Expedition #2 - Ahousaht: West Coast Cultural Experience

Words & Photos from Mido L. & Mr. Jackson - Ahousaht Cohort

As the salmon run draws to an end, more and more carcasses are piling up in Goldstream River. Have you ever wondered what type of salmon they are? What their life cycle looks like? Or how to prove that the big trees growing alongside the stream are directly related to the nutrients of dead salmon. Today we learned about all that, and more. We received a naturalist history tour of many locations on Southern Vancouver Island from Mr. Jackson! Here is some of the info we learned:

Types of Salmon It is the Chum salmon that come to spawn in Goldstream river every year. Along with Coho, Pink, Sockeye and Chinook, these five species dominate the BC salmon scene.

Identify the Chum Chum salmon are called Dog salmon because of the males’ two distinct canine-like teeth on the lower jaw. Males are also identifiable by their vertical, pinkish stripes along the body, whereas females have one dark horizontal line.

Predators Gulls, bears, and bald eagles are all drawn to the wholesome nutrients of the Chum, as are the First Nations people. When we visited, a multitude of gulls had pecked out the eyes of the already rotted fish, and more were diving for eggs. Bears can eat twenty salmon a day, in the days leading up to hibernation. When given a large selection, bears, which typically prefer a plant-based diet (90% of intake is plants!) over meats, will eat only the brain, skin and eggs due to the high fat content. They cannot afford to fill up on just the protein of the meat, as mama bears will need to feed their young without any food to sustain themselves in the dark winter months.

Salmon and the Forest It has been noted that taller trees grow beside the river of the salmon run. Of course, it must be the nutrients from the decomposing salmon. Scientists proved this by comparing isotopes of nitrogen from the ocean with that of the trees along the river. They appeared to be the same! How does this work? Well, nitrogen isotopes found in the ocean and those found on land are different. The tree, being a land-dweller, should have had the same isotopes as other land-dwelling things. Instead, they had absorbed the ocean nitrogen isotopes found in the bodies of Chum salmon!

Expedition #2- Bees & Peas Please!

Words and Photos from Maria E. - Bees & Peas Cohort

We started our Buzzing day at the Winslow and Barnacle common room in time for tea. We had a new member in our gang, Sidney Badger, a chef that taught us some cooking skills and guided us through the meal we prepared for lunch. While enjoying our cup of tea sweetened with honey, we talked about our itinerary for the day, our goal of having our own beehive and ingredients that we liked and dislike. Then, it was time to get started! We gathered around the kitchen table and learned some chopping skills, how to cook with seasonal ingredients, caramelization point and how to taste food to balance the flavors. Soon, everybody had a task to complete. Our menu was baked honey-rosemary Acorn Squash filled with sausage scramble, warm salad with lemon garlic salad dressing and some macaron energy balls to have later for snacks. We enjoyed it very much, even when we were crying while cutting the onions.

The food was delicious, and the good company made it even better. While enjoying our meal we discussed many topics such as superfoods and organic food. We concluded saying that at the end what matters is knowing where our food comes from.

After a break, we met at the Crothal buzz (bus) stop to visit Darrin’s garden and beehives on the corner of Freeman & Veteran. He talked about the bee’s life stages, the different types of honey they produce and the amazing fact that a queen bee produces 10 000 eggs in a week!!! (I know, unbeelievable ) Beekeepers are guiding and heavily manipulating one of the most complex societies on earth. Darrin used a gas to calm the bees and then opened a hive for us, it was astonishing.

Afterward, we returned to SMUS to make some crafts, we made beeswax candles and reusable food wraps, and with some good music playing, we had a great expedition day.

Expedition #2 - Yoga, Pilates & Mindfulness

Words & Photos from Firenne R.

