Helping pod beans

I haven't had a huge harvest of broad beans this year as there were lots of pests and they're really better if planted in the autumn which I ran out of time to do. But we did have enough for a couple of meals. I made broad bean dip with lemon and garlic which was a big hit with carrot sticks to dip and also a bean and tomato stew which got demolished! My little boy loved podding the beans, finding the surprises inside, counting the beautiful pale green brand new beans and sorting them from the skins. Lots of skills employed here- concentrating, maths, manual dexterity as well as learning about gardening and where food comes from.

Strawberry time!

It's been an amazing year for soft fruit this year and all the children have been involved in picking them, helping to weigh them and of course eating them! We harvested 25kgs this year! Wow! I've made jam, sauce and frozen lots too so we can enjoy them for many months to come in yogurts or smoothies or cakes. Yum yum!

Helping cook a Tortilla

The children wanted to help me cook supper. I often do a bit of cooking in the afternoon so the food is ready after the school run and I can then spend more time with the small ones after their naps. Today I was making a Spanish tortilla with home grown potatoes and chard as well as feta and sweet potato. First we went out in the garden to pick some herbs: mint and bay leaves and they enjoyed smelling them. We also have lavendar, thyme, lemon balm, parsley and basil growing so the garden is a brilliant place for the children to explore their senses.

Both children wanted to see the tortilla veggies cooking so they knew they needed a step each and went to find them, good team work! We talked about it being hot and not to touch the pan so it's a good learning experience about safety.

When the veg was done I said I needed some helpers to smoosh the eggs and there were lots of giggles and shouts of me me! I showed them how to bash/tap the eggs and break them into the bowl then they beat them up really well.

Final result- ta da! Should probably have taken pics of the empty plates! My youngest baby ate 2 portions and he's not always the best eater so obviously a big hit. I usually serve it with ham and we call it a Green Eggs and Ham and read pages from that brilliant books hitch the kids all love!

 

Group bus ride!

Furzedown primary school early years playground has some fabulous play equipment, lots funded by the school PTA which is brilliant. My youngest, in the orange coat was very happy when everyone wanted to come down to her playground at pick up time and this was a perfect photo op when they decided to play buses together, very sweet!

Walking home in the sun!

The bigger children including my neighbours daughter love holding hands with the little ones when we walk home. I'm so happy the weather is warming up again and we are starting to spend much more time outside either in the garden or at the park.

Flower pics

Gardening seed catalogues arrive in the post in hoards in my house and they are a brilliant source for arts and crafts activities! We can talk about sizes and shapes of flowers, compare with what's in the garden, say which ones are our favourites, choose colours and even find animals in some of the magazines. The bigger kids can practice their cutting skills and everyone can do the glueing and sticking to make some really cheerful pictures that any fridge would be proud to display!

Planting time

It's a busy time of year for gardening! We had our lunch outside at the table and then did some planting. I showed my little girl the tray which I had started off with 2 bean seeds in each module I then asked her to copy and put the same number of beans into each square. She managed really well and could count how many she needed at the end.we then covered the beans with compost and she enjoyed this messy bit! When she comes back after the Easter holiday the beans will hopefully have germinated and she will be able to see the fruits of her labours.