Grade 8 and 9 Students Participate in Fashion Impact Challenge

Students figuring out the different steps involved in producing and selling a t-shirt from the factory to the store.

By Tulay Yalcin, Linden Teacher

Linden Students Participate in "Fashion Takes Action" Workshop

This year, Fashion Takes Action, a non-profit organization, launched a pilot project entitled "Fashion Impact Challange: My Clothes My World" across schools in Ontario. Twenty schools were selected to collaborate in this project after undergoing a stringent application process. We are delighted to announce that Linden has been selected as one of the participant schools. Our Grade 8 and 9 students will be working together on this project.

This pilot project teaches students about the environmental impacts of the fashion industry and choices consumers can take in making the industry more sustainable and accountable. By the end of the project, students will be armed with enough knowledge and skills to become more ethical fashion consumers. The twenty schools selected will take part in various initiatives to divert textiles from going to the dump. The school with the most textiles diverted will win $1000 which will go towards any social justice and environmental initiative at the school.

Linden students in Grade 8 and 9 had their first "Fashion Takes Action" workshop earlier this month, which focused on critical thinking, personal leadership, and repurposing ideas. Students learned about the different steps, resources, and labor costs involved in the making of a single T-shirt. By the end of the workshop's first day, students learned how to make a bag out of a T-shirt as part of the 7 R's of fashion: Reduce, Reuse, Recycle, Research, Repurpose, Repair, and Rent.

This project also complements the Grade 8 Geography class's course segment on sweatshop labour, which culminates in an annual fashion show in June. For this project, each student focuses on a clothing brand by researching the labour behind the label as well as the industry's environmental impact. Their research and final products are shared during our All-School event in June. While the first half of the fashion show showcases key findings through student presentations, the second half is dedicated to an all-school clothing swap, in which students exchange items specially collected for the show.

Stay tuned for more updates about our upcoming fashion show!

Students labeling all of the countries where their clothes are made.

Students learning to make bags from t-shirts.

Students displaying their finished bags made from recycled T-shirts.