After some hard work by Building and Construction and IEC students our outdoor learning space is getting close to completion.
A recent visit from Bush Tucker really gave us something to think about. Did you know that interacting with natural spaces offers other therapeutic benefits?
Here’s something from the Bush Tucker website…
It’s not clear exactly how and why nature has this impact on us. In our view, there are bound to be a whole host of reasons, ranging from environmental, microbial, social and psychological. But one popular hypothesis we hear often is that humans co-evolved with a few “old friends” in nature, ie. a bunch of useful microbes that offer helpful effects.
One such microbe is Mycobacterium vaccae, a mostly harmless soil bacteria found right in your own backyard. Found to produce positive mental and emotional effects.
M. vaccae was capable of stimulating the production of serotonin in the brain. Serotonin is a natural brain chemical generally considered a mood stabiliser with low levels of it having been linked to depression.
M. vaccae is therefore a “natural antidepressant”, with the possibility of using it to develop a “stress vaccine” when its effects and properties are better understood.
Gardening is something that is non-threatening, non-clinical and immediately brings you into an engaging space and surroundings. There’s evidence that both passive and active involvement in garden activities is helping to reduce stress, increase positive feelings and brings a sense of fun and hopefulness to participants.
So gardening with your hands makes you happy and everyone had a very happy experience during this incursion.
North Lake is hosting a Sausage Sizzle at Bunnings O’Connor on Saturday 28 October from 8am-4pm. All money raised will go towards to Noongar Classroom which is currently being built and will be used as an outdoor learning space for our students.