Much better weather this week as we went for a walk around the Paragon grounds (and beyond!). The purpose was to look for wild berries to make jam with and to show Miss Scott the land too! We enjoyed hunting for blackberries and found enough to make some jam with. We saw other berries en route, including snow berries, sloe berries, deadly nightshade, laurel berries, hawthorn and elder berries. There was great excitement about the himalayan balsam flower and the way its seed case sprung open. At the end of the first session we had a sloe berry eating competition...who could keep a straight face the longest...I didn't record the winner.
After break Edward started the jam making process and Marcus started the weaving/ braiding session with the boys. The girls making jam first, enjoyed stirring the pots on the fire. We had raspberry, blackberry and blackcurrant on the go. Miss Scott was very good at discussing the science of the fire and the cooking.
Meanwhile everyone had a go at finger looping weaving, which is a difficult technique to grasp (literally) but with enough help from Marcus, Miss Scott and I everyone managed a braid.
This outdoor learning session was a great springboard into science, maths, nature, team work, self-organisation, as well as physically demanding. So well done Year 4...hope you enjoyed the jam you made.
