A "city-approved fan test" was done on the gingerbread houses of Grade 1 and 2 students at Manoah Steves elementary last week to look for "air leakage."
Each single-detached gingerbread house made by Cara Rogers' Division 10 students was tested to ensure their houses were airtight and had "enough icing" to keep them upright.
Submitting building permit applications and getting approvals from seven City of Richmond departments are all part of the permitting process for the students, but the air test came as a surprise during the final inspection this week.
The Grade 1/2 students at Manoah Steves elementary eagerly awaited city inspectors, including the "Gingerbread House Senior Specialist for the City of Richmond"," on Dec. 12 to give them official permission to eat the 20 gingerbread houses in their gingerbread city.
Fred Tewfik, manager of inspections, planning and development with the City of Richmond, said he couldn't say no to the second annual inspection request, but he and his team wanted to add an extra requirement for the students.
"(The air test) has been around for several years, we have different energy requirements for new constructions and this is one of the tests that needs to be done on all new constructions to make sure that things are air-tight," said Tewfik.
This is the second year city inspectors have come to Manoah Steves elementary to ensure the gingerbread houses were built to spec, something Twefik said was an "enjoyable" for the city workers.
"It's so nice to see the kids asking these questions about what we do," said Tewfik.
"Everything we build out there is for these kids -- our next generation."
Rogers told the Richmond News the class also focused on the necessary things required to build a home this year.
"It's about understanding the difference between what is required to build a home, such as walls, roofs or doors, and what is a want," said Rogers
"Housing is a big topic in our city and the students learn that not all people have large homes. Some might live in apartments, cars or even tents."
Staff from the City of Richmond's sustainability department were also at the final inspection to answer questions about bats, a topic the students were learning about during their unit on communities.
Environmental coordinators spoke about being aware of where we build our homes and how as people "we want to make sure we don't disturb wildlife."
Rogers' class studied bats this fall and created an art wall outside the classroom with information on their favourite bats.
"The students loved learning about where bats stay and live in Richmond and they were surprised to learn how a 'home' was built specifically for bats in Terra Nova. This is about them questioning and exploring beyond their own walls and about how our homes contribute to the wider community."
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