As part of my Social Studies class, we had to prepare and submit a 3-lesson Unit Plan focusing on community involvement for students. I really do believe that having students become involved in local community leadership is a great way to prepare them for the challenges of the future. Having moved into the Quadra Village community last spring, I was struck (and pleased) at how diverse the community is.  This area has always been (as long as I can remember) a lower-income, inner-city neighbourhood full of diversity and character. I appreciate the mix of young families, including both First Nations and recently immigrated to Canada. That’s why I decided to reach out to the Quadra Village Community Centre to inquire how best to use their resources in the Socials class.

I met with Chloe, the director of youth programs, and we talked a bit about the makeup of youth in the neighbourhood. She confirmed it was diverse, and that a number of their programs aim at integrating newly immigrated youth into Canadian culture. They hold regular nights for newcomer youth, but they often complain that they are not interacting enough with “Canadian” students. I asked what kind of projects might help bridge that gap and she immediately mentioned a mural project that students had collaborated on in the neighbourhood. Not only that, but the project was lead by my classmate and all-around talented artist in the Teacher Education program, Kay Gallivan.

I couldn’t find any local examples of videos documenting how community mural projects help bridge the gap between students, but I did find this one. I think it captures the spirit of the project.

Also, I discovered a great financial source for local projects in the community. The Neighbourhood Small Grants society is a great resource that can help small communities build their own projects. They offer $500 for projects, which doesn’t seem a lot, but in the context of the community, that’s a lot. Here’s hoping that community projects will become part of our curriculum in the future.