Our second expedition day was a great success.  Last time we had talked about wanting to learn various poses so we began the day by splitting into groups. In these groups, we got a series of poses that we learned how to do. After each group was comfortable with their poses we each took turns teaching each other the various poses. This was really fun. Next, Mr. Baer came and using an app we did a guided meditation where we imagined being on a beach on vacation. It was very peaceful. I find it difficult to meditate because my mind wanders but this was nice because it was short and there were different visualizations to focus on. We then headed to Found City Yoga for a hot Bikram yoga class. A few of us, including myself, were slightly nervous for hot yoga because we were worried about the heat. None of us had ever done hot yoga so we didn’t know what to expect except for what we knew from what Ms. Rosts told us. It ended up being a great experience with all of us leaving feeling very refreshed, relaxed and incredibly sweaty. After lunch, we did our second yoga class, acro yoga. In this yoga practice, you work with a partner to do poses. This was incredibly fun! Our instructor would demonstrate the different poses and every time we would doubt that we would be able to do them. However, we were all quite successful. My biggest challenge was getting over my mindset. It was hard to trust your partner and let go of control, trusting that the pose will work (because it will). We all had a lot of fun and lots of laughs. We ended the day with some reflection with Mr. Baer.

Expedition #2 - Time, Talent & Money: Service & Philanthropy

Words and photos by Daniel C.

Today, we went to the Victoria Foundation, a non-profit organization in Victoria. We learned about the organization itself, especially on the ‘Vital youth’ fund. This is a fund that will grant selected student groups a total of $2,500. We can then decide where to donate it.

The Victoria Foundation is a registered charity accredited by Imagine Canada, and the second oldest of Canada’s 191 community foundations. It dedicates their funds to investing in people, projects and non-profit organizations that make the Victoria local community stronger – now and for the long-term. We also learned the detail of their day-to-day operation. One of the women we met is responsible for communication with the donors. She told us how she connects with current donors and reached out to the potential donors who have been recommended by the current donors. She said that the foundation has approximately 385 million dollars in total, and it is still growing at a speed of 7% by a sophisticated investment groups. However, the organization only grants about 4% to make the fund very stable. Not only does this strategy assure the fund is able to provide steady money stream to the charities every year, it also creates a “lasting legacy” with the donors money which can be appealing to some of the donors.

After we came back to campus from the foundation, we went to the library and started to explore what we are interested in, who do we want to help. We researched the ‘Global sustainable goals’ to see where our values aligned. In the afternoon, we came up with the group’s top two Global sustainable goals which we are going to focus on : sustainable cities and communities, and zero hunger. We researched many organizations which align with our values. We then contacted those by phone. Unfortunately, we didn’t make any appointments today but we left some messages. We are very excited to find out what kind of volunteering we can do to help them and learn about their mission.

Expedition #1- Alternative Energy & Design

Words and Photos - Leonardo D. Alternative Energy & Design cohort

Our plan for the day was to start out with a visit to the Sooke Solar Plant run by the T’Sou-ke Nation. Due to unforeseen circumstances, we couldn't proceed with making the trip. Our cohort leaders, thinking quickly on their as feet as they only had a day to adapt to the change in plans. So they decided they would let the students destroy, rebuild and create "stuff". As we arrived into the science room where we would be spending our day we were greeted with heavy motor and huge batteries. Before we could get to destroying and learning Mr Donatelli provided all the information for the rest of our expeditions as well as the new plan for the day. At this time he informed us that we will have a fully working transportation device run on renewable energy by the end of the year! Not one for all…everyone will get to make their own and bring it home.  Naturally, we were all thrilled by the news and started discussing ideas of what vehicles we could create, with an electric scooter being on top and an electric skateboard close after. Though most of the ideas seemed ingenious Mr Donatelli and Mr Ingimundson quickly pointed out the factors we weren't considering. This included things such as price, time, and safety. Nonetheless, we were excited. Then we proceeded to absolutely destroy and pick apart an old electric scooter and a vacuum motor. This continued well into the morning with people switching over to get a diverse experience of the destruction.

After our hectic lunch, we loosened up with a calming lesson on the field about solar panels and battery storage. Among other things we learned about how ineffective solar panels are on a short scale. After that, we went to the science lab to tackle our last and hardest task, to use a brush motor, propeller, and popsicles to move a styrofoam cup. We worked on it for around two hours and by the end of the class, only half of us got our cup to move. Unfortunately, the class came to an end and we went home after an extremely interesting and productive day. We are looking forward to building on our work done today during our next expedition.



