By Mark Squibb/February 10, 2022
Stella Maris Academy in Trepassey is on the receiving end of a World Wildlife Fund (WWF) Canada Go Wild School grant valued at $1,000.
The school will be use the money to create a pollinator garden on the school grounds in the spring.
“The purpose of the pollinator garden is to create a space that will attract lots of living things, like butterflies, bees, birds, insects — things that will pollinate flowers,” said Instructional Resources Teacher Lauren Gregory. “We’re trying to include native flowers as much as possible.”
The school had initially applied for $500, but the WWF doubled thee request. The school also received a $750 grant from the provincial government last year for a school vegetable garden.
Gregory said the grants work in tandem to encourage outdoor learning.
“We’re in the process of building an outdoor classroom and setting up a space so we can get the kids outdoors a lot more, instead of being in the building,” explained Gregory. “It’s nice to encourage the kids to be outside, because a lot of kids spend so much time indoors, we want to get them out as much as possible… Right now there’s not a lot of plants around the school… So, we’re trying to make a more inviting outdoor space.”
Gregory hopes work on the garden will begin this spring, once the weather clears up.
