Last Kitchen Garden PD

Kitchen Garden PD 27/03/14

Wendouree Kitchen Garden PD at Wendouree PS

Wendouree PS has a Stephanie Alexander Kitchen Garden. They have an excellent set-up ( especially their kitchen) Refer photos below

Last Kitchen Garden PD session at Wendouree PS

Tania ( Community action projects) from Fed. Uni talked about gardens on a budget

She suggested : upcycling - not breaking down an object but modifying something that would otherwise be thrown away ( using old pallets for compost beds and old bath tubs converted into worm farms also potato boxes used as wicking beds) and recycling. 

She has an interesting slide show showing lots of quirky ideas for the garden beds ( using gum boots, old tyres, bath tubs, wheelbarrow, Twinnings tea cans, bike wheels, old toilets, bikes etc)

she also handed out a companion planting guide from Milkwood Permaculture ( which I'll laminate)

Mike from Friends of the Gardens praised teachers who wanted to work with young kids they teach to encourage them to respect the environment and in particular looking after Ballarat's gardens and getting involved with tactile experiences in the garden.

Mary from Wendouree PS talked about budgeting in the kitchen.

Mary said her program hinges on the support of volunteers. Mary recruits people using word of mouth. She has many volunteers who are grandparents and community members who are passionate about gardens, cooking and/or education. Mary loves bringing people together and she thinks that interconnecting is something the children can learn a lot from. She feels that she learns as much from her volunteers as they do from her. Mary does a briefing in the morning and a de-brief between classes over a cup of tea.

Mary believes that children should be able to 'look after themselves' and that it is great for their self- esteem. Senior kids are taught every week ( Discussing their learning intention , demonstration, setting up stations, working in the garden, harvesting, cooking, sharing and cleaning up) and junior grades once per term.She showed us how to create pizza dough,chutney, sauce, jams and lavosh.Her program costs $7000 with fund raising, prize money  and lots of donations.

Mary intends to build a pizza oven at Wendouree PS ( Sounds like a great idea) Mary recommended the Stephanie Alexander website for resources.

Mary runs an excellent program and she obviously has lots of enthusiasm and talent. It would be great to see her in action.

Today the grade 6 kids completed story maps for. The. Demon Bike. Rider. some used my story map and others used their own.

My prep girl has been playing with felt boards today to make scenes.( the first time she has used felt boards) One of her pictures below. ( Mmmmmm Pirates and dinosaurs- could be a Hollywood movie in that? )