The Little Red Hen and so much more.....

We had such a full and enriching day today! We are continuing with telling our Little Red Hen story, which the children love! Today, Elizabeth came in and helped the children bake bread. As we sat around in the circle,  inquiry was working at its best....knowing, wondering, watching - what will happen to the yeast? The children made predictions, and made their observations as they watched the changes. "It's changing colour", "I can smell it", "It's getting bigger", "I see bubbles". Everyone had a hand at pouring and mixing, and to their delight, ended up with their very own bun at lunch time! Thank you Elizabeth for coming in and helping the children have that lovely experience. The past few days, we also have had a station set up with a mortar and pestle and wheat kernels and the children have tried coming to grind the wheat, just like the little red hen. They are seeing how difficult it is to do it by hand, and I think, would prefer to go to the mill! Today, I brought in my spice grinder from home and in small groups they each had a turn to press the button and grind! When they saw we made flour, there eyes lit up - Flour! they would exclaim - just like the one we used to make the bread (That was the a- ha moment!) They have seen the wheat stock, the kernels come out from inside, the bowl of kernels, and themselves turned it into flour. So the next time you ask them where flour comes from, hopefully they won't just say "Loblaws"! :). We also have a centre set up with a bin of wheat kernels, egg cups and spoons. The children are estimating how many scoops it takes to fill an egg cup, and then scooping the kernels into the cup. There are kernels everywhere! Hopefully they are not bringing them home in their bags. In the days to come, they will be dramatizing the Little Red Hen with lovely costumes made by Anne, as well as using a felt board to tell the story during free play. It has been a fun time in Ash Class.