Walk To School Thursday

What a great morning we had on Thursday. Over 300 children made the decision to get up a couple of minutes earlier than normal and walk to school. On arrival there was a great breakfast spread waiting for them.

With the help of a keen and hard working staff we managed to serve juice, bircher muesli and breakfast muffins loaded up with baby spinach, tomato, bacon and melted mozzarella cheese

I have had so many requests for the recipe, from children, parents who were there and staff,  here it is.
The one thing about all the food was that I chose two two dishes that children will be able to make themselves at home. Of course when it comes to heating up items in the oven, it is important that there is adult supervision to ensure the safety of the children.

This is what the children had
Bircher Muesli  
             2 cups of vanilla yogurt   ( I use yogurt that I make myself. If you haven't made your own, its worth giving it a try)
             2 cups of rolled oats
             1 cup of milk
             1 handful of dried apples (diced)
             For those that don't have a nut allergy, add a handful of mixed nuts.

 mix all of this together in a large mixing bowl and cover with plastic wrap.
  I then put this bowl in the fridge overnight.
When serving  put fresh bananas, blueberries or whatever fruit you would like with it. Sprinkle cinnamon on top and that's it ready to eat.

Breakfast Muffins

            1 English muffin split
            Basil Pesto  (warning : this can contain nuts)
            Baby spinach leaves
            tomato
            bacon  (cooked and crispy)
            Mozzarella cheese

Layer all the ingredients on the muffin in the order that they are written. Leave of the pesto if anyone is allergic to nuts. Place on an oven tray and heat in the oven until the cheese has melted and gone golden brown.
Carefully remove from oven and enjoy while hot.

Finish this off with a glass of fresh juice and you have had a great easy breakfast to start the day.

To other things happening around the kitchen garden this week.

On Tuesday we are having a visit from the Stephanie Alexander Foundation. They are coming out to have a look at what we have in place and discuss what we have planned for the future.
The year 6 classes have been studied the scientific properties of yeast in their science lessons. They are going to start to make different types of bread so they can see first hand what yeast does to both the appearance of bread and its taste.
We are also starting to see some volunteers from our 2 community partners, Seed Savers and Perennial Poppies come on site and start to work in the gardens.
So as I said, we have had a busy week and more to come.

Until next week,

Stay safe and enjoy life

Ross T

      

First up, my apologies for not updating the blog for a couple of weeks.  People from the school community will know that the last couple of weeks have been very hectic preparing for the annual concert, then we went into our spring vacation so the blog was put aside.
Even though this was going on, the garden and the kitchen did not get neglected.


We have spent time re-arranging the hale bales into their final gardens and staking up the tomato plants and thinning out some of the other crops.
Spinach is ready to be cut and the snow peas are coming along well. The carrots are almost ready to pick.

There are plans already to extend the size of the garden. We are looking at having a second garden, that will be a dedicated vegetable garden.

As crops are picked in the existing garden, that area will be devoted to herbs, flowering crops and ornamental vines such as gourds that can be grown and children in the lower school will be able to use them as musical instruments

In the kitchen we had two solid weeks of cooking with the Year 5 French classes and the Year 6 Japanese classes.

The Year 5's spent their time cooking crepes and sitting down and enjoying eating their results. These classes were the first to use the kitchen on mass and the end results were extremely pleasing.
The  facilities and the layout of the kitchen worked better than our expectations. With 28 children and 7 adults in the space, there was no feeling of being cramped or overcrowded.

The Year 6 children cooked Sushi the following week. This had more preparation time and was more complex to assemble, but the children really showed how talented they are and made some very good looking sushi rolls. They made two types, one was a ham and cucumber and the other was a chicken, mayo and lettuce.

All this wouldn't have been possible if we didn't have the support from our parents, both mums and dads, who came in and helped the children. Thanks to all of you.

Next week we have the pizza oven arriving. We are building a secure lockable area to place it. We are hoping to start the construction of both in week 4.

For those people that are reading this and not in contact with members of the school community, the other piece of great news is that the school applied for, and received a $60,000.00 grant from the Stephanie Alexander Kitchen Garden Foundation. (If you would like to read more about the Stepahanie Alexander Foundation go www.kitchengardenfoundation.org.au ) This grant is run in conjunction with the Queensland Government and is to be used over the next 3 years to get our gardens and kitchen fully established and the program integrated into the Burpengary school's curriculum.

