"Eat your Weedies!"

Edible weeds in your neighbourhood? Why not learn about them!

With a teacher experienced in identifying edible weeds, several activities are possible across the levels.

A good resource book like this one can be helpful.  You could use it for your own information or adapt it for higher level learners.

You could
1. Talk about learners' own experiences foraging for and growing food. Do TPR to connect actions and vocabulary. See this link for some ideas for Phase I learners on using TPR and song for learning new vocabulary: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MJuOR9jTpV4

2. Talk about foraging in Canada - do people do it? Where? Why? What times of year?

3. Collect some edible leaves and flowers and have your students take photos of them, or trace / draw them.

4. Compare shapes, sizes and colours of leaves and flowers.

5. Take your class on a walk around the block to pick your own salad. Follow or make a map while you are at it!

6. Sample all the edibles and describe the taste, texture, and smell.

7. Have a local guest speaker come to class and talk about edible weeds.

8. Read a flyer (adapted as necessary) about a course on this topic: http://haltonenvironment.net/?tribe_events=eat-your-weedies-2

9. Find and follow some recipes using edible weeds. Write your own recipe.

10. Read and discuss issues around excessive foraging / harvesting (adapted as necessary): http://www.thespec.com/opinion-story/4034957-foraging-is-fine-but-not-on-rbg-property/

 Garlic Mustard 

Some recipes are here: http://the3foragers.blogspot.ca/2014/04/garlic-mustard-recipe-roundup.html

Wood Sorrel (has yellow flowers) - Check out the warnings before you eat this.

Be careful, though! If you cover this topic with your learners, be sure you are providing all the correct and relevant information. Some edible plants may have look alike plants that are poisonous.

Mother's Day

I generally do not do too much for Mother's Day with my learners. