Teacher Trees

The Active Learning Classroom is home to four young beech trees who are already experienced guides of active learning. These trees are originally from the Haliburton Forest & Wildlife Reserve on Michi Saagiig territory, where the spread of Beech Bark Disease (BBD) threatens the survival of this species. These small-diameter trees were harvested as an act of preservation before they fell susceptible to BBD. Their removal contributed to the forest’s health by making way for the growth of larger trees. Dr. Zachary Mollica, Associate Professor and former Emerging Architect Fellow at the University of Toronto Daniels Faculty of Architecture, Landscape and Design, brought the trees into his classroom (external link)  where they supported hands-on learning for early-career architects through woodworking and learning to design with natural materials. “Each time you carve one of these trees, you find something you didn't know about the way a branch moves or the way the tree has grown,” says Mollica. “Working into a piece of wood and thinking about what you’re seeing is both very enjoyable, but also quite teaching.”

At the end of the fellowship, the trees found their new home in TMU’s Active Learning Classroom with the help of Daniels Master of Landscape Architecture graduate, Bracha Stettin. The trees are intended to support the ALC as a dedicated Indigenous learning space by bringing nature inside and integrating natural elements and systems into the learning experiences. These trees are meant to be touched (but not moved!) and regarded as valuable community members and teachers in the learning environment.

Acknowledgments

Thank you to University of Toronto Associate Professor Dr. Zachary Mollica, University of Toronto Master of Landscape Architecture graduate Bracha Stettin, and former Learning Spaces Coordinator Dahlia Benedikt (now Educational Developer at the School of Medicine at TMU), who all made this project possible.

Thank you to our sponsor 

Centre for Excellence in Learning

The Centre for Learning and Teaching is committed to continually improving the Active Learning Classroom as a dedicated Indigenous learning space guided by the Indigenous design standards community consultations. One of the design features recommended through the community consultations involves  (google doc) bringing nature inside (external link)  by incorporating plants and other natural elements into the learning space wherever possible. This project follows this call by incorporating the beech trees in the classroom.