4th Grade

2020-2021

WEEK 26: IT'S A WRAP - USING LETTUCE IN NEW WAYS

Last class in garden is typically a cooking time -- a celebration of sorts. Usually we do a salad dressing contest. We are going to make "Lettuce Wraps". You can basically use lettuce instead of the bread or tortilla or rice wrap and put the fililng you would usually use on those things inside. What are you craving? Put a filling together and make a plate full of these lettuce wraps for your family! Yum! Here is an Indian Lettuce Wrap video to inspire you.

What do you think? CLICK HERE to share your family recipe or wrap inspiration for the Birney Recipe Book! Let me know any feedback about this recipe on FLIPGRID



WEEK 25: MONARCHS AND MIGRATION

Monarch butterflies are remarkable migrators! Many students at Birney have seen the Monarchs in one or more of their stages of life: as a butterfly, caterpillar, or chrysalis. Some students have even spotted a tiny butterfly egg on the milkweed plant! You can help the Monarchs by planting some milkweed in your garden, or growing flowering plants that help to feed the adult butterflies.

In the spring, Monarchs were beginning their migration back into the more northern parts of the United States and Canada. Sadly, the Monarchs are in trouble and their population has dropped by 90% in the past 20 years. Because of this, Monarchs might become listed as an endangered species. Click here to read an article about how some farmers are helping, and think about ways we can all help as well!

How does this connect to our unit on Migration? When you look at the Journey North website (click here ) you can see the remarkable journey they make over such varied terrain to arrive to do their lifecycle. We have studied the connection of the butterflies returning to Mexico during Dia de los Muertos ---and there is also a connection to the migration of people to the north. Migrants to the United States and Canada from the south see Monarchs as a hopeful symbol of survival – and also a recognition of the challenges of that long grueling journey.

To connect this idea further you can read this story: https://reynagrande.com/a-migrants-story/


Monarchs are around right now! Take a Monarch CENSUS! A census is a count – knowing how many people live in a community. Since monarch habitats are threatened – it is helpful for us to know how many are around and compare these numbers from year to year. You can use this sheet as a reference: MONARCH MAGIC COLORING SHEET to count how many you see – challenge yourself to find a caterpillar, even an egg, a chrysalis. MONARCH CHYSALIS VIDEO

Monarchs teach us about transformation. As you observe these insects who have figured out how to survive in many different places --- wonder about the way they adapt and cycle. Their needs are simple –milkweed plants as eggs and caterpillars and flowers as adults. This is the migrant’s experience – adapt and survive. Does this connect to your unit on migration in class? Share here: MONARCH FLIPGRID

WEEK 24 : BACK TO BASICS -- COMPOSTING:

Students at school are helping to get the garden ready for summer crops -- which we usually would have done in February and March. This last year is different. We adjust! That is what nature does -- ADAPT.

SOIL is the focus of organic gardening -- especially here in this San Diego climate where we always have some amount of sunshine, the temperatures are mild, so we can grow ALL YEAR LONG. If we build our soil with COMPOST - our soil gives more nutrients to plants and ALSO helps the ground hold the water. Good compost makes soil like a sponge -soaking up and holding on to the water! This week is INTERNATIONAL COMPOST AWARENESS WEEK Check out the poster to the right that a high school student made!

You are invited to do the following projects this week:

ALSO

  • Harvest of the month for April (and the beginning of MAY) is LOQUATS. Garden Webpage info here: Loquat Info Help our Birney Family find the LOQUATS in your neighborhood! Put the nearest address into this this google form: LOQUAT LOCATOR FORM and I will help map it - check back to see the LOQUAT LOCATOR MAP!

WEEK 23: FIRST GARDEN LESSON SINCE SPRING BREAK

How are you doing? Have you been doing any gardening or looking out for things in nature?

Here are a few things I encourage you to keep your eye out for:

  • LOQUATS - You can read more about this month's HARVEST OF THE MONTH at Birney: CLICK HERE They are ripening all over. See how close to where you live you can find LOQUATS!

  • Monarch Butterflies are about. If you see butterflies, there are likely caterpillars about. Do you know which plant to look on? MILKWEED

  • For gardeners and farmers summer crops should be in the ground. Would you like to plant some more of our ALLIUM or SUNFLOWER family plants? I have a lot of seeds and we are going to get some plants going for our vermiponics system.

  • STANDBY for Ms. Mindy's OFFICE HOURS coming soon!!

