Cranedale
Day 4
Another
gloriously dry day in the Yorkshire Wolds.
The
children spent today studying a course called “Field to fork”. This involves learning about the importance
of good quality soil, crop rotation and sustainability. We started off in the classroom looking at
all the ingredients of a meat feast pizza.
Each item of the meal would, at some point, start in the soil. For example, a pig eats corn – corn grows in the
soil.
After our
lesson, we headed off to a local farm about ten minutes from the centre. The farm is managed by Ruth. Ruth is a straight talking, Yorkshire
woman. The children were introduced to
the intricacies of animal husbandry and the realities of raising animals for
meat.
Ruth’s farm
is home to an unusual breed of cow – The English Longhorn. These are well known for their ability to eat
rough coarse grass and also for their pleasant disposition. We managed to walk
amongst the cows and even stroke them.
This took place under the watchful eye of the herd’s bull. Jack found the cows a bit too friendly and
was taken by Miss V to an adjacent field.
Mr Britten tried to take “a cow selfie”.
Having never taken a selfie before, the cow didn’t quite understand the
concept. When I get back to school, I
might put the “selfie attempts” on the blog.
After
talking to Ruth, we spent the day exploring the farm and playing a variety of
different games. One game involved
flapping like a bird and collecting worms.
James flapped with the rapidity of a humming bird while Callum preferred
to swoop like an eagle.
The
children also looked carefully at “The Nitrogen Cycle” and played a fun game
involving collecting stickers. The
stickers had various picture of places where Nitrogen can be found. “I’ve ended up as poo!” exclaimed a
disappointed Danielle although Max didn’t seem that bothered. Henry managed to avoid the poo and ended the
game as a beautiful flower. All the
sticker collections were gathered by Miss V and will be appearing in a
geography book near you soon.
The sun has
continued to shine on us. There are many
red faces, necks and even ears on display.
The group were positively glowing at evening meal.
Starter-
Vegetable soup and roll
Main Course
– Lasagne, garlic bread and salad.
Dessert –
Fruit crumble
Cheese and
biscuits
The
children will spend the evening dissecting an owl pellet. They will then be
setting a moth trap in the local park.
If there is any time left, they will also be watching a bit of football.
