Trading in science fairs, Banded Peak School asked students to showcase how they are making a change in their community instead.
“It sums up what the kids have learned over the years – not so much about any one subject but about the skills they have such as communication, collaboration and global awareness … We call them the ‘dark arts,’” Craig Churchill, Banded Peak Grade 7/8 teacher said with a laugh.
The Grade 7/8 students were tasked with creating “a change for other humans, if only for a moment.”
One Creeker student said she has been working on her project, I Run Like A Girl Try To Keep Up for the last year encouraging younger girls to participate in sports – and plans to continue to the advocacy work next year.
“I want to target younger girls and show them sports aren’t intimidating or scary … I think girls can get discouraged by their abilities,” said Ahneke, a 13-year-old Banded Peak student.
(Banded Peak School does not allow publishing of students’ last names.)
“When I was younger I went through some of the same (feelings) and I wanted to give back.”
The rest of the projects ranged from students volunteering with The Mustard Seed, organizing community and riverbank cleanups, donating toys to the Alberta Children’s Hospital, making art for elders, volunteering with horse therapy programs, volunteering at a dance studio for people with disabilities, and promoting and raising awareness for organ donation.
Banded Peak student, Thomas stood proudly next to his board as he explained why he was passionate about organ donation.
“My uncle needed a kidney in 2010 because both of his kidney’s failed, so my mother donated one of her kidneys to him – without my mom my uncle would’ve died seven years ago,” Thomas said.
Now in an effort to create change, the 14-year-old will be participating in the three-day kidney march in September.
Another life-changing project was a cookbook created for people with allergies distributed at the Children’s Hospital.
With allergies to dairy, gluten, wheat, eggs and oats, 11-year-old Karis met with a dietician and took two months to create her cookbook, Karis’ Allergy Friendly Kitchen, which was later distributed to the Pediatric Gastroenterology Clinic at the Alberta’s Children Hospital.
“This gives them a change to showcase to their peers and adults that they’ve done something really important for the communities and planet,” Churchill said.
This is the third or fourth year the school has hosted the Change Expo with TED Talks shown at the event that were filmed by the Grade 8 students.
