Involve Me

Where our food comes from

Key idea: The food we eat comes from plants and animals. – e.g. Identifying different sources and production methods of food (UC2.4).
Key idea: Different weather conditions can affect people’s daily lives – e.g. identifying the effects of extreme weather on the availability of food items (UC5.3).

Title:  Where Does My Food Come From?
Author: Annabel Karmel
Illustrator: Alex Willmore
Publisher:  ‎ Welbeck Children’s Books
Publication Date: 2022
ISBN: 978-1783128594

This is a fully illustrated non-fiction picture book that shows young children how their favourite foods are grown and made and provides child-friendly recipes for each food.

Emergent learning:

There are two key ideas here: Firstly, the food we eat comes from plants and animals. Second, different weather conditions affect people’s daily lives through the food that we eat. It is important that we involve children in the preparation of food, and that we talk with them about the choices that we make, and about the economic and health reasons for these choices. WE can also talk about where ingredients come from and about transportation costs. Our recommended story book this week includes child-friendly recipe ideas for different foods and we can encourage the children to prepare some simple dishes on their own which will also support them in learning more about the ingredients and where they come from.

Activity recommendation:

Much can be done on this theme on visits to a supermarket or grocers and taking photos and note of what is displayed at different times of the year. Large global wall or floor maps can be used to sort picture cards of foods (cut with the children from magazines or advertisements). In most cultures around the world there are harvest celebrations at different times of the year and local and World news report regularly on thew quality of harvests. If our children are to grow up to value nature, then it is important that we should take advantage of these opportunities to talk to them about the importance and our dependency upon harvests from an early age.

We have also found that food production and cookery activities often offer particular appeal to children who are demonstrating an interest in ‘Rotations’ in their play – they love to stir…

Other Book recommendations:

We all depend on Nature

Key idea: We need nature – e.g. learning how the natural environment provides resources for food, clothes, houses, etc. (UC2.3)

Title:  Pelle’s New Suit
Author: Elsa Beskow
Illustrator: Elsa Beskow
Publisher:  ‎ Floris Books
Publication Date: 2021
ISBN: 978-1782507659

Pelle shears his lamb and learns about bartering, traditional wool crafts, and how woolen clothes are made in the process of gaining a new suit.

Emergent learning:

Emergent learning involves the children learning through ‘doing’, so here we can involve them in using natural ingredients to make food and natural materials to make items of clothing and model buildings. The topic provides a good excuse to tell (or have the children tell you) the popular story of the ‘Three Little Piggies’, but then to draw upon their own collections of stones, sticks and straw, stacking them up (as model houses) to test them for strength and stability. We can make the connections with clothing and natural materials through simple weaving and threading activities, and we can make natural dye’s with them. Our next recommended story book includes child-friendly recipe ideas for different foods.

Activity recommendation:

We can also create thread with the children, a little raw fleece can be collected from a fence or hedgerow on a country walk (or purchased). We can show them how a drop spindle works, and how traditional spinning wheels did the job better.

Book recommendation:

Recommendation reason:

Extinctions

Key idea: Some animals used to live on our planet and are now no longer here (such as dinosaurs) – e.g. Learning about dinosaurs and more recently extinct and threatened species near where they live (UC2.2).

Title:  Bee and Me
Author: Alison Jay
Illustrator: Alison Jay
Publisher:  Old Barn Books
Publication Date: 2017
ISBN: 978-1910646199

Read the pictures and follow the growing friendship between a girl and a bee. The book provides an introduction to ecology and shows how some simple actions can help restore beauty and balance in our environment.

Emergent learning:

The foundations of learning about these issues in early childhood is best achieved begins with the child’s involvement in the protection of endangered species in their own local environment. Our book this week is all about Bees, but there are other important pollinators like butterflies that we can also support through putting out water, and planting nectar or pollen-rich plants that flower during the winter.

Animal conservation is a really important topic in early childhood and it is relevant far beyond the common concerns for protecting celebrity animals like Lions and Tigers, Elephants and Rhino, and our closest relatives the Great Apes. We are losing our biodiversity and insects play a crucial ecological role in food production. It has been estimated that as many as 1,000,000 plant species which may have important medicinal value, remain unclassified in the world’s wilderness areas. All of this potential may be lost, as many of those previously discovered and classified are already extinct or endangered.

