Dates

• November 18, 2025
• November 25, 2025
• December 2, 2025

Available for

Available for Arts and Culture SHSM and Music classes

Description

Take a guided tour of the Marilyn I. Walker School of Fine and Performing Arts, Brock’s downtown arts campus. Enjoy a provided lunch followed by a student concert next door at the First Ontario Performing Arts Centre.

Schedule

Dates

• December 4, 2025

Available for

Available for Arts and Culture SHSM and Visual Arts classes.
Maximum of 30 students per group.

Description

This workshop introduces students to one of the earliest and most poetic forms of photography – the lumen print. Through a guided, hands-on exploration using light-sensitive paper, natural materials, and sunlight, participants will investigate the foundational principles of photochemical image-making while reflecting on themes of time, transformation, and the materiality of light. The process emphasizes both experimentation and observation, inviting students to consider how natural and environmental forces can act as creative collaborators. Alongside studio practice, brief discussions will situate the lumen print within the broader history of photography and contemporary lens-based art.

Schedule

Dramatic Arts Fall 2025 Mainstage Production
Métis Nutcracker

• Written by Matthew MacKenzie
• Directed and Choreographed by Monica Dottor
• Set and Costume Design by Monica Dottor
• Composed by Noor Dean Musani
• Performing the role of The Métis Nutcracker, Nicole Joy-Fraser, DART’s Walker Cultural Leader

When Tatiana and Vanya, refugees from the Red Pine Forest who are struggling to acclimatize to their new surroundings, meet a magical Métis Nutcracker, they are taken on a magical journey, exploring the wonders of Turtle Island.

Performance Dates and Location

December 3 and 4 at 11 am (school matinees)
Marilyn I. Walker Theatre, MIWSFPA
15 Artists’ Common, St. Catharines

Click here for group booking information

Tickets can be reserved through Brock University Tickets

Date

• December 4, 2025

Available for

Available for Agriculture SHSM, Food Processing SHSM, and Chemistry and Biology classes

Session Descriptions

Grape and Wine Science

Have you ever thought about a career in the exciting grape and wine industry? Brock University is in the heart of Niagara’s wine country and boasts a 96% job placement rate for graduates from Canada’s only grape and wine undergraduate program called Oenology and Viticulture. Come experience first-hand how we chemically measure acids and sugars in juice before it is turned into wine in the Cool Climate Oenology and Viticulture Institute (Lab A). Then, learn how to use your sense of taste in our state-of-the-art sensory lab to distinguish which juices have high or low acid or sugar (Lab B). Does acid impact sweetness, does sugar impact sourness? You be the judge.

Ecology and Evolution

Do you enjoy solving problems and enigmas? Do you like to explore the world? Are you fascinated by our diversity? Ecology and evolution is the study of our home, and understanding its mysteries is a fascinating journey. At Brock, you can learn how to conserve rare species, protect natural spaces, monitor the environment, solve environmental problems and manage resources through hands-on experience in the lab and in the field. Our location on the Niagara Escarpment gives us access to nature just by opening a door. The Niagara region also has farms, vineyards, cities, lakes, and a lot more to explore and learn. Come explore how ecologists estimate population sizes and assess biodiversity (Lab A), and then learn about how evolution works (Lab B)! Students will also learn about a new Applied Ecology program coming soon to Brock!

Molecular Biology

Imagine this: a crime was committed in the 1970s and circumstantial evidence presented at the trial was instrumental in the sentencing of the accused to life in prison. The convicted declares their innocence. After 30 years in prison, key evidence left behind at the scene holds the clue to determining the innocence of the accused. In the forensic DNA isolation lab (Lab A), students will act as Forensic Molecular Biologists to isolate DNA from the crime scene, which will later be tested to confirm the identity of the suspect. In the DNA fingerprinting lab (Lab B), students will learn how DNA evidence assists in criminal, missing persons, mass disaster, and paternity cases. They will use current molecular forensic techniques on DNA samples collected from different suspects to identify the culprit.

Neuroscience

Have you ever wondered how the brain works? Are you interested in understanding how nerves function to send and receive signals that serve the basis of consciousness? Neuroscience is the study of nervous system function, and goes from the molecular level, through the cellular level, up to the level of entire organisms. Brock University is a great place to study neuroscience, with a thriving Neuroscience program and a range of world class researchers. Come and learn how Neuroscientists use genetic tools that can be controlled using light in order to control and investigate the function of the nervous system using optogenetic tools (Lab A). Then, learn how brain cells communicate in response to touch and movement (Lab B).

Plant Sciences

Plants and algae are extraordinary organisms and play an essential role in the ecosystem! They are photoautotrophs which means they can produce their own food using sunlight and carbon dioxide via photosynthesis. Through this process, plants create sugars and release oxygen. Therefore, plants produce the necessary energy (or food) for many other organisms to survive. Autographs are extremely diverse and have developed many adaptations to survive different climates. Learn how plants cope with different environments including the ability to withstand freezing temperatures and how we can determine exactly how much cold a plant can tolerate (Lab A). Then, we will review diversity of phytoplankton species found in water bodies in the Niagara region, and how abundance of different species relates to water chemistry, pollution, light and temperature (Lab B).