Expedition #1- Writing & Visual Art

Words and Photos from McKenna W. - Writing & Visual Art cohort


Working alongside an experienced artist in a lovely space was the perfect start to a year of creativity and exploring. To start our adventure, we loaded the bus and headed to the home of a local artist with her very own studio, she works with a lot of abstract art and is very passionate about what she does! We began with a few creative writing prompts to get going; thinking back to our childhood and remembering our favourite objects, places and things to do. It was really exciting to step outside of our comfort zones in both our abilities as artists and connecting with the other students in the cohort. With our memories down on paper, we talked them through and shared as a group while enjoying a yummy selection of pastries, courtesy of Mr. Dewar! After taking those thoughts from one art form, written, to visual, we began our pieces, our task being to draw out the objects that represented memories we had written about. These were really important and provided a core for the meaning of the piece which we would build upon as the day went on. Something that we all took away was the idea of ongoing change with our art, to “trust the process” and know that there will always be meaning even if you can’t see it, which we all learned. We spent most of the day layering, covering up and exposing our art with different colours that eventually came to represent different abstract scenes and ideas. Being able to see and hear how someone’s art progresses has helped me open the creative side of my mind. We are definitely very excited for the next time we get to create together!

Expedition #1 - Music Writing & Production

Words and Photos from Ria S. - Music Writing & Production cohort


On Tuesday, for this cohort, the nine students who participated all went to Mr. Farish’s house where we would be spending our day.  We started off learning about all of the equipment needed, how it worked, and watched a few videos on how to edit music using music apps.  We looked at some of our favorite artists and researched on who produced their songs and how they did it. After lunch, we split ourselves into two groups and picked songs to practice and then record. Some students played the piano, some the guitar, and some sang. By the end of the day we had successfully recorded two songs that both sounded great! There was a lot of good teamwork that helped the day move by quickly.  We are very excited to build off the work we did during the first expedition and look forward to the opportunity to work with Mr. Farish again, building our skills as we move through the year.

Expedition #1- Giddy Up! Leadership Through Ranching

Words and Photos from Julia M. - Giddy Up! Leadership Through Ranching cohort

This week, my group and I set off on our first expedition day in the horseback riding cohort. After singing along to country music on the bus, our day kicked off with our arrival at Ambleside Farm. We were greeted by our two wonderful instructors Erin and Katie. After we did some introductions, we were split into two groups. One group was starting with riding and the other group was doing farm work. After we broke off, my group, the first group, was taught the basics of tacking up a horse. Between the five of us in our small group, we had two horses. There were so many different steps for getting the horses ready to go but everyone learnt quickly. We saddled up the horses and finally, we were ready to start riding! Erin and Katie were so helpful to everyone learning to ride, especially to those who had never ridden before. We all learnt how to walk and trot with the horse on and off a line. We also learnt posting trot, and how to properly sit and balance on the horse. After we finished riding, we broke for lunch, played with the farm dogs, and enjoyed the beautiful weather until we had to switch activities. We were now onto the less action-packed part of the day; farm work. Our jobs were mostly to clean out the paddocks and barn stalls. This part was icky to say the least but, we learnt a lot and being with friends and the animals, made it fun. Before we knew it, our day at the farm was over and we had to head home. Altogether, we all had so much fun, learnt a lot, and just had an awesome time and I know I can’t wait for the next expedition day!

Expedition #1- Fashion Design & Industry

Words and Photos from Dasha T. - Fashion Design & Industry cohort

In Fashion Design & Industry, everyone was looking forward to what we might learn on our first expedition day in the Pacific Design Academy. We had a slow and relaxing morning, learning the use of a sewing machine and practicing our sewing skills on a piece of fabric. After familiarizing ourselves with the machine, we chose a coloured zipper and a variety of fabrics and cut them into similar pieces, which we would use for that day’s project. For the next 2-3 hours, we used a variety of techniques, such as the French seam, to create our very own hand bags! After our lunch break, we spent the rest of the time at the Academy drawing different textures in our journals and learning how to design our own clothing on a mannequin we traced in our books. It was an exciting day for the group and we are all excited and looking forward to what we might learn in the coming expedition days.

