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Community Studies
Our
Past: Evolution of a Community Schools in post-war Scarborough were first conceived some decades ago as a response to a need. Or, rather, the needs of the community were the product of over a century and a half of socio-economic development and evolution. The history of this part of Toronto has an absolute host of cross-curricular educational possibilities. Digging into history – finding an issue, taking a stand, arguing a point -- is a great way to teach students critical thinking. And I would argue, the best way. This web site – www.scarboroughrecord.com – is loaded with resource materials for community studies. The Education Resources start here. A
Drama About Local Historic Figures – Fundraiser for ScholarshipsA
Drama About Local Historic Figures – Fundraiser for Scholarships
A play about important local figures in the history of southwest Scarborough
could be part of a fundraising drive for scholarships. 1.
The 1892 founding of the organization that later evolved into the Ontario
Milk Marketing Board, the business group largely responsible for the survival of
the family farm in 2. The 1916-1918 wartime letters of Captain John B. Heron and his wife. 3. The 1928 invention of the Phototeria by the young man who had, growing up, “stammered lamentably”. 4. Working at the GECO munitions plant during the second world war. And of course, a fifth act in the play could be SATEC’s future role as a great institution for sustainability education. Oral
History Interview Projects – Engaging Students in the Community Communications 1)
English a) Take the main lead in Oral History Interview Projects: write the questions, transcribe, translate, interpret individual interviews and then link them / analyze them together as a published community collection. b) Oral History Interview Projects include: ii) The Farm and the Environment iv) GECO Munitions Plant just north of SATEC vi) Farm-Bred Folk as Model Re-Cyclers and Re-Users c)
The literature of d) The influence of Robert Burns’ poetry on western society, in particular, Burns’ views on social sustainability. 2)
Stage Drama – A Sustainability Theme a) Play on a community history and socio-economic sustainability theme: i) Founding of the Milk Marketing Board movement. (Farming here was very “green” – much more green then than it is now elsewhere. Sustainability of an important economic sector – agriculture – an honest day’s pay for an honest day’s work.) ii) Invention of the Phototeria (new technology keeps the economy vibrant) iii) Heron / McCowan first world war letters (life on the farm; safety / the freedom and security aspect of sustainability) iv) GECO Munitions plant: oral history interviews v) SATEC’s future as a leader in Sustainability Education 3)
Language Studies a)
Assist with Oral History Interview projects. I am very pleased to
be helping with the new Celtic Studies program at Subway
Science 4)
Science a) Trees as the critical key for the good health of the planet b) Composting of leaves c) Tornados and other natural disasters d) Oral History Interview Project: the Farm and the Environment 5)
Environmental Club a) Build an old-style cedar rail fence around the composting area and add informative signage b) Church erosion control study project c) Take long-term ownership of the composting project including community cooperation in the gathering and processing of wood and other green waste Social
Science 6)
Canadian History / Careers a) Write a biography of Alexander McCowan for the Dictionary of Canadian Biography b) Transcribe several existing audio tapes of David A McCowan, inventor of the Phototeria c) Write parts of the script for the school play, a historical drama d) Pre-history: The Robert Ashbridge McCowan and William Harold McCowan Collections of native Canadian artefacts include the earliest known evidence of human occupation in Toronto, approximately 8,000 BC e) Immigrant Values: Building a Country f)
Neigh the Front: Exploring Scarboro
i) P. 92: homelessness ii) P 140-1: careers and the job hunt 7)
Family Studies a) Oral History Interview Project: Women and the Family Farm b)
The Story of c) Disease, Health Care and Mortality d) Housing e)
Neigh the Front: Exploring i) p. 50: motherlessness; childhood mortality, water supply; epidemics ii) p. 55: character iii) p. 92: homelessness 8)
