This week our Grade 9 students completed their Community Service Projects, showing that even a small action can have a big impact. With action plans that spanned causes, countries and even species, our students embraced the different ways that we can support and serve our communities.
Service Comes in Many Forms
The students displayed a wide range of interests across their projects. The group of Noah, Peter, Brendan, Ayden and Daniel focused on the cruelty of puppy mills, while Ashton highlighted misconceptions around homelessness. Sloane, Asha and Jimena combined sustainability with service by creating homemade dog toys out of old clothing, upcycling the fabric while providing enrichment for dogs in shelters.
“The goal of the project is to give students the agency to choose their own community to support,” says Ms. Ferguson, the Service as Action Coordinator. “It gives them the chance to make their own action project, and realize that service doesn’t always have to be about volunteering or donating.”
Service did take many different forms in this project. For example, Leo authored and illustrated an original children’s book about celebrating our differences. With support from Ms. Little and Ms. Morden, he will be presenting the book at an upcoming Junior School assembly.
The students’ efforts also spanned communities both local and overseas. Callum and Ollie put up posters around the local neighbourhood to promote community centres as an accessible way for teens to take care of their mental health by staying active. Meanwhile, Noah and Liam created informational posters for a hospital in Brazil to raise awareness about the risk of radiation exposure from overuse of CAT scans on children.
Across the Community Service Projects, students showcased the initiatives and causes that meant the most to them.
The Benefits to the Students
Service is a required part of the Middle Years Programme (MYP), with students working toward a culminating project each year. For the Grade 9s, the power to choose their own service project was especially engaging.
“Service gives students the ability to be empathetic, to learn about our local community and to learn how we fit into our community,” explained Ms. Ferguson. “It teaches them about the different needs of various groups, and raises their awareness of the world on their path to being globally-minded people.”
The students also shared their work in the Atrium, turning their Community Service Projects into an MYP-wide learning event. This gave them the opportunity to practice their communication skills while raising awareness for their cause. It also gave younger students a great preview of the type of projects they will tackle in the future.
Congratulations to the Grade 9s for their hard work and community support.