Until next week stay safe and enjoy life,

Ross T

Our Gardens Are Up and Growing

What a great day the kids of 7B and I had on Wednesday. Bunnings at Morayfield came out to the school with a truck load of plants and equipment for our garden.
The kids had worked really hard assembling the 4 garden beds that Bunnings had already donated to us. We had those in place and filled with soil ready for planting. As Jenny and Josh (from Bunnings) came in we noticed they were carrying another 2 garden beds. It didn't take long for a couple of children to get those assembled and ready for planting.

"I think this joins to this?"

Almost finished.

We've finished.

Once that was done, the children were keen to get planting. Bunnings had brought along gloves for each child, hand trowels, diggers and forks. The first bag opened had the kids turning up their noses, they had discovered what blood and bone fertiliser smelt like. Once they had spread that throughout the beds, Jenny and Josh spent alot of time explaining to the children how to transplant all the seedlings without excessive stress. Depth to plant and distance between plants was explained as well. The children really worked well and planted out all the varities and then labelled them.

The final things to do was carefully cover all the garden beds with a layer of mulch then water all the seedlings.

All the children were pleased with their great work and have organised a roster system for the class to keep up a good water suply and make sure they keep the gardens weed free.

Jenny and Josh helping erect the garden. 

Working hard to move the soil.

Last load.

Working on the beds

Carefully planting Chives.

There was one garden bed left unplanted. On Friday 7C came into the garden and have planted this with seed potatoes. They are using a no dig method of growing these, so they will be constantly monitoring the growth of them and covering the new stem growth with new mulch and soil.

Again a big thankyou must go to Bunnings Warehouse. None of this would have been possible if it were not for their outstanding support.

One of the finished beds

What a Great Week for the School

This week was a special one for all the school.

Our first piece of  good news was that two community groups have formed a partnership with the school to add their vast knowledge bank to our garden project. Both Seed Savers  and Perennial Poppies are very active in the propagation and preservation of heritage vegetables, herbs and flowers. These groups have offered their support in both knowledge and "hands on" activities to our children. This will mean that we will not only have extra hands to help us, but we also be able to access their facilities and workshops.

It is great to have these two groups working with us. This makes the the project a true community effort.

The second great thing was that the children finally had access to both the kitchen and the senior library. Thursday saw most of the year 5,6, and 7 classes have a tour through the facilities. Instead of me talking more about it, I'm putting some more photos up and some of the children's comments. These were given to me at the end of the day on all sorts of pieces of paper and notes.

I think their comments say it all.

"I can't wait to start using the new kitchen with the amazing kitchen equipment and to eat what we cook."  Shei

"I think the new kitchen is awesome. I'll finally know how to cook."  Tamika

"I can't wait till I get to be a BSS cook. It's going to be so much fun. The building looks awesome."  Kelsie

"The kitchen is totally awesome! I love the huge ovens and I can't wait to start cooking. Just imagining cooking is soooo exciting! Let's hope we can cook cupcakes."  Liv

" I think the kitchen is foodtastic!"  Mac

                        'Kitchen's great, looking forward to cooking. I can't wait for the cooking to start. I'm so excited, It's fantastic!  Brodie

"When I saw the kitchen I was pleasantly surprised. The kitchen looks great and I think the builders have done a good job."   Weng

I think the school is on to a winner with this project.

Until next week,

Stay safe and enjoy life.

Ross T 

Sneak Peak at the Kitchen

Here are a couple of photos of inside the kitchen. I was in there on Tuesday and was very impressed with the facility. I can't image many other primary schools having such a fantastic resource. Once it is fitted out with cooking utensils, small electrical appliances, cutlery etc the children will have an invaluable resource.

This is looking in from the front door. the two  island work benches each have two 4 burner cook tops and an oven underneath

Looking from inside to the servery that
allows easy access to the outside eating area.

This end of the kitchen will be the teaching area. There is a screen to go onto the wall, this will be used to project recipes, instructions etc. This then eliminates the need to use paper recipes.
As you can see, it is a very impressive building, one that all parents and students should be proud to have.


In the other area of the school, the garden fence is coming along well.  I have had great support from the groundsman Denis and we have been able to get most of one side constructed. All the post are concreted in , all that has to happen now is the panels are to be bolted into place. Once that is done I will start on the southern fence. Hopefully by this time next week the garden area will be fully enclosed and just waiting for the construction of the gardens.

When we have official access to the grounds surrounding the kitchen, I will be starting to plant the herb gardens around it. 

So as you can see we are so much closer to having full use of all the facilities needed for the garden project.
The children are starting to get excited about what they can see. All we need now is for the chicken run to be completed and we'll be fully operational.
In next weeks blog I hope to be able to have more detailed photos of both the kitchen and the gardens.