Civics / Community Involvement a) Write the script for the part of the school play relating to the letters written by Captain Heron and his wife, 1916-1918 b) Organize and lead walking tours in the community c) Design signage and maps for some Scarborough portions of the Waterfront Trail e) The Value System of Immigrants and the role of Robert Burn’s writing in forming a just society f) Character and Faith of the People g) Philanthropy in Education – and help with scholarship program fundraising i)
Neigh the Front: Exploring i) p. 87: public service and civic duty; the war effort on the home front (1916-18); civics and gender equity -- women getting the "right to vote" ii) p. 140-1: character education -- when opportunity knocks... 9)
Geography a) The significance of trees in the development of the local community: log cabins, barns, potash production, furniture making, vehicle manufacture, fancy wood trim for farmhouses in the more affluent era for farmers b) Oral History Interview Projects i) Development of farms after the second world war ii) Farming on Kingston Road iii) The Farm and the Environment d) Agriculture e)
Neigh the Front: Exploring i) p. 27: urban and transportation route planning ii)
p. 28: landforms -- iii) p. 38: the importance of land iv) p. 120: urban planning -- subdivision development Technology,
Business and Art 10)
Photography a) Study the one Phototeria that has survived and "what makes it tick" b) Make a video of the historical drama and produce a commemorative DVD 11)
Computer Engineering a) Use an empty shell Phototeria to make a digital photobooth 12)
Computer Science a) Produce a commemorative DVD, including photographs, the entire script of the play and the outcomes of many of the learning opportunities listed here 13)
Art a) Design a piece of public art for the main hallway, for example a historic technology / natural history collage b) Produce illustrations for a commemorative DVD regarding community history (scenes from the play for example) c)
Produce signage and maps for the 14)
Business / Economics a)
Write the script for the school play Act relating to the founding
of the b)
Neigh the Front: Exploring i)
p. 28: economic development of ii) p. 38: wages; rate of inflation of land prices; exchange rates (pounds sterling / dollar) iii)
p. 87: founding of the iv) p. 92: the depression; rationing v) p. 96: importance of philanthropy in education vi) p. 120: risk-taking vii) p. 140-1: careers and the job hunt 15)
Technology a) Props for the school play b) Sound / lighting for the play c) Write the script for the school play relating to the research and development of the Phototeria in 1928 d)
Neigh the Front: Exploring i) p. 27: vehicle brakes: hydraulic vs mechanical brakes ii) p. 98: Structures iii) p. 140-1: careers and the job hunt Mathematics 16)
Math a) Mathematics in Nature: leaf patterns for example b) Math and the Phototeria: gear ratios, pulley ratios (a physical Phototeria is available for “reverse-engineering” by students) c) Math and Economics / Profitability: the price of milk and cost of running a dairy farm, 1892 and today e)
Neigh the Front: Exploring i)
page 27: planking ii) p. 38: wages; rate of inflation of land prices; exchange rates (pounds sterling / dollar) School-Wide
Initiatives 17)
Black History a)
Oral History Interview Project: Immigration to b)
The narrator for the Phototeria act of the play could be in the
role of a past employee of McCowan Manufacturing Ltd., founded by David A.
McCowan of 18)
Ad Club a) Promote the school play, the goal of which could be to start a scholarship fundraising drive b) Promote the Photobooth book launch, which could be an initial fundraiser 19) School Action Team a) Help write the script for the schoolyard bullying scene in the Phototeria Act of the school play 20)
Friends of the Library a) Create a special reference section for local history with promotional posters and a display outside the library 21)
Guidance a) Promote SATEC’s future role in preparing a new generation of sustainability professionals 22)
Special Education a) Help write the script for the schoolyard bullying scene in the Phototeria Act of the school play – the bullying victim “stammered lamentably” Exemplary
Historic Figures with a Local Connection James Whiteford McCowan,
owner of the 100 acre farm immediately north of SATEC, was the second son of
James McCowan, bankrupted Coalmaster and farmer from Lanarkshire,
Please send comments and questions to me at david.mccowan@tdsb.on.ca or bmccowan@netrover.com. Respectfully, David Bruce McCowan, P.Eng., BASc.,
OCT, B.Ed.
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