MONTAGUE, P.E.I. — Robyn Burgess says she has spent so much time trying to find innovative ways for students to stay active and eat healthy she never gave any thought to it being award-worthy.
Needless to say, Burgess, was shocked recently when the P.E.I. Home and School Federation held a ceremony at Montague Consolidated School where it was revealed that she and Nena Matheson were the recipients of the 2020 Extra Mile Award.
Burgess and Matheson were nominated by the Montague Consolidated Home and School Association.
Burgess is a behavioural resource teacher at the school. She teaches social skills and self-regulation skills to students from K-Grade 6. Matheson is an educational assistant who is currently working with two Grade 4 classrooms.
“This is very shocking,’’ said a clearly overwhelmed Burgess who was busy receiving warm hugs and congratulations from dozens of staff members and students. “It’s all for the kids. We love doing things for the kids and with the kids.’’
Each year, the P.E.I. Home and School Federation honours individual staff members in Island schools who embody the spirit of going the extra mile in the lives of students, parents and staff each day.
The Montague school wanted to celebrate two women who have shown creativity, commitment and love in what they share with the school community.
Burgess and Matheson are responsible for co-creating the school’s unique snack program, which ensures that students have access to innovative, hands-on skill building combined with healthy food choices.
“Sobeys in Montague so generously donates to us on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays,’’ Burgess said. “They just kind of approached Nena. I said I have some students who might like to help out with that, and we ran with it from there. They give us their produce that is going to go bad, that has to be eaten that particular day and we share it with the students.’’
Burgess said they never know what’s coming, so some creativity is needed to take what is given and turn it into healthy snacks.
“They’ve tried so many different things and very creatively put together (things) like salads and they love it.’’
Matheson said she helps develop skills in students they may not find in the classroom, such as measuring, reading recipes and coming up with ideas on what to do with the food they’re given.
“And, if we can’t use the food right away we put it in the freezer and then we look for recipes,’’ Matheson said, citing one example of taking zucchini and turning it into muffins.
Matheson said they’ve also taken things further by partnering up with the Department of Agriculture. They created a garden and picked up composters which compost any of the food that isn’t used and use it for the garden.
“The scraps that we don’t use go into the composter and the compost goes into our gardens. Then, we’re doing some work on growing food, so it’s kind of going full circle.’’
It doesn’t hurt that Matheson has a 4-H background where the motto is learning by doing.
Betty MacDonald, the school’s principal, said she couldn’t be more proud of Burgess and Matheson.
“Both Nena and Robyn see the potential in all our kids here, and they know that sometimes they are a little hungry,’’ MacDonald said. “We know that if they have better food in their bellies that they do better.’’
It’s not just about feeding the students healthy snacks. The curriculum is mixed in to make the entire activity a fun one.
“The kids go and have fun. There’s math, there’s literacy skills involved and it's all going on as they are preparing the food. Then, they go and share what they’ve done with the other students and (develop) some leadership qualities. It’s an absolutely wonderful program, and we absolutely could not do it without Nena and Robyn.’’
To ensure that all students get in on the fun, different groups take part each Monday, Wednesday and Friday. Some students handle preparation, some take care of passing it out while others go on runs to go get the products.
One parent told The Guardian she is happy her child eats healthy at school.
“They are trying food here that they will not try at home,’’ said the parent, who didn’t give her name.
Information on the two Montague Consolidated School recipients of the 2020 Extra Mile Award, as outlined by the P.E.I. Home and School Federation:
Nena Matheson
- Described as an out-of-the-box thinker.
- Creative, driven and generous.
- She makes sure students help create nutritious food and work on essential life social skills, such as measuring, counting and serving.
- The creation of the unique snack program shows a meaningful commitment to ensuring students have access to innovative, hands-on skill building combined with healthy food choices.
- Donated a refrigerator for the school's snack program.
Robyn Burgess
- Masterminded the hopping hallways, a movement circuit that helps students burn off energy.
- Acts as the school volunteer photographer, capturing meaningful moments of students and staff and shares these through social media.
- While students are preparing and serving food, they are working on curriculum outcomes; they don’t know they are doing this because she makes it fun.
- This program has allowed students to try fruits, vegetables and other foods they may have otherwise not have had the opportunity, while also providing a nutritional snack.