Until then
Stay safe and enjoy life

Ross T                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                               

Great News

Welcome to the Burpengary Green Gardens update.

Some  great news this week.

First up, Bunnings Warehouse at Morayfield has donated four raised garden beds to the project. These will be assembled by some year 7 children, then in June, Bunnings will come to the school with seedlings, potting mixture, gloves etc and help the children plant the gardens.

Second piece of good news is that the fencing for the vegetable garden has arrived. In the next week or so I’ll be starting to build it.  It's come in sections, all I have to do is follow the instructions and install it. Hopefully I won't experience any major construction problems.

The Kitchen has been delayed, but the hand over is now scheduled for next week, so it looks like both kitchen and garden will come on-line simultaneously.

Once I have access to the kitchen I'll be able to post those photos I promised you awhile ago. At least any photos taken now will not include all the rubble from the builders and installers.

I am really looking forward to the next couple of weeks as that is when I can really start to get things "growing". It has been a long time coming but at last we are at the end of the wait.

Until next week,

Stay safe and enjoy life

Ross T

Welcome Back

It's been a couple of weeks since the last update. With the Easter break, then the long weekend, time certainly flew.
While we were away from the school, the construction workers were busy.
I did a walk through of the kitchen today and it's looking great. I was amazed at how much room there is inside. Now that all the cabinets, benchtops and work spaces are in you can see that there is space for a whole class, and helpers to work comfortably.
At the moment the handover of the kitchen is planned to take place in the second half of next week.

I saw a great article on Litter Free Lunches during the holidays. I have modified it slightly so that it is more suited to a school environment, but I think a concept like this is a great way to start to reduce litter.
Give me some feed back on what you think, I would like to get something like yhings going in the school. The amount of rubbish going into landfill would greatly be reduced.

Next week I hope to have some photos of the kitchen on the site. It will give you a chance to get a sneak preview of what the school has had constucted.

Until then, stay safe and enjoy life.

Ross T

Sprouts are Delicious

The sprouts are growing beautifully and went into the tuck shop on Wednesday. From all reports they have been enjoyed by everyone who has had them. The zingy taste from the radish and the fenugreek has been a hit. far better than the plain old alfalfa sprouts.

One Year 5 class was so concerned about their sprouts, they sent them home with their teacher over the weekend. They were well looked after. Mrs Johnson gave them their own lounge chair to stretch out on, kept their fluids up and made sure they had a weekend to remember. Here's a photo of our laid back sprouts. I'm convinced that's why they have so much flavour.

We are starting to get a stockpile of fruits and vegetables that we can replant into the garden once it is established. Seed potatoes are available at the moment so I have collected some of those. They will be the first vegetable to be planted into a no dig garden.  I use an easy harvest method to grow my potatoes, so I'll put it in next weeks blog. It is a great way to grow them especially if you're short on space. The other advantage is that you don't need to use forks or shovels, so it is a very safe activity for children. 

I've also got some raspberry canes for planting against the fence. These will have a dual purpose. One is that we'll get some great fruit once they are mature and two, they make a great deterrent against intruders.

There has been a lot of paperwork to be done this week. There are risk assessment tasks to complete, Agriculture Operations and Animal Welfare and Ethics policies that must be strictly followed, and various checklists made. Once completed and implemented, you’ll have the comfort of knowing that your children will be working in an outdoor environment that has met all safety standards set by the relevant government departments.

As I walk through the school, the interest shown by the children is amazing. Kids from all year levels are asking about both the garden and the kitchen. Down in Year 3 the children have been learning the art of persuasive writing. I spent about 40 minutes listening to some very compelling  arguments as to why we must grow tomatoes in our vegie garden. These children had done their research and knew the health benefits, and the needs and requirements of tomatoes. Going by their eagerness and knowledge I am feeling confident that the gardens will be in good hands.

Until next week,

Take care and enjoy life

Ross T

Earth Hour and Sprouts

Welcome to another Burpengary Green Gardens update.

At 8:30 pm, 26 March 2011 lights go off for Earth Hour.

This phenomenon was started in Sydney in 2007 when 2.2 million individuals and more than 2000 businesses turned their lights off for 1 hour to take a stand against climate change. On Saturday 27 March, Earth Hour 2010 became the biggest Earth Hour ever. A record 128 countries and territories joined the global display of climate action. Iconic buildings and landmarks from Asia Pacific to Europe and Africa to the Americas switched off.