Activity recommendation:

Many children have an interest in Dinosaurs, and, as their closest living relatives, wild Birds show many similar physical characteristics that children find fascinating. There are numerous other book title that refer more generally to wildlife conservancy and suggest things each of us can do to make a difference. Children can provide feed and water for wild birds, they can be involved in providing bird and bat boxes. Parents and teachers involved in voluntary organisations such as Greenpeace and wild life charities have citizen science projects and we can involve our children in these activities. It’s worth inviting enthusiasts into schools and preschools to share these interests with the children, other parents and teachers as well.

Other Book Recommendations:

Ecological Interdependence

Key idea: Ecosystems are animals and plants in interaction with each other. – e.g. identifying animals that eat other animals, and some that eat plants.

Title: Yum Yum: A book about food chains
Author: Mick Manning
Illustrator: Brita Grantrom
Publisher:  Franklin Watts Ltd
Publication Date: 2014
ISBN: 978-1445128986

This is a book about eating. It’s also about being part of a chain – the food chain in which every living thing plays a part.

Emergent learning:

Food webs, and the water and carbon cycles are of critical importance to ecology and environmental sustainability. Following our ‘emergent’ learning perspective, here again, our aim will not be to teach young children these cyclical theoretical models, but to give them the knowledge and experiences that will make them meaningful to them when they are introduced to the topics in school. They can observe and learn about what different animals eat and most especially they can be directly involved in composting, and our adult support of a balanced and ecologically thriving soils.

‘Interdependence’ is one of most important ideas in sustainability education and we can support children’s understanding of this through continually stressing the enormous contribution that species that might otherwise considered quite humble, like the fabulous Earthworm, makes every day to the sustainability of our natural world.

Activity recommendation:

‘Rotation’ is a cognitive scheme, and theme that is often observed to be a strong feature and of particular interest to young children in their free play. Children’s attention is therefore easily drawn to the fascinating wheels and circles that abound in the natural and built world.

Parachute play provides a fun opportunity to support collaboration and co-operation. The children need work together, they need to spread out around the chute and all participate for it to work. Parachutes suitable for use with babies and older preschoolers are available from most educational suppliers, and there are lots of ideas for developing the play online.
TES Free printable booklet

Other Book recommendations:

Solar, Wind and Water Energy

Key idea: Fossil fuels and renewable energy – e.g. identifying fossil fuels and alternative renewable energy supplies from wind and water (UC1.6)
Key idea: There are different sources of renewable energy existing naturally (such as solar, wind, hydro, geothermal, marine and bio-energy) as an effective alternative to fossil fuels – e.g. Identifying, painting, drawing and modelling renewable energy technologies (UC6.2).

Title: Let’s Change the World: Clean Energy
Author: Megan Anderson
Illustrator: Genna Campton
Publisher: Bright Light Books
Publication Date: 2022
ISBN: 978-1760509484

Clean Energy explores the ways in which we use energy, and invites readers to think about alternative energy sources that don’t pollute our planet.

Emergent learning:

Renewable energy supplies may be observed AND CELEBRATED in the local environment and there are many opportunities for children to gain familiarity with them through their play. What is important here is to be celebrating the wonderful alternatives that have been discovered that are clean, and will never run out. The polluting nature of vehicle exhaust and chimneys are self evident and an appropriate focus for attention in the early years. There is less need for us at this stage to dwell on the diminishing supplies of more traditional ‘fossil’ fuels, or of their specific contribution to ‘carbon emissions’.

Activity recommendation:

Paper Windmills held by a wire and bead at the end of a sticks are often supplied as seaside toys, and their construction from pre-cut/prepared materials provides an engaging craft activity. Toy water Turbines are also available from educational toy suppliers or they can be improvised for use in water play by fixing recycled bottle tops around a wheel. Solar powered small battery chargers are now fairly inexpensive and useful illustrations of the bigger panels that may be observed on buildings or energy sites. Educational suppliers also provide model wind/water turbines that light up small LED lamps when they spin.

Other Book Recommendations:

The Importance of Clean Air

Key idea: The plants and animal life need clean air to help them grow – e.g. Observing reduced variety and damage to leaves in different locations (UC1.3).

