Outdoors

Since 2009, the Seine-Saint-Denis County Council has been backing “la Culture et l’Art au Collège (CAC)”. This project is based to a large extent on the presence in class for several weeks (40h) of an artist or scientist whose mission is to engage the students in a process of research and creation. 

Tutors: Angel Moragues, Jean Ichter, Basile Martin/ botanists-écologists

Project manager: Mathieu Marion

Objectives:
In the collective imagination, the concept of “biodiversity” summons up tropical forests rather than the flora of our city streets. Yet there is a host of flowers, leaves, bark and mushrooms to be found right here in Seine-Saint-Denis. Accompanied by a botanist, each class tries to understand how species adapt to our cities and play an essential role there.

Workshops:
Green space
In the first phase, each tutor gave his class a zone near the college where the pupils could make a survey of the flora. The botanist helped the pupils draw up a protocol for their fieldwork: names of species, groups and families, common names, types of plant (tree, shrub, small shrub, grass), scale drawings, localisation, mapping, etc.

Participative research
The class then went from observation in the field to observation in the “laboratory”. They learnt how to preserve living specimens (cutting, drying, and decoctions) and give a precise description of them (using the rules provided by the Natural History Museum’s portal). This stage had to be very rigorous, because the qualitative and quantitative information was to be sent to the Museum to improve the data base on the state of flowers in the Seine-Saint-Denis.

From local to global
In the last stage, the class compared the data collected in their immediate environment with a larger data set from other parts of the world. This gave them insight into the extreme richness of biodiversity and the phenomenon of plant migration.

Outcome:
A display of fifteen types of plants collected by the pupils illustrated the project. The pupils presented their work during an open day at their school. 

Outings: 
- OBSERVATIONS IN LOCAL PARKS.
- MUSÉUM NATIONAL D’HISTOIRE NATURELLE DE PARIS: VISIT TO THE EVOLUTION GALLERY, THE GLASSHOUSES IN THE BOTANICAL GARDEN, THE ECOLOGICAL AND ALPINE GARDENS.
- VISIT TO THE ARBORETUM DE CHÈVRELOUP (VERSAILLES).

Schools:
- CLASS (6TH) COLLÈGE EVARISTE GALOIS, EPINAY-SUR-SEINE
- CLASS (6TH) COLLÈGE MAXIMILIEN ROBESPIERRE, EPINAY-SUR-SEINE
- CLASS (6TH) COLLÈGE ANATOLE FRANCE, LES PAVILLONS-SOUS-BOIS
- CLASS (5TH) COLLÈGE JACQUES JORISSEN, DRANCY

Scenography: ELODIE DESCOUBES

Photo: GUILLAUME LEBRUN