Labrador students compete to see who would best survive the Big Land's punishing winters
In the heart of winter, Hopedale youths build shelters on the land
Twenty kilometres from Hopedale, in the heart of winter, middle and high school students took part in a physical education class — one that was far from a warm gymnasium.
The youths, organized into teams, were given basic supplies — including an axe, snowshoes, tarp and rope — and sent out to see which group could best survive Labrador's freezing conditions. The weather that March day was on the nicer side for winter in the Big Land: –20 C with winds of 30-50 km/h.
The groups had two hours to build any winter shelter they chose. Whichever team got their shelter the warmest would win.
For cousins Ethan and Cole Dicker, being out in the freezing temperatures is nothing new, as the two are often out exploring on snowmobiles. The two say it's fun to have the traditional activities as part of school but it's also important to learn the life skills.
"If you get lost in the woods … you can try to find some trees and make a shelter," said Cole Dicker.
Nicole McLean, physcial education teacher and vice-principal of Amos Comenius Memorial School in Hopedale, said it's crucial for students to learn such skills at this stage of their lives.
"Our students are coming of an age where they're exploring," said McLean. "And it's a life skill at times to be prepared for what may change."
McLean started the winter shelter building competition about a decade ago, when she wanted to incorporate traditional knowledge into the classroom. This year, Trout Ponds was picked for the cluster of trees, as the Hopedale area has only a few spots with trees, McLean said.
Teams can build any structure they choose, said McLean, including tree pits, an A-frame shelters, lean-tos, snow trenches and igloos. They also need to figure out where to put the fire so it heats the interior but doesn't fill up the shelter with smoke.
It's important for education to extend beyond the typical academic skills, McLean said. Teachers at the school are looking at citizenship and Indigenous knowledge that can be brought in and technology that can be used to give them useful skills and confidence in their abilities, she said.
"It's the element of surprise sometimes of what they can do," McLean said.
"Who takes leadership sometimes is surprising. What we see in the classroom is not always what we see out on the land, which is a nice surprise.… It really brings a new appreciation to the whole student and not just the classroom academic abilities."
The cousins' snow trench reached 4 C — warmer than outside by 24 degrees but not enough to beat the winning team's shelter, which was 26 C inside.
Despite not winning this year, the cousins say they're more prepared for the event things go wrong out on the land. Cole is graduating this year, but Ethan hopes to build a smaller shelter and put the fire in a different location next year.
"This is fun. it's just like a little bit more training," Ethan said.
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