Expedition #1 - Service & Philanthropy: Time, Talent and Money

Words and Photos from Laurie P. - Service & Philanthropy cohort

The Time, Talent and Money cohort is  exploring the ways we can give to our community and help others. For our first expedition day we went to two places to volunteer. The morning was spent at the Cridge Centre for the Family, where Paula welcomed us and we divided up into the different classrooms. We worked with kids from 9 months old to 4 years old and spent the time reading with them, playing outside and inside, helping to keep them happy and having fun! In the afternoon we headed to Highgate Lodge, a local seniors' home. There we met with a group of residents and made some crafts, cards and decorations for Halloween. They were so keen to visit and spend time with us. For our next expedition day, we will choose some other places to visit and volunteer. 

Words from Akhil P.

Day one of cohorts for “Time, Talent, and Money” focused on caring for people, specifically young children and seniors. In the morning we visited the Cridge Centre for Child Care, where we were placed in classrooms and we played with the kids. The kids had designated outdoor time where they did some activities with PISE (Pacific Institute of Sports Education) and enjoyed the outdoors. The children I was with (5-6 years old) were a joy to play with, and shared some of the same interests I had when I was their age, like playing with Thomas the tank engine trains and other educational toys.

In the afternoon we spent some time at highgate lodge, a seniors residence, where we made cards. We sat with the seniors and helped them make halloween, Christmas, birthday, and other assorted cards for their loved ones. David and I worked on a happy wishes card, to celebrate the monthly birthdays for November. The seniors were a blast to work with and I had a great time talking to them about what it was like living wherever they lived and the differences in culture.

Expedition #1- School Grounds Coffee Company

Words and Photos from Jessica C. & Miya H. - School Grounds Coffee cohort


It was the first expedition day for the coffee lovers & entrepreneurs. We first gathered in the common room in the morning. We briefly introduced ourselves and what we expected to learn in this cohort. Some people just simply loved coffee. Some people were interested in the field of business, others keen on marketing, branding and design. We all came together with different purposes. What makes a good coffee? The good coffee beans would be the answer. Therefore, the goal for today is to roast our own coffee beans. In order to learn the process of roasting coffee beans, we visited the Fernwood Coffee and watched their master roaster Ed produce a batch of their beans. The Q&A section was at the end of the visiting. We asked the questions we prepared in the morning and all learned something new, such as how to identify a great coffee bean as well as running a successful coffee company. Then we went to a lovely new coffee store, the Little June cafe, and got to look at the front end of the business, observing the barisitas preparing drinks for the customers. During this time, we talked over the following events throughout the year. The most exciting part of the day was roasting the coffee beans. We worked together and roasted a large number of dark coffee beans. We packed those coffee beans into small packages as samples to share with the staff in the school. We will be roasting more for the parents & teachers night. At the end of the day, we all have lots of fun and went back home with a well packed dark roast coffee beans. The fact I learned for the day was that fresh coffee beans are green when they are removed from the fruits of the tree. I look forward to the next expeditions, where we will begin to build the School Grounds Coffee Company here on campus!

Expedition #1- Student-Athlete Experience

Words and Photos from Allistair Catto- Student-Athlete Experience cohort


Last week we had our first expedition in the Student-Athlete experience cohort. We met in the library which, at first glance is an odd place to have the meeting for an athletic experience, but turned out to be the perfect space to introduce the theme of the day: mental skills for athletes, delivery from expert Zoran Stojkovic. Over the course of the day played jenga to learn about stress, discussed how the mind, body and craft are related, and decided what you can add to your routine to make yourself more healthy. We had the opportunity to put all of the theory into practice in the afternoon, taking the mental skills that we learned about and using them in some competitive situations in the gym. As well, Mr. Primrose and Mr. Edgington led us through and introduction to strength training, which will be a focus through all of the expeditions. All in all I learned a lot about how to be a better student-athlete and look forward to the next expeditions.