WEEK 22: SUNFLOWER SEED SPROUTS AND/OR MICROGREENS

Today I will demonstrate the method to grow microgreens. You do not need much to grow fresh microgreens - and often you can find seeds in the spice/bulk area of a grocery. (A LINK HERE FOR MORE DETAILS IF YOU NEED)

Sunflower seeds are very inexpensive at our local groceries and when grown to sprouts or microgreens can be made into delicious salads. With the microgreens I grew this week I will demonstrate a simple salad to make with simple ingredients. (Recipe Here )

Sprouting and microgreens offer a fresh flavor - that is simple gardening you can do inside your dwelling and enjoy in these spring days. Hope you have a fabulous spring break and I look forward to seeing you in person.

WEEK 21: RACHEL CARSON: SILENT SPRING

Advocates for nature - there are many of them. I like to think all of us at Birney would defend nature. Rachel Carson was a writer AND a scientist. She saw things happening and her work contributed to many actions that took place to create conservation movements. We watched a short film in class but here is a little longer one that digs deeper into her story.

What we focused on today is how she used a story to inspire people -- with stark images -- but ultimately backed up by science.

Art and writing are important ways to convey ideas. If you were to make some art to help raise awareness, what would it be? How would you convey your idea??

WEEK 20: FLOWERS -- AND MORE FLOWERS

A flower can help you identify a plant --- and how these flowers represent adaptations to help this plant survive...

Over the time we have been together at Birney I have introduced 11 plant families that are the primary families of food we eat. The flower of each of these families can help you identify these plants -- and as this article says -- knowing how to identify flowers can help you find food when YOU might need some -- help you forage, because most of the plants in the BRASSICA family (or Mustard as in this article) are edible. So knowing this plant and what it looks like can help you find FOOD! Part of the story of plant survival is about their ability to work with POLLINATORS (that cool pollinator video we watched is HERE )

So as a connection to this lesson -- what strategies have you used over this last year to help you keep on going? Share your thoughts on FLIPGRID: https://flipgrid.com/31a61d91

WEEK 19: MINDFULNESS

We started out the winter session with SOUR FACE - noticing the KUMQUAT flavor. Today I invite you to taste things that you have around you with a "new eye" -- as if you have never tasted it before. I will walk you through a mindful eating exercise -- but if you want to try this again on your own here is a lesson you can listen to using the video to the RIGHT.

ALSO something that we can interact with that is volunteering all over my home garden AND the Birney Garden are Nasturtium. These are the Harvest of the Month -- so check out different ways you can eat these edible beauties HERE. They are also great for identifying flower parts...they are SIMPLE flowers -- only one Pistil and a few Stigmas...Flower Diagram on First Grade Page. This year our plant family SUNFLOWER has flowers that are COMPOSITES -- lots of little flowers in one BIG flower -- like a sunflower! More on that next week !!

WEEK 18: INDICATOR SPECIES:

By the definition of the UN Environmental Committee is " a species whose status provides us information on the overall conditionof the ecosystem. Monarchs as well as Bees are considered indicator species. Today we thought about our Birney mascot -- the honey bee and watched some footage of bees from a student film made in Santa Barbara. We also looked into bee anatomy and bee work in the hive (the three main jobs queen, drone and worker) and then visualized some bees and comb on the microscope!

Watch for bees - in spring they are often looking for a new place to make a home and swarm. The swarm, without a hive, is not a danger though it may feel quite intese!

WEEK 17: MONARCHS

Over the years you have attended Birney we have watched the lifecycle of the monarch. There is still a lot to know about the migration patterns of the western coastal area. People are very concerned about

  • habitat loss

  • pesticide impacts

  • potential problems with perennial milkweed

How can we help? We can propogate the native milkweed variety AND we can also pay attention to monarchs in our neighborhood. Remember the MONARCH WATCH SHEET we would sometimes do in the garden? Here is a form I created from this sheet to help us track monarchs:

Birney Monarch Tracking Form

WEEK 16; DIGESTIVE SYSTEM PART 3: WORMS?!

Did you make your own kimchi or saukraut or curtido? While I am enjoying a taste of my home made fermented cabbage thing, let's explore the digestive system of our favorite Birney garden critter -- EARTHWORMS!

They also have bacteria in their gut that helps them digest food!!! What do you know. An that relationship is what makes them create amazing soil.

And in addition to that remember Earthworms have 5 hearts? -- perfect for valentines!



WEEK 15: DIGESTIVE SYSTEM PART 2: PROBIOTICS (THINGS THAT HELP US DIGEST)

The topic today is all things cabbage. The idea was if you eat foods that are probiotic (for life) you can support a healthy microlife in your digestive tract. Probiotic foods include kefir, yogurt, kimchi and curtido -- many different cultures have probiotic foods that they incorporate. We created a cabbage thing that will sit for the next week that you could easily make at home. The main ingredients are:

  • cabbage

  • salt

  • anything to flavor it (like garlic, onion, chili powder, fish sauce, caraway seeds, jalapeno)

Will you make your own and join me for a Cabbage Thing Taste next week? ...sorry I couldn't help myself with the Charlie Mcgee !

WEEK 14: The choices we make have an impact....well on EVERYTHING!

Today we are talked about our DIGESTIVE TRACT. This important system is how we capture the sun's energy through FOOD that was made from plants and animals. The thing is -- just like we are learning about how there is a diverse food web in the soil (the SOIL FOOD WEB) we need to have that in our GUT!

You are what you EAT! So when there are chemicals in our environment including in our farms, this impacts our GUTS! So how do we repair this? Eat foods that help rebuild that microbiome! Next week, because you are interested in cooking -- we will be doing a SAURKRAUT/KIMCHEE inspired fermented cabbage preparation for you to try making at home. This week - learn the parts of your digestive tract and notice how you feel after you eat.

WEEK 13: WELCOME BACK FROM WINTER BREAK TO GARDEN TIME

So good to see all of you in garden. For the upper grades particulary, Ms. Mindy is looking for your feedback around how to spend our precious time together -- if you didn't take the time during class to give feedback about our time in the FALL -- please complete the FORM here: Garden Class Survey

This is the season for KUMQUATS and MUSHROOMS! Harvest of the Month for BIRNEY is KUMQUATS -- and you should have recieved a couple freshly picked KUMQUATS with your supplies. There are more waiting in the office and will also be out at library curbside pickup while ripe KUMQUATS are still on the tree!! Record your taste on FLIPGRID ! And check out other people's KUMQUAT challenges!

Also keep your eyes out for mushrooms growing everywhere...check out this video of mushrooms in Tucson area....the moisture brings LIFE!

WEEK 12: SALAD DRESSINGS!

This week we thought about mixtures -- particularly the chemistry of mixing two things that don't mix so you need to EMULSIFY

We learned some basics that perhaps will help you experiment with salad dressings at home.

  • A basic Vinaigrette

  • A nutty dressing

  • A creamy dressing

If you already have a family recipe, or you come up with one -- consider sharing it to the evolving BIRNEY RECIPE BOOK here: Birney Recipe Form

WEEK 11 (WEEK 10 WAS NUTCRACKER):

Today we are going to dig a little deeper into living things and enjoy looking at some different SOIL SAMPLES under Ms. Mindy's microscope. Living soil has BIODIVERSITY. Good Composting creates this rich and living environment. Let's see how many organisms we can find in our soil -- are they the same??

Next week I am going to COOK with you. Do you have any healthy snack recipes that you want to share?


WEEK 9: WORLD SOIL DAY

What will you do to celebrate WORLD SOIL DAY on DECEMBER 5th? For Ms. Mindy it always comes back to composting. And I would like to help you -- because the more soil we have that is ALIVE we will not only be preventing erosion - but we will be sequestering CARBON into the ground,

Watch this cool soil video , get to basics by composting or join neighborhood composting with food to soil , plant a TREE ! (NOTE: EACH UNDLERLINED word is linked to more opportunities!)

ALSO -- it isn't too late to enter the NATURE IN YOUR NEIGHBORHOOD ART CHALLENGEOR make some good recipe with Pumpkin - our harvest of the month

WEEK 8: Interntional Mother Tongue Day

Share a sign with another language for the farmstand. I will have jam (fig, guava and orange marmelade), bananas, greens (kale and chard especially), herbs and some seeds and plants.

Share your sign here before SATURDAY !

CLICK HERE TO SHARE YOUR SIGN

Click on the underlined part to learn more about the

FAMILY DINNER PROJECT


WEEK 7: SOIL IS A LIVING THING!

This week's words are INTERDEPENDENCE, BIODIVERISTY and STRUCTURE. These aspects all contribute to how ecosystems functions including the ecosystem that exists in the soil.