Bioinformatics & Biomedical Data Science

Thanks to the rapid advancement of computing and biotechnologies, a lot of biological research questions can be answered by analyzing existing data on powerful modern computers. This makes bio-computing a very exciting new field! Bio-computing covers many aspects of biomedical sciences, ranging from drug design, gene discovery, evolutionary biology to personal genomics and precision medicine. In this theme, students will have the opportunity to get a taste of the kinds of cool biomedical tasks that can be done on computers. In Lab A, students will be tasked to discover important things about a human gene (CA9 for the target in Lab B) and retrieve the specific information about its location on the chromosome, the length of the gene, and the size and function of the protein, as well as where in the human body the protein is expressed and how variable the gene is among people.  In the Lab B, students will have a chance to find out how a popular drug, SLC-0111, for treating cancer works by interacting with its protein target in 3D visualization using computer docking, and how they can design new and better drugs with artificial intelligence.

Date

• December 5, 2025

Available for

Available for Grade 10, 11 and 12 classes

Session Descriptions

Interactions

Session 1: Labour Studies
Do you know your rights at work?

Every employee has the right to be treated fairly at work, but some employers violate the rights of employees more often than you might think. This session is focused on learning about workers’ rights and how you can go about strengthening and enforcing them.

Session 2: Psychology
Unraveling the Psychology of Everyday Life

What are the underlying psychological mechanisms behind our day-to-day decision-making and interpersonal interactions? In this session, we will examine subtle yet powerful influence and persuasion tactics that play out in our daily interactions. Furthermore, we will delve into the darker side of humanity, exploring topics such as cognitive biases, prejudice, and aggression.

Insights

Session 1: Geography and Tourism
Places, Stories, and Going on a Cruise: Global flows, local places and the Port of Vancouver

Using the Port of Vancouver as an example, learn about the ways in which global processes impact local places, and how individual decisions play a role at both scales.

Session 2: Political Science
Baldur’s Gate 3…and Politics?

The popular video game Baldur’s Gate 3 is based on the tabletop role-playing game Dungeons & Dragons, but gaming isn’t just for fun — role-playing simulations also help us to understand the world of politics. Come play a brief simulation with us, The Starship Game, to see how political scientists use games to understand elections, justice, and war and peace. Hopefully Orin the Red doesn’t show up while we’re playing…but we can’t promise she won’t.

Advocacy

Session 1: Sociology
Introducing Critical Animal Studies: Law, Social Justice, and Environmental Policy

Orcas recently gripped the public imagination as they attacked boats and even sank a few. Were they just playing or were they animal vigilantes, rebelling against centuries of ocean plunder and environmental destruction? The field of Critical Animal Studies is a multidisciplinary area that explores questions about human and nonhuman animal relationships. In this presentation, you will learn about ground-breaking developments in animal law, animal protection, ethology (animal behaviour), ecology, and social justice advocacy.

Session 2: Women’s and Gender Studies
Whose safety matters? Anti-racist Feminist and Queer/Trans Perspectives on Gendered Violence

Explore why trans and queer lives are now up for debate everywhere from the US presidential election, to provincial politics and local school boards in Canada. How does this media, political and legislative violence impact the everyday realities of queer and trans people, and how are we fighting back?

OR

Session 2: Women’s and Gender Studies
Whose safety matters? Anti-racist Feminist and Queer/Trans Perspectives on Gendered Violence

How does society define safety and violence in ways that ignore marginalized people? What would happen if we defunded the police and abolished prisons? We examine these questions through the lens of women’s and gender studies.

Voices

Session 1: Child and Youth Studies
Understanding Children & Youth from Multiple Perspectives

How is childhood conceptualized? How do children develop? Why does childhood matter? These are the questions we discuss in Child and Youth Studies! In this session, we discuss childhood and how it is made possible by the social and cultural world. We will discuss how children are using their voices to mobilize change, challenge conventional ideas (about race, disability, technology and other issues) and deepen our understandings of the future of childhood.

Session 2: Applied Linguistics
Communication Sciences & Disorders – A Crash Course!

See how language is represented in the brain and discover the impact of a stroke on language as you check out the aphasia test battery! Practice using the International Phonetic Alphabet (IPA) to transcribe your name onto a nametag to take home. Learn about early language acquisition – from babbling to sentences. Listen to our audio clips and make a timeline of the major early language milestones. All this and more in our interactive crash course – led by students, for students!

Behaviour

Session 1: Forensic Psychology and Criminal Justice
What is a Psychopath?

Everyone has an idea of what the word “psychopath” means. Come and find out what research has to say about psychopaths and the effect they have on the people around them.

Session 2: Applied Disability Studies
Game On! The Science of Behaviour and Performance

Discover how the science of behaviour can change lives! Explore how behaviour analysts use simple, evidence-based strategies to promote active living, improve sport performance, and support wellness and inclusion for people with diverse abilities. Join us for an interactive session that brings behavioural science to life and shows how small changes can make a big difference.

OR

Session 2: Applied Disability Studies
Applied Behaviour Analysis in Actions!

Curious about how science can help people live happier, healthier lives? Join our interactive session led by PhD students from Brock’s Department of Applied Disability Studies, where we’ll explore real-world strategies used to support individuals with disabilities. Dive into the world of Applied Behaviour Analysis—from teaching picture-based communication to understanding challenging behaviour and beyond—our department is changing lives, one behaviour at a time!

Solutions

Session 1: Economics
How Economics Can Save the World

Students will be introduced to some key economics concepts and learn how to think like economists. Together we’ll apply this thinking to some problems that students might not think of when they hear “economics”—tackling climate change, curbing bad behaviour, or helping people get new kidneys!

Session 2: Communication, Popular Culture and Film
Do we need a ‘nutrition label’ for our internet plans?

Explore some of the common complaints Canadians have made about their home internet service and work in groups to prototype a nutrition style label for internet plans to provide clearer information to Canadian consumers in the future. This session will be facilitated by the Department of Communication, Popular Culture and Film.