Silver Birches Public School is celebrating a tree planting partnership with Clean, Green, Beautiful North Bay, North Bay Hydro and Eagle Tree Service.
Since 2021, the initiative has brought over 20 tall, thriving trees to the schoolyard.
A tree-planting ceremony to mark the partnership is taking place on Thursday.
Officials say the school community continues to be enriched by the program in countless ways, with the collaboration adding value, learning, and beauty to the school yard and community.
“We know kids thrive outside,” says Heather Dabrowski (Ms. D), Prep Teacher at Silver Birches. “We know they love nature and being a part of it. Outdoor and environmental learning need to be part of all our students’ learning. Silver Birches’ Nature School Program (ALL grades K – 3 students) learns and takes part in all sorts of environmental service and stewardship around these new trees.”
That includes filling and carrying watering cans all over the yard to help the trees, building mulch ‘donuts’ around the trees and more.
“This is experiential cross-curricular learning at its best,” adds Dabrowski. “The students love to be outside, and they love to have power and purpose in this important work. Students choose a quiet spot under a tree, students measure the trees and how much they grow, over the years.”
She says not only have the trees helped with annual ice and flooding, but they soak up the spring water much faster and allow for the students to enjoy the yard longer.
Students can also find pockets of shade under the trees.
With summer coming up, the school is now looking to find high school volunteers interested in watering the trees during the break.