Try doing the basic soil tests we talked about at home (or in your community). All you need for the first test is your hand and the soil - for the second test - you need a jar with soil and water....the third test you should get permission about digging a deep hole...but in the past we have used this as a way to get ready to plant something bigger (a fruit tree? another kind of tree)

  • SQUEEZE TEST

  • SHAKE TEST

  • PERCOLATION TEST

WEEK 6: ARE YOUR PLANTS GROWING??

Mine are! Here is an example of what could be happening.

Onion bulb: You will notice the roots coming down. You may see green poking out the top. Remember to change the water every few days

Lettuce "Plug" (the column filled with peat): with lettuce seeds

This week -- if for some reason you did not do the others this week you are encouraged to try growing GARLIC in water from cloves.

ALSO you are invited to take a walk in your neighbor hood and identify an ENDANGERED SPECIES that you can make some artwork of -- then enter it here: NATURE IN YOUR NEIGHBORHOOD ART CHALLENGE

This is an INVITATION to start noticing nature right around you. The link has connections to iNATURALIST and information on the 200 Endangered Species in our county. If you are out of town -- check out iNaturalist

Share the things you notice in nature here: I noticed padlet


WEEK 5: OUR 4th GRADE PLANT FAMILIES

Thank you to the 4th grade teachers AND all the parents and students who were able to pickup supplies Thursday -- several of the students were ready to plant. There were 4 things in your bag and the following is your task for the week:

1) From the ALLIUM family -- bunching onion bulbs -- these are the kind that you eat chopped on as a garnish for added flavor. This can be placed in a container with water** to encourage growth...after a few days you should see green poking up from the bulb...if not you might need to get another from Ms. Mindy. If it does start to sprout you can:

  • plant them in a pot or area near your home

  • come pick up pots/soil from Ms. Mindy at Birney during food distribution

2) SUNFLOWER FAMILY: A Marigold "dead head" -- this is what they call it when the flower is not blooming anymore....BUT it isn't really DEAD --- there are SEEDS inside and you can plant them. If you gently peel open the outer shell of the flower inside are thousands of long seeds. You can either:

  • save them in a cool seed packet (make your own origami seed pack here using these instructions: HERE )

  • plant them in a pot or area near your home

  • come pick up pots/soil from Ms. Mindy at Birney during food distribution

3) ALSO SUNFLOWER FAMILY: LETTUCE. The clear zip lock envelope has lettuce seeds. Take 2-3 seeds and plant them in the "ellepot" (see (4) below). The rest are for you to use for wherever you want to plant them (or save them). I shared some suggestions about using a recycled container to plant some lettuce for eating at home.

4) OUR HYDROPONIC SYSTEM: The column of peat moss that has paper around it is a thing to plant seeds in for the hydroponic system at Birney. You can plant ONE for the hydroponic system and ONE for you to keep at home...NOTE: These column should be placed in the container with water (could even be with your onion bulbs). Make sure it is damp - like a squeezed out sponge.

WEEK 4: Our Goverment and OUR FOOD -- the United States Department of Agriculture is the goverment body that is funded to support farmers, help people who are food insecure, protect the environment. This effort is governed by the FARM BILL. We watched a video about the Story of Food that explained some of this complicated subsidy. This week think about your food even more deeply -- instead of looking at the labels, do you know WHERE it came from and how fresh it is?

  • Notice what you eat and if you have packaged or processed food, look to see where it is from. You can use this cool website to calculate your FOOD MILES (how far it is from where it was made): FOOD MILES CALCULATOR

  • Learn what is in Season in San Diego County! Here is a list of some FARMER'S Markets you can go to: FARMERS MARKETS

  • Work on gardening in your own community, either around where you live or in a community garden!

  • Watch the STORY OF STUFF with your family and discuss how we can BE THE CHANGE!

  • CELEBRATE World Food Day by raising your awareness about FOOD INSECURITY (hunger) WORLD FOOD DAY 2020

WEEK 2-3: TRASH WEEK --do three activities and get a COMPOST BINGO!


compost choice board 2020.docx

WEEK 1: Getting oriented to GARDEN on ZOOM: WELCOME BACK! This week we talked about our plant families...some of you may have come to pick up a BIRNEY POMEGRANATE -- if you didn't get one and you want to get one, contact Ms. Mindy (see the page footer). More information about pomegranates on my HARVEST OF THE MONTH PAGE: HERE