2011 has seen even more countries, businesses and individuals pledge their support for this chance to help the planet.

This year wouldn't it be great to go beyond the hour and make a change in your lives that will benefit the entire planet. So after the lights go back on, think about what else you can do to make a difference.

Together our actions add up.

This  week it was the Year 5 children who commenced their kitchen garden project. Each class has a sprouting kit and have now started the process of germinating their seeds.

I brought along a couple of already prepared sprouts for the children to see and to taste. Most kids were keen on the alfalfa, but were not too fussed on the mung beans. I explained that by themselves these can be quite bland, that is why we are using a blend of alfalfa, wheat, mung beans, radish and fenugreek seeds. This gives the mixture some extra "bite" to it. If going by the children's reaction, the fenugreek seeds were a winner in the mix. Just the aroma of them had the kids taste buds in overdrive.

The kids made sure they had the correct mix of seeds,

Stacked the trays,

Then added water to encourage their seeds to sprout.

I mentioned last week that I would post the recipe for the sprouts the kids are growing. Here it is below.  You don't need to have a kit like the kids have used, a large glass jar will do the job.

GROWING SPROUTS

                    Sprouting Mix

                    Ratio of mix is comprised of

4                 alfalfa

1                 wheat

1                 lentils

1                 radish

       1                 fenugreek

          1                 mung beans

The first thing you need is a glass jar, ideally with the opening at the top slightly smaller than the bottom. Ajar approx 20 centimetres high by 15 centimetres in diameter is ample.

The only other pieces of equipment you will need are a strong rubber band, and a square of fly screen gauze, preferably made of nylon for easier use and cleaning.

Growing

The first step is to soak the seeds (approx 3 tablespoons) in the jar for 3-4 hours, or overnight.

After soaking, the gauze is secured over the mouth of the jar and the water is emptied out.   At least 3 or 4 good rinses with fresh water are necessary to remove any of the old residual water. All the water is then drained off completely and the seeds gently rolled around so they spread over the entire inside surface of the jar, to which they adhere quite easily.

The jar is now left in a light place  --  but NEVER in direct sunlight.

Rinses such as these are repeated twice every day, always making sure to rinse well and drain the water completely before returning the jar to its position.

Within a week the sprouts will have germinated and are ready for harvesting.

Rinse the sprouts 3 or 4times and place the sprouts in a salad spinner and spin all excess water from them.

Store in a sealed container in the fridge where they will keep for about a week.

The Worms Have Arrived

Latest news to report is that the the Year 4 children have all got worms. They have Red Wrigglers, Blue Worms and Tiger Worms. At least there is no need to panic. All worms are well and truly being looked after by the keen worm farmers.

The children went through the process of assembling the

worm farms, starting by locking in the legs onto the base.

Once that was completed they placed wet newspaper

 down as bedding for the worms and to stop the worms

 from falling through into the bottom tray.

Next came the exciting part for the kids. Their first chance to sight

their worms.

 All the children handling the worms, both while setting them up and when they feed them daily will be wearing gloves. The importance of this is twofold. It is important from a hygienic side. Washing of hands after they have finished has also been stressed. 

The other reason for the gloves is for the health of the worms. Coming in contact with human skin is not healthy for the worms.

Once the worms had been removed from their box, the children then helped settle them into their new home

After  settling into their homes they were fed and then finally put to bed to have a good night sleep.



It won't be long before the children are collecting litres of great liquid fertilizer for the garden.

To Other News:

The Year 5 children begin their projects for the garden. In Science they are doing a unit called Plants in Action. As an add on to this unit they will be growing sprouts for the tuckshop and eventually for the kitchen as well.

I will post photos of the children starting their sprout gardens and also a very easy method to grow your own sprouts at home.

Until next week,

Stay safe and enjoy life,

Ross Tattersall

A Great Week for Year 4

What a great week for myself and for the Year 4 children. I spent time with each class during the week introducing them to their worm farms. We discussed what they already new about composting worms, what they would like to know and how they were going to care for them.
The knowledge that some children had on worms was amazing. When you have children talking about the anatomical parts of the worms and how they breed, is a sign that these kids are switched on to nature and our environment. All the children were aware that these worms can go a long way in helping us reduce our waste and the importance of symbiotic relationships within nature.
We looked at the physical requirements for the worms and how we can keep them healthy and  safe. It is very important that the farms are well away from sunlight and from sudden variations in temperature, so the children are very happy with the spot chosen for their 'homes'.
The children are very aware of what these worms can and cannot have, so I'm sure there will be some very interesting discussions for the first couple of weeks as the worms are fed.

