so being out in the snow was a real treat. As I wandered from room to room observing the student interaction, it struck me that some of senior students had have been engaged in some form of service learning for five and six years. For this group, volunteering has become a matter of habit. This bodes well for the city’s future.