With no school last Thursday the gak we had been playing with had been left uncovered for five days. At morning meeting we all felt a piece and had theories as to what had happened.
Jamie – It’s hard.
Josie – Because it went on the ground.
Ellie – It’s very warm – it feels sticky.
Jamie – It’s sticky on one side and hard on the other.
Stella – It’s dried out.
Josie – Yes, it’s hard.
Wesley – It’s dried out.
Lily – It’s sticky on one side and hard on the other.
Makenna – Yes, sticky on one side and hard on the other.
All the statements were true, it was sticky and hard and yes it had dried out. Luckily we were able to make a new batch so we could continue our sensory experience with the gak.
During play, both in the studio and on the playground, the subject of food is always prominent. On the playground, sand ice cream is often scooped, sand cupcakes are baked and recently the finding of the left over mini pumpkins from Woodland Walk prompted pumpkin pies to be created. In the studio the medium of clay inspired more ice cream to be scooped, pizzas to be served and blueberry pies to be concocted.
Motivated by this interest in creating food items, this week we decided to cook ‘for real.’ In the spirit of fall and with the abundance of sugar pumpkins available we set to work. We extracted the seeds, roasted and ate them, and then after the flesh had been roasted we mashed it into a puree. When surveyed the children voted – 6 liking the seeds and 8 disliking. Did your child like them?
Now …What should we do with the pumpkin puree?
Nature Walk: We went into the woods and visited some favorite LNS spots. Does an owl really live in Owl Tree? How did the pond look? Did you know there is an Andy Goldsworthy sculpture in the woods?
Due to the Veteran’s Day holiday this week we missed our music time with Mark. However we certainly didn’t miss out on music. Makenna, Ellie and Stella made the most of a rainy playground time by giving us an impromptu concert.
