The morning began under a relentless curtain of rain at the planned meetup spot, Garden City Lands Community Gardens. The sky churned with wind and water, and the thought of keeping the children outdoors for six hours in such weather quickly dissolved into a wiser plan: stay warm, stay indoors.

Lansdowne Center became the new destination, its sheltering walls offering a much-needed escape from the gloom, chill and wetness outside. As the group gathered and the last few stragglers arrived, Mae wheeled over her trusty cart, its contents carefully arranged. With a delighted smile, she began distributing Fujifilm Instax Mini cameras, their pastel hues adding a gentle contrast to the gray skies outside. One by one, the cameras made their way into eager hands, each child grasping their newfound treasure with awe and delight, their faces lighting up as if the rain had never existed.

As the initial thrill settled, Ben took center stage, raising one of the small cameras for all to see. “All right,” he began, his tone calm yet audible. “Here’s the plan. Explore Lansdowne Center with a grown-up, and focus on capturing pictures of shop signs.” He turned the camera in his hands and tapped the number indicator on the back. “See this? It tells you how much film you have left.”

The group leaned in, inspecting their own cameras. “I have 10!” Cain announced, his voice brimming with enthusiasm. “I have 5,” Luke followed, a thoughtful expression crossing his face.

Ben nodded, his gaze moving across the group. “Film is limited, so we’ll need to be intentional. Work together to decide who will take pictures of each shop sign. Remember, we’re sharing everyone’s photos for reference later. Once the film develops, place the pictures in this album.”

And with that, the adventure began. The children stepped out into the bustling center, their eyes scanning for shop signs as they moved through the bright, echoing halls. At first, they stayed close, an unspoken sense of camaraderie guiding their steps.

“I want to take Best Buy!” Cain declared, his hand tightening around his camera. Luke furrowed his brow. “But I wanted to take Best Buy!”

Ben stepped in, a gentle peacemaker. “Since Cain is taking Best Buy, and we’ll all share the photos later, Luke, how about you capture HomeSense?” Luke grinned and strode confidently toward the shop. “Me! I’ll take it.”

Meanwhile, Cain darted toward Rogers-Fido. “Rogers has a nice shade of red,” Ben suggested, watching him. “Can you fit Fido’s yellow into the same shot?”

Cain paused, taking a few steps back to widen his angle. The deliberate adjustment showed his growing understanding of composition.

Providing coverage to the shops that Cain was backfacing, Luke focused his lens on Langley Farm Market. The two boys exchanged subtle nods and quick smiles—a rhythm of teamwork unfolding silently between them. One shop sign after another fell into their photographic archive: The Best Shop, CM Link, Success Hair Salon, TD, Sumo Dino, Dollarama, Express Lane Post Office.

Cain and Luke exchanged quick nods and grins as they flawlessly traded off on which shop sign to photograph—a silent rhythm of teamwork.

More snapshots of the following shop fronts and signs were taken, reportedly not in the exact written order: The Best Shop, CM Link, Success Hair Salon, TD, Sumo Dino, Dollarama, Express Lane Post Office.

Click! Luke pressed the shutter to capture T&T, waiting expectantly for the camera to eject the photo. But when nothing happened, he turned to Ben, his expression a mix of confusion and disappointment.

Ben leaned in, inspecting the camera. “Looks like you’re out of film, Luke. You’ll need to grab a refill from Mae.”

Soon after, Cleon arrived, his energy like a whirlwind as he joined the group. Mae handed him a camera, and he wasted no time, zipping through the center with purpose. He stopped in front of Daiso, his eyes alight with determination.

Ben approached, smiling warmly. “Would you like to take the picture yourself, or should I help and include you in the shot?” “You do it,” Cleon replied decisively, his confidence unmistakable.

Inside the store, Cleon struck a pose—a stance that radiated boldness and pride. The camera whirred, the photo slid out, and Cleon snatched it with glee. He raced back to Cain, holding up his prize with an exuberant grin.

Nearly an hour had passed when the murmur of hunger began to ripple through the group. Ben decided to test the waters, speaking with playful candor. “I’m about 7 out of 10 hungry. How about you, Cain?”

“10!” Cain exclaimed without hesitation. Luke tilted his head, as if consulting his stomach. “2,” he finally answered.

All eyes turned to Cleon, who leapt dramatically from a bench. “A gazillion times hungry!” he shouted, his voice echoing through the hall.

The trio burst into laughter, their giggles carrying through the air. “If Cleon is a gazillion times hungry, that’s way more than 10!” Ben joked. “I think he’s saying he’s extremely hungry.

Luke reconsidered, stepping closer. “Actually, I’m 6 points hungry now.”

Unanimously, the group decided to pause their photo-taking adventure and head to the food court, their steps quickened by anticipation of a well-earned snack.

Ben set the stage by bringing out the children’s explorer notebooks, their curiosity piquing as they finished their snacks. He handed each of them their film albums, his voice steady and clear as he gave instructions: “Number one, look through your film album. Number two, note down the colors of the shop signs in your explorer notebook. If a color appears more than once, add a little plus symbol beside it in your notebook.”

The boys eagerly got to work, flipping through the pages of their film albums, their pens moving briskly across the pages of their explorer notebooks as they listed the shop sign colors.

Once they completed their task, Ben unveiled bottles of tempera and acrylic paint. He distributed palettes and brushes to each of them, offering a word of caution: acrylic paint, he warned, was far more stubborn and likely to stain clothing than tempera paint. “Now,” he continued, “paint a creation of your choice in your explorer notebook. But here’s the catch—you can only use the colors you’ve recorded in your notebook.”

With that, the boys rolled up their sleeves, bunching the fabric around their elbows, and dove into their artistic endeavors.

What they didn’t know was that a twist awaited them, like a puzzle waiting to be solved. To their surprise, there was no yellow, orange, purple, or pink paint in sight! Only red, green, blue, and white were provided. To proceed, they had to mix colors and experiment with the materials at hand. Carefully referencing their color lists, they squeezed fresh paint onto their palettes and began exploring the art of color blending.

Time was on their side, and the boys immersed themselves in their creations. Cain took to layering and texturing his paint, incorporating blobs to add dimension. Luke, whom Ben suspected had a fondness for yellow, worked with care and focus to recreate a fruit inspired from the Roblox video game. While Cleon was engrossed in mixing colors, testing combinations in his palette and alternating between the brush tip and handle to create unique strokes in his piece.

The artworks completed by the three boys ranged from immaculate patterns and carefully thought-out paintbrush strokes to strokes that seemingly felt unrestrained, spontaneous, and full of carefree energy.

Relevant Research