Art project with pressed flowers

Here's an art project to do with older children that I found on a website, gardeninginla.net. Let me know if you try it!

Decorate candles with flowers and foliage that you've grown and pressed yourself. Place small flowers, leaves, and vines between paper towels, and weigh down with a heavy book overnight. Pieces should be limp but not moist or crispy. Use a glue stick to tack them into place on candles. Mix and match colors, or use white candles to highlight the colors of the flowers and leaves. In an empty coffee can tall enough to hold the candle, melt six cakes of paraffin by setting it in a pan of boiling water. Dip the candle, with its tacked-on flowers and leaves, into the liquid paraffin, and hold it or set it upright until it's cool. Dip again if a thicker coating is desired.  

Ms. Palo's Class Makes Succotash, Learns about Deer Grass and Votes for Favorite Vegetables

Today Ms. Palo's 4th graders made succotash. This was a follow-up to their planting a Three Sisters Garden as 3rd graders. Succotash normally contains corn, squash and beans. Today's recipe contained corn, squash, peppers and onions. The recipe below contains all of the above ingredients.

All of the students participated in the cutting of the vegetables which we then cooked in an electric skillet. The food was delicious and the students had seconds.

Ms. Palo suggested that the students make this dish as part of their family's Thanksgiving meal. Both she and I will do this! This would be appropriate as this is Native American Heritage Month.

The traditional succotash recipe is just beans, corn and squash. We added a few more ingredients to make it more colorful.

Marquez Succotash Recipe

Ingredients

1/4 cup olive oil
3 T. unsalted butter
2 cloves garlic, finely chopped
1 medium onion, cut into 1/4 inch pieces
1 medium red bell pepper, seeded and cut into 1/4-inch pieces
1 medium yellow bell pepper, seeded and cut into 1/4 inch pieces
3 medium zucchini, cut into 1/4-inch pieces
1 package frozen lima beans, rinsed and drained
1/4 package frozen green beans or 1 c. fresh green beans
3 cups fresh or frozen corn kernels (4 ears)
Salt and pepper to taste
1 T. fresh thyme leaves

DIRECTIONS

In a large skillet, heat oil and butter over medium-high heat. Add garlic and onion; cook about 4 minutes. Add peppers, zucchini, beans, and corn.  Use any combination or type of beans that you wish. Season with salt and pepper. Cook, stirring occasionally, until vegetables are tender, about 10 minutes. Stir in thyme and enjoy.

The students also learned that Deer Grass was used by the Chumash and Tongva to make baskets. We are currently growing this native plant in our Native American Garden.

The class voted for their favorite vegetables. Corn was the most popular.

4th Graders Eat Succotash

Today Ms. Gardner's class and Ms. Chaides' class ate succotash.  Ms. Gardner's class also worked in the garden. This "lesson" is a follow-up to the Three Sisters Garden that they planted as 3rd graders last spring. We reviewed the plants from that garden-corn, beans and squash. Since this is Native American Heritage Month, the experience was well timed.

In the garden Ms. Gardner's class reviewed white sage and also learned about Cleveland sage and purple sage. Some students planted purple sage seeds, others amended a raised bed and planted parsley seeds.

The traditional succotash recipe is just beans, corn and squash. I added a few more ingredients to make it more colorful.

Marquez Succotash Recipe

Ingredients

1/4 cup olive oil
3 T. unsalted butter
2 cloves garlic, finely chopped
1 medium onion, cut into 1/4 inch pieces
1 medium red bell pepper, seeded and cut into 1/4-inch pieces
1 medium yellow bell pepper, seeded and cut into 1/4 inch pieces
3 medium zucchini, cut into 1/4-inch pieces
1 package frozen lima beans, rinsed and drained
1/4 package frozen green beans or 1 c. fresh green beans
3 cups fresh or frozen corn kernels (4 ears)
Salt and pepper to taste
1 T. fresh thyme leaves

DIRECTIONS

In a large skillet, heat oil and butter over medium-high heat. Add garlic and onion; cook about 4 minutes. Add peppers, zucchini, beans, and corn.  Use any combination or type of beans that you wish. Season with salt and pepper. Cook, stirring occasionally, until vegetables are tender, about 10 minutes. Stir in thyme and enjoy.

