Myra Heller with Year 3 at Newington Green

Interesting session on 25th November with the children. It's as if they have finally 'got' the concept of the 'outdoor classroom'. Much to my surprise and delight, I find that they actually like spending at least half their sessions recording their observations in their books with drawings and writing, because I expected them to want to be physically active the whole time and to find it hard to note down (some of them find it very hard to focus) their observations and learning. We have been writing weather reports the last two sessions and for some of those who find it hard to write, I have been asking them just to think of four words that sum up the weather. They have all tried hard and are understanding the value of their own looking and deducting, which is, of course, the beginning of empirical scientific study and therefore very satisfying as a learning process. We were looking at evergreens and deciduous trees and shrubs as a follow-on from hibernation and dormancy. Year 3 looked at the new buds about to break through on the apple and plum trees that are going in the new mini orchard and they planted blackcurrant and raspberry bushes.

Pictures from the Harvest Celebration at Newington Green Primary School

Year 3s at Newington Green Primary School with Myra Heller

We did hibernation and photoperiodism (though I did NOT try to get them to remember that word!). In other words, thinking about winter and cold and shorter days. So they related the wearing of coats and warm clothes to animals getting thicker furs and fattening up for winter, e.g. their central heating and shelter being leaves and holes. We also looked at this with regard to plants and planted some bulbs, covering them up in soil over winter.

We also discussed a little about how some plants and seeds actually needed to get cold and then hot to know it's spring again and to grow. They also can read the daylight length which is fascinating but a little too complicated! All this will be repeated gradually when we see the evidence in Spring.

We have bought a small self fertilizing Cox's Orange Pippin and a damson tree to put in the little orchard next to the nursery. The children continue to fill their garden notebooks. I am delighted with our little shed, and we have made a little picket fence rather proudly out of recycled pallets and decking found on the premises.

Newington Green Primary School workshops at King Henry's Walk Garden

"It was really fun today - playing games and making insects."

"I like this, I've never done it before!" (while making insects out of conkers, seeds, sticks etc)

"Mine's called a Conqueror (or Conkerer!)" - on making an insect out of a conker

"My favourite bit was sucking up nectar like a bee with the squirty thing" (pipette).

"Can I come here with my Mum and Dad on Saturday?"

"Can I be a fox and chase rabbits? I got eaten coz I was grass last time," while playing food chain games.

"I can't choose, I like everything" - on being asked what the day's favourite activity had been.

Hanover School at Culpeper Garden

Our session was on food chains and the kids made some lovely mobiles. Kirstie Mogilner asked the kids what they liked about The Garden Classroom sessions at Culpeper Garden. Charlotte liked digging. Elesha liked sowing seeds and found the different sizes “really interesting”. Mohammed liked digging, holding insects, and gardening. He might become a gardener when he grows up so that he can “grow potatoes and make chips and carrots”. Otto is “sort of” eating more vegetables now that he is growing his own. Petra liked looking at the minibeasts everywhere. Rodja liked looking in the pond. When asked where he came in the food chain Tommy stated that humans were at the end and “were the most dangerous predator that there is”.

Edible Islington at Culpeper Community Garden

Kirstie Mogilner, TGC facilitator at Culpeper on Tuesday afternoons, said after the workshop on 6th October:
We had a really good session today on food chains. Here are some photos from Culpeper - harvesting, planting, pond dipping and making food chain mobiles. Year 4 pupil Lula declared excitedly today: "We are scientists now!" One pupil promised that although he doesn't eat vegetables he will try some that he's grown himself.

Myra Heller at Newington Green Primary School. After School Gardening Club

Hugo, who is Spanish, and Can, who is Turkish, came to garden club this Tuesday. They are Year 6 boys and are great funds of knowlege. Can(pronounced Jan) is fantastic on plants and gardening and he told me about his huge family garden in Turkey which he sees around three times a year. We discussed the different names for plants in their languages and he wrote the names for some of them in my Mathew Biggs Fruit and Veg book. I told him how so many of our familiar plants and veg originated from his part of the world, Turkey and Iran: roses, lavender, tulips, vines, fig and olive and how the ancient Romans took so many of them round their Empire with them because they were so valuable for food, medicine and also for their beauty.

I am hoping that they make a photographic record of what they learn so that they can present an assembly about it, maybe in late spring when we have some more material.