Living and Learning with Morningside Blackberry Plant Re-thinking our Relationship with the World ​ ​

Abstract

This living inquiry took place in the Morningside early learning program at the SFU Childcare Society as part of a practicum course. As we entered the program in early September, our attention was grasped by the children's and educators' engagement and encounters with a particular blackberry plant residing in the corner of the Morningside yard. The Morningside blackberry plant is an integral part of the daily life of the program as the children regularly visit this unique plant, spending time under its tall branches, observing the bubbly blackberries, and reaching over to pick them in their mouths. However, the desire of the children to pick as many berries as they could reach raised discussion and discomfort about the berry plant being viewed solely as an object – a resource for human consumption. And so, as practicum students entering a space with these concerns, we began to consider how we might shift the focus on living and learning with and knowing the berry plant differently and transform our perspective on the world through a curriculum inquiry. This Pedagogical Narration highlights particular events, becomings, and transformations that emerged from children's curiosity and encounters with the blackberry plant and its spikes that provoked the children to re-think their relationship with the world and more-than-human others.