Title: Every Breath We Take
Author: Maya Ajmera
Illustrator: Dominique Browning
Publisher: Harlesbridge Pubs
Publication Date: 2016
ISBN: 978-1580896160

This book underscores the importance of clean air to all life on earth. It also reminds us that sometimes the air can be dirty, and it can be cleaned up.

Emergent learning:

There are two key ideas for us here: First, all the plants and animals of the world need clean air to help them grow. Second, human activity affects air quality.

Children learn about their natural environment, and they learn about the properties of various materials through their freedom to play, and this is why most preschools provide a sand pit, soil for planting, and natural materials and collections of blocks, beads and fabrics. Preschools also often have a water play area so that children begin to learn about the behaviour of fluids, about capacity and volume.

We can also encourage “Air Play”: Children probably wouldn’t learn very much about air at all, if we didn’t draw their attention to it. It’s invisible. But it’s the stuff inside bubbles, and it can hold a kite in the air – and if we go for a run holding an umbrella or a cardboard ‘sail’ in front of us, we can feel how it holds us back and begin to appreciate the streamlined shapes of cars, and boats and ‘airplanes’.

Activity recommendation:

Young children can also learn to be concerned about air pollution when we draw their attention to chimneys, and if we take them out wiping soot off roadside street signs, the source can usually be observed quite clearly in vehicle exhausts. A survey of nearby streets simply involved using standard ‘wipes’ and a display of findings.

https://www.facebook.com/CatskillMountainkeeper/videos/story-time-every-breath-we-take/559468208300466

Other Book recommendations:

The Importance of Clean Water

Key idea: Life for humans, animals and plants depends on clean water – e.g. identifying when plants need watering. Caring for the needs of animals and wildlife such as water for birds UC1.4.

Title: The Little Raindrop
Author: Joanna Grey
Illustrator: Dubravka Kolanovic
Publisher: Sky Pony Press
Publication Date: 2014
ISBN: 978-1628738216

From cloud to puddle, and puddle to stream, the Little Raindrop is making its way on the remarkable journey that is Earth’s water cycle. This book provides a character driven narrative that leads a little raindrop on a big adventure.

Emergent learning:

Children learn by doing things, and they learn to care when they share in our efforts to look after plants, animals and the natural world. And we are all need clean water. We can encourage children to recognise when house and garden plants begin to droop, and we can encourage them to regularly water the plants and provide water for the local wildlife, especially for birds and bees. The child’s understanding of the natural water cycle will emerge over time, in the early years we can make the most of every opportunity to draw attention to the different stages, to the rain in clouds and rainfall, to streams and rivers, and to our household and community water supplies.

Activity recommendation:

Children can test puddle water filtering it identify the suspended particles. Hand Hygiene Training Kits are also available that provide a UV potion and LED UV torch. Have the children wash their hands before they test them, and they will see how much more effort is needed to clean them adequately. Talk about germs and viruses and invite the children to imagine/draw/paint how some really NASTY GERMS might look. You can also demonstrate the use of Drinking Water Test Strips – an example is provided by Vikrami lighting See Here.

A partnership activity developed between a preschool in the Global North (UK) and South (Kenya) in celebration of the United Nations World Handwashing Day illustrates how a theme like Handwashing can contribute towards education for global citizenship. See here.

Book recommendation:

Recommendation reason:

Sunshine

Key idea: Sunshine heats the earth’s surface – e.g. Identifying the effect of the sun heating playground furniture, surfaces, trees etc., and the extra warmth that we feel when entering a conservatory or greenhouse (UC1.2)

Title: The Polar Bears’ Home: A Story About Global Warming
Author: Lara Bergen
Illustrator: Vincent Nguyen
Publisher: Little Simon
Publication: 2008
ISBN: 9781416967873

The picture book tells the story of travel on snow and water to the Arctic. The story suggests a lot of things that we can collectively do to reduce global warming, like recycling and making less waste.

Emergent learning:

If we adopt an emergent approach to learning science, we shouldn’t begin by teaching children the phrase ‘Global Warming’, they simply wouldn’t understand. But in early childhood we can still help them to begin learning about it.

