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Brunswick Branch

Over 100 middle schools throughout New Brunswick have already received a Rock Box, an educational kit to teach children about mining in the province. This ambitious project to create kits for 250 schools started before CIM's centennial year, but was adopted as a centennial project, in keeping with the centennial focus on education.

Twenty-four samples of the province's native minerals are provided in a wooden box crafted by high school students in New Brunswick. The mineral samples have identification cards, including their name, chemical composition, source and use. An extensive information package is provided, including information booklets on the minerals, a video on mining and minerals, both a bedrock geological map and a mineral currents map, a diskette of educational games and an information package for the teachers.

Feedback from the schools who have received the Rock Boxes has been very positive. The Branch aims to provide another 75 boxes this year. The New Brunswick Branch is publishing a book on the history of mining in the province, Gesner's Dream, named after the first geologist in the province who laid the groundwork for the mining industry that has thrived in New Brunswick. Geologist and author Gwen Martin has agreed to write the book.

The book will open at the very beginning, with explorer Samuel Champlain, the first person recorded to discover the rich mineral resources of New Brunswick when he discovered copper, zinc and gold on his voyage to North America. The book will be available at schools, libraries and bookstores throughout the province.

Newfoundland Branch

A three-day field trip to central Newfoundland for junior and high school teachers across the province will enable the teachers to better educate their students about the provincial minerals industries. Scheduled for early fall, the participants will visit and see examples of the various rocks, minerals, mines and geological features native to Newfoundland.

Presentations on the geology of the province will further their knowledge and understanding. Grand Falls will be the starting point of the trip. At least a dozen teachers are expected to participate.

Once Upon A Mine, by Wendy Martin, tells the history of mining in Newfoundland prior to confederation in 1949. CIM National published the book 10 to 15 years ago, and for the centennial, the Branch is printing 1,000 copies to be sold at service stations and tourist shops across the province.