Ms. Connor's Class Graphs Vegetables and Plants

In today's garden lesson, Ms. Connor's class discussed their favorite vegetables and made a colorful bar graph. They reviewed the parts of the vegetables that they eat, e.g. flower and stem of broccoli, root of carrot.  They wrote about the graphing in their journals. They then planted seeds of radish, lettuce and carrots in the Peter Rabbit Garden. They observed that lettuce seeds are tiny. We discussed that we cover tiny seeds with just a little bit of soil.  The children then watered their seeds. The lettuce seeds should germinate in 7-14 days. We finished the lesson with tastings of carrots and tomatoes. (As always, we taught half the class at a time.) Thanks to Mrs. Vander Veen for volunteering.

Recording a favorite vegetable during the lesson

Room 40's Favorite Vegetables

Ms. Schwartz's Class Plants

Ms. Schwartz's 3rd graders planted cool season seedlings in the garden today. They planted broccoli, cabbage, cauliflower and lettuce.  We covered the brassicas (all the above except lettuce) with row covers to protect them from the cabbage moth. In addition they planted pansies in the butterfly garden. Thanks to Carolyn H. for volunteering today.

Ms. Wilkinson's Class Makes Salsa

This week Ms. Wilkinson's 3rd grade class made salsa. This was a follow-up to their planting of tomatoes, cilantro and peppers in the Salsa Garden when they were in 2nd grade. The student chefs did excellent work and the salsa was delicious with tortilla chips. We had used two heirloom tomatoes and discussed the meaning of heirloom. One girl answered that the seeds had been saved from tomatoes that people had eaten in the past.  I told the students that they can plant the end of the green onion and grow another one. The salsa was colorful due to the use of yellow and red tomatoes, cilantro and jalapeno peppers. Thanks to Gelson's for providing the ingredients. Thanks to Kelli Swartz and Karen Shaw who volunteered.

Salsa Recipe

8 tomatoes (plus extra if desired)
1-2 jalapeno peppers (cut in small pieces and seeded)
2 green onions
1/2 bunch cilantro
3 T. olive oil
3 T. lime juice
2 garlic cloves
salt and pepper to taste

Preparation:
1. Cover the tables with plastic tablecloths or newspaper. Give each child a serrated plastic knife and a plate.
2. Write recipe on the board and discuss.
3. Pass out laminated directions for each center, e.g. tomato, garlic, olive oil, lime juice, jalapeno pepper, onions and cilantro.
4. Pass out ingredients. I give each student a cherry tomato to cut in addition to their other jobs.
5. Adults supervise the "centers", especially the jalapeno pepper one where children wear plastic gloves.
6. Save the stems for the compost bin.
7. Combine ingredients and distribute salsa and chips.
8. Enjoy!

Ms. Yoshida's Class Plants and Makes a Graph

Today Ms. Yoshida's class made a bar graph of their favorite vegetables.  Corn was the most popular vegetable. We discussed that corn, tomatoes, peppers and some other of their favorites were warm season vegetables. This month we're planting cool season vegetables that like cooler temperatures. The children planted lettuce, carrot and beet seeds in the Peter Rabbit Garden after they wrote in their garden journals. Thanks to Lindy and Laurie for volunteering today!

A graph of their favorite vegetables

Planting in the Peter Rabbit Garden

Mrs. Fein's Class Plants in the Peter Rabbit Garden

Mrs. Fein's class visited the edible garden on Monday, October 26. During the first part of the lesson we reviewed the parts of the plant that we eat of certain vegetables-carrots (roots), lettuce and kale (leaves), celery (stem), broccoli or cauliflower (flower) and corn (seed). Next we talked about planting cool season crops in the Peter Rabbit Garden.  After writing in their garden journals the students planted lettuce and carrot seeds.  They learned that we cover small seeds with just a bit of soil and larger seeds with more soil. They had carrots for snack.

We're growing lettuce in the Peter Rabbit Garden.