To do that we must ‘involve them.’ We must at first encourage them to feel the heating effects of the Sun and to recognise the greenhouse effect that glass windows and roofs have on trapping heat. It will then be a small step for them to later learn that ‘greenhouse gases’ are acting just like glass in overheating our planet. We can take them to places where they will feel the additional heat. We can identify the effect of the sun heating playground furniture, surfaces, and trees, and the extra warmth that we feel when entering a conservatory or greenhouse.

Activity recommendation:

Children can create their own greenhouses, using recycled bottles or jars, seeds and soil – they can grow their own plants out of season.

Children can also set up a ‘controlled experiment’ to see what happens if we provide a second batch of seeds, in the same soil and with the same amount of water but without the ‘greenhouse’.

Other Book Recommendations:

Weather and Climate

Key idea 1: “Weather” describes daily experience, while “climate” describes weather patterns over many years, e.g. Identifying different local seasonal weather conditions, and also the different climates of countries around the world (UC1.1).
Key idea 2: Everyone needs sustainable living spaces, e.g. Learning about clever indigenous housing designs from around the world (UC6.4).

Title:  A Place Called Home: Look Inside Houses Around the World
Author: Kate Baker
Illustrator: Rebecca Green
Publisher: Lonely Planet Kids
Publication Date: 2020
ISBN: 978-1-78868-934-2

This book introduces houses from all over the world, and helps us understand how people live in different places.

Emergent learning:

We cannot teach children the science of Climate Change and Global Warming in the earliest years but if they are to understand it later, they first need to know what CLIMATE is. At first, children learn about WEATHER, and then they learn that Climate means something different to Weather. We can help children learn about weather through daily conversation about the rain, wind and temperature.

It’s only when children have differentiated between different weather conditions, we can talk about weather as a subject. Likewise, when we are ready to talk about “Climate” with children, we need to first give the child a lot of examples of different climates. When we introduce children to the subject of Climates, we can do this by talking about the way people live in different countries, because the local climate effects what they eat, how they dress, and how they make our homes. We all need nutrition, clothes, and houses and we can show children how clever people around the world create these things in different climate conditions.

Activity recommendation:

We can incorporate climate awareness in their play with small world animals – in many Montessori schools, children are given large continental floor maps to play with – they place the animals on the continents they live in – we can do that with picture cards showing food, clothing and houses as well.

Other Book Recommendations:

Learning from our Grandparents

After John and Njeri’s visit we dried the corn that they brought us so that we could plant it in our vegetable garden. We then invited some grandparents into the setting to talk about growing food and the changes between now and when they were children. We wanted to know:
• Did they have a garden when they were little?
• What did he grow in his garden?
• What did they like to eat?
• Did they buy their food in the supermarket (Tesco!)?

Oliver’s granddad Alf visited Monday afternoon and looked at the corn that John had brought in. The children told Grandad Alf that we couldn’t eat it anymore because it had gone hard. Grandad Alf showed us how we could pull off the corn and that these were seeds that we could plant to grow more sweetcorn. He had brought some compost and pots from his allotment for us to use to plant the seeds in. He then asked us if we knew what else the seeds would need to grow and Ruby said that they need sunshine and water. Grandad Alf told us that on his allotment he had a water butt to collect the rain water to help his garden grow and the we showed him that we did the same at preschool.

He told us that when he was little there were no big supermarkets and he lived on a farm and grew lots of vegetables to eat. He grew carrots, potatoes , runner beans, cabbage and they also kept chickens. He still grows his vegetables on his allotment now. He still likes to eat vegetables from his allotment now because they keep him healthy.

On Tuesday afternoon, Ethan’s ‘Popsi’ came to help us plant some more of the sweetcorn and we planted it in pots and in the garden. Mrs Scriven was going to take the pots home over the holiday to put in her greenhouse where it is nice and warm and we are going to see which seeds grow the quickest. ‘Popsi’ said that when he was little he grew peas and carrots in his garden and Alex said that he grew peas in his garden too. He also told the children that he didn’t go to big shops to buy his food when he was little. He went to the local greengrocer in the village to buy things like apples. He told the children that he helps Ethan to grow vegetables in his garden at home and Simba the lion went home with them so that he could find out more. Ethan and Popsi showed Simba the rhubarb, onions, peas and runner beans that they are growing in their garden to eat before inviting him in for dinner.

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