Keswick Ridge students bring Canada 150 to the classroom

Students at Keswick Ridge School displayed their projects on Canadian history during a special ceremony at the school on Tuesday. 

Keyonna Burtt, a student at the school, spent weeks researching her project on the Confederation Bridge. 

"It took 2,070 craft workers, 415 staff and in total 5,000 people helped build the bridge," she said.

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Keyonna and her classmates at Keswick Ridge School have been learning about Canada's history all year. 

We wanted them to understand all of Canada's history and it's not all rosy.-Diane MacLeod

Poster boards of significant moments and people throughout Canada's history line the walls of the gym, from Wayne Gretzkey to Viola Desmond. 

Megan MacNeil, a Grade 3 student, worked on a project about John McCrae and his poem, In Flanders Fields.

"He wrote it because his friend died," she said.

Diane MacLeod, a teacher at the school, won a Canada 150 grant that allowed the school to put on the event.

Understanding Canada

"It's a nice way to look at Canada's history," she said. "The students were allowed to look at each other's projects so it's sort of a way that they can understand how the country has developed."

The event also included a traditional First Nations opening ceremony, along with dancers and drumming.

Macleod said teachers in the school spent extra time this year learning about the history of Canada's First Nations and felt it was important to make First Nations culture central to the celebration.

"We knew what residential schools were but we didn't really understand the impact and what the children went through at that time and what the families went through so it was a huge learning experience for everybody," she said.

"We wanted them to understand all of Canada's history and it's not all rosy. We need to respect the things that happened in our history."