In other areas of the kitchen garden project, we are almost ready to start to fence off the designated areas for the gardens and the chicken run.
Teachers are discussing in year level meetings and with me, as to what the children will be growing and what they will be cooking once the kitchen is commissioned.
A priority of the program is to keep cooking costs as low as possible. This means that the majority of ingredients must be sourced from the garden. To make this possible we must look carefully at what is in season, what it can be used in and is it suitable for the children to cook. Like any new project we will be starting with the basics and working up to the complex as we all become familiar with the garden and the kitchen. This is going to be a giant learning curve for all involved.

I have many organic gardening books and recipes books that are specifically designed for projects such as this schools. If you are interested in browsing through any of these, come and see.

Next week I will post photos of the children setting up their worm farms.

Until then

Stay safe and enjoy life.

Ross Tattersall

Things Are Starting To Happen

Welcome to this weeks update.
You may not see it happening, but projects are getting under way around the school. This is the first signs that the Kitchen Garden is on its way.
The Year 4 children are the first to start a component of the garden. Starting on Tuesday 8 March, each Year 4 class will have a worm farm to look after. They will be involved in the setting up of each farm and be learning how to care for and maintain a very important part of the garden program.
Working with the worm farms will involve looking at the needs and requirements of the worms and how we at school can deliver those requirements.
The children will be establishing seperate refuse bins for food scraps that are suitable for the worms. Eventually when the chickens are on site, any suitable leftover scraps will be able to go them as well. Other unsuitable scraps will go into our composting bins, so that will also eventually be returned to the gardens.
Within weeks of establishing the worm farms the children will be collecting liquid fertilizer. This is one of the best forms of fertilizer, as it can be used at full strength or diluted with water. It is safe to use on all types of both indoor and outdoor plants as it does not burn the roots or leaves and is 100% organic. Eventually the children will also be able to collect the worm castings (solid waste matter) and use it around their plants.
Already I have heard how keen both the children and the teachers are to start up their garden project.
To other areas of the Kitchen Garden.
The constructrion of the kitchen is almost to lock up stage, so it won't be long before we are able to move into it and start cooking.
After the Parent nights, we had so many people offer their assistance in helping out with enclosing the vegie garden and chicken run. Once we have a start date for that we'll be asking for volunteers to assist in that project.
I am meeting with teachers over the next couple of weeks to plan out a cooking/gardening overview. As that is developed I will update you on what will be involved in that program.

Don't forget that Sunday is "Clean Up Australia Day." If every one did the right thing at the time there would be no need to have this day.  Se what you can do on Sunday and for every day that follows.

Until next week

Stay safe and enjoy life.

Ross T

What's Happened This Week

Thank you to all the people that have offered support and encouragement to the school in what it is doing in this Life Skills program. The feedback from parents at the two, Parent/Teacher nights has been overwhelming.

This week has been a productive one. The kitchen floor plan has been finalised, so its now time to investigate what white goods are best suited to the school's needs.

When you see the finished product I think you'll agree, the children will have a wonderful space to work in.

The work shed has started to be cleared out in preparation for its overhaul into a comfortable chicken coop.

Many people have asked what shape and form the vegetable garden is going to take.

The plan at the moment is to have all garden beds raised. Some of these will be the curved corrugated iron type that are available from Bunnings etc. We plan in using these to plant the many different types of herbs that we'll be growing.

The second type will be constructed from straw bales. There are many advantages to using this type of garden bed.
The first  is that they are easily relocated if the need arises. Secondly once they start to break down after approx 12 months they can be replaced with new ones and the old ones are used as mulch to replenish the new gardens. Thirdly, the width and height of the bales is ideal for the children. They are at their height for bending over to reach their produce and it gives the children a place to sit while they are working.
Other advantages are it's a "no dig" garden. This allows planting to begin without a lot work being done on the soil.

Before the soil goes into the garden, mulch, garden scraps and kitchen scraps can be placed into the base to give a natural layer of organic compost.

The soil is then placed over the top of this and the garden is

 ready for planting. The depth of the beds give enough room

below the surface for crops such as carrotts, potatoes etc. to grow.

Very soon after planting, our garden will start to look like this.

Hopefully that has given you a better idea as to what will be taking shape in the near future.

If you have any more questions or would just like to follow the blog, please do not hesitate to join in.

Until next week,

Stay safe and enjoy life,

Ross T