It was on the Radio 4 farming Today programme that I heard about it, when reporters visited a school where a class of 6 year olds was learning how to grow bread: they had planted wheat and were tending it carefully, weeding the soil and measuring the height of the plants as a prelude to harvesting, milling and then turning the grains into bread. Not only was it educational and healthy, but the children loved their project, even cherishing the weeds they removed to take home to their own gardens.
Farming Today can be a depressing though realistic start to the day with news of farming problems, animal culls, environmentally unfriendly practices and intensive farming techniques; indeed, the Bake your Lawn feature, today, came next to a report on farmers gluing their cows’ udders to stiffen them into a certain shape to help them win in competitions. Hearing the pleasure of these young children as they cared for their wheat was delightful, and I hope it will encourage them to continue to interact with the land as they grow older, appreciating the simplicity and wonder of nature and what it gives us. Perhaps ideas like this can be a part of the national curriculum?!
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G'day, Claire!
Perhaps this idea could also work for you? After all, with all the bats hanging out where you live there would be an ample supply of fertiliser, eh?
But not many schoolchildren to do the weeding! Thank you.