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Re: Classroom talk



Beth asked about classroom talks......a subject near and dear to my heart. 
 We have quite a large number of classroom tours at the farm, and have done
some in-school visits as well. It is always exciting to me to introduce city
kids to the wonders of our growth cycles.
With the young ones, we generally talk about what plants need to grow, and
then look at different ways to get heat, light, water, healthy soil, etc. I
show them before and after compost, and have started worm boxes with in-school
groups. We make a huge mural (I have collected plastic fruits and veggies to
velcro on, but you could use markers or paint), which illustrates the plant
parts (roots, stems, leaves, fruit), and the other things necessary for
growth. 
A favorite game is a farmer relay, in which each team receives a miscellaneous
box of "stuff". Each person must put on the farmer hat, grab an item from the
box, and run to one of three empty boxes, labeled "grown on the farm", "not
grown on the farm", or "used on the farm" .  When all the teams are done, we
talk about the items, and usually find that most items had a farm
origin.--Quite enlightening to city kids!
I don't know if you have honey bees on your farm, but beekeeping is also
another favoite topic, as well as birdwatching. I really like to stress the
interrelationships of all these things.
You could also take some samples of vegetables that you grow, and let them
identify and taste. Lettuce is a good one to do this with. Most kids are only
familiar with tasteless iceberg. They love to see the reds and greens,
oakleaves and deertongue.
Sorry this ended up being so long. If I can be of any further help, let me
know.
Linda
Homestead Farms