Normandeau School enjoying all that new Passive Solar Greenhouse has to offer

Close your eyes and imagine what it feels like to be in a greenhouse. The warmth in the air, the smell of dirt and budding plants, the feel of playing in the dirt, and the visual of lots of luscious green growth. The immediate uplifting feeling one gets when walking into a greenhouse is hard to describe, but simply put, greenhouses are a happy place.

Students at Normandeau School get to experience all that a greenhouse offers as construction has been completed on the new Come Grow With Us Passive Solar Greenhouse, a project totalling over $250,000 that utilizes the latest building technologies and has the potential to change the greenhouse industry in Alberta. The concept for the idea began in 2018, with construction taking place last fall. Earlier this week, a grand opening was held which included a free community barbeque hosted by the Central Alberta Co-op, as well as free family activities such as learning about different types of garden boxes, planting flowers, and face painting.

“The greenhouse has created a living classroom for students to apply traditional knowledge in a hands-on environment while learning practical life skills,” said Kim Kirkwood, Principal at Normandeau School. “This is a learning environment that no other school has, and it engages students from Pre- Kindergarten to Grade 8.”

Every teacher at Normandeau will dedicate time to the project to ensure curriculum is infused into the greenhouse so authentic and enriched learning opportunities happen for all students from Pre-Kindergarten to Grade 8. The greenhouse will allow students to learn how food grows as well as use Math, Science, and Language Arts curriculum throughout the process.

This project will use leading edge sustainable building technologies, reduce the school’s carbon footprint, and allow students to learn valuable life skills. Our project is a sustainable, low impact, cost effective greenhouse targeting four seasons, which will apply solar energy technologies, have an open sourced, printable design that other schools and community groups can utilize, which will also have the potential to change the greenhouse industry in Alberta through applied research in conjunction with SAIT Green Building Technologies.

“We are grateful for the many partnerships that have evolved as a result of the Come Grow With Us Passive Solar Greenhouse,” said Kim. “This project would not have been possible without their support. We appreciate each sponsor’s commitment to the lives of kids through their support of the greenhouse.”