Shoots with Roots Five Visit Program
What it actually looks like
What the children do
A year long series of five field trips for one class, designed and led by the Shoots with Roots coordinator, a certified teacher with a master's in special education. The visits run soil in September or October, trees in October or November, signs of spring in February or March, pollination in April or May, and a reflection and celebration visit in May or June. Grades 1 to 3 have priority in the application process and grades 1 to 7, including K and 1 classes, are encouraged to apply for the spaces left over. Visits are Tuesday, Wednesday or Thursday mornings from 9:30 to noon and are all scheduled in early September. Each class may bring a maximum of three adults including the teacher, plus any extra adult a particular student needs. The programme is free, paid for by donors rather than by school districts, and applications for the 2026-27 school year are closed.
Rake up a pile of leaves and play in it, then dig into how those leaves turn into soil. Learn to identify local trees through games, plant peas to take back to school, and become pollinators themselves in the spring. Every visit has an introduction, a snack break and a talking stick circle at the end, and the children build a circle journal across the year that becomes a poster on the last visit.
Good to know
Mornings from 9:30 to noon, rain or shine, so the children need proper coats and boots. Washrooms on site are accessible and mostly private and gender neutral, and there are wheelchair accessible planters in the food garden.
Getting there
2179 Island Hwy W, Qualicum Beach, BC V9K 1G1