This week at school was certainly filled to the brim with exciting things. Grace's family came to school over the weekend and planted four apple trees. The kids have a new apple-tree-chore-chart and will be taking turns watering them each week until they grow big and strong. In three to five years they will start producing apples for us.
Each classroom also set up a new "worm factory," essentially a multi-level home for red wigglers. To prepare their new beds, we mixed composted alpaca and sheep manure from Ms. McKenzie's farm with coconut coir, shredded newspaper, and pumice stone. Then we added more shredded paper, about a thousand worms (each!), and covered them with wet sheets of paper. We fed them some yummy apples, bananas, and carrots to get started. Over time the kids will learn that we can feed them the scraps from snack and lunch too... yet another way to responsibly dispose of food and waste. Did you know you can even feed them dryer lint, paper, and hair?!
Imaad's mom also came this week to do henna with Ms. Melodie's class since they have been studying India. The kids were totally into the sweet little designs she made. Their hands are now covered with hearts, planets, stars, letters, and flowers. It was a really neat sensory experience for them.
For snack this week, Ms. Marie's kids prepared avocados with fresh lemon juice and sea salt. They were shockingly popular! Some of the kids even went back to make some for the teachers! Ms. Melodie's class scrambled eggs this morning with cheese, tomatoes, and onions. Of course, the toppings were optional, but the kids were surprisingly brave and loved using the spatula to stir the eggs on the hotplate. We have some budding chefs around here!
