⚡️ Amped Up Learning from EO Jonah! ⚡️

Green Schools NS engagement officers are back in schools and the energy (pun intended) has been through the roof! One of the many joys of being an engagement officer for Green Schools is getting to see the diversity and variety of classrooms across the province. When I started with Green Schools back in February 2024 I worked as the northern region engagement officer, taking trips up to Truro, Springhill, Pictou, and Amherst. Last year I worked in the HRM on the Halifax side, and also visited CSAP schools in Cape Breton and Yarmouth. This year I’ve been kicking off the season by visiting schools on the Dartmouth side of the harbour for the first time. 

Normally I start my presentations with the question “Can you name something that uses electricity?”, and I often get a lot of the same answers: phones, TVs, lights, PS5. This is only natural as these are the electronics we use most of the time in our lives. Sometimes, after some prodding, I’ll also get answers like: fridge, microwave, toaster. Slightly less obvious things for students, but once I mention the kitchen these are all things they can pick out pretty quickly.

When I started my fourth season of in-person visits last week, I was prepared for more of the same: doing the same presentation and getting a lot of the same answers. During my summer off I had forgotten the best part about Green Schools: No two schools are alike, no two classrooms are alike, and of course no two students are alike.

Already this year I’ve had new experiences in classrooms, visited new schools, engaged with new students, and have gotten new answers to the question “name something that uses electricity”.

Last week I heard for the first time a student give the answer of “roller coaster”. This week it was “bowling alley pin put-er down-er thing”. Next week, who knows?!

Sometimes a class will take the assignment very seriously, and hands will constantly be going up, naming more and more obscure objects that are electrified. In those cases I tell the class that we have to move on and that “if we tried to name every single thing in the world that uses electricity we would be here all day”. Similarly, if I tried to name every new experience, every new school, or answer, question, or comment I’ve got from a student, we would also be here all day. That’s the beauty of a new season and a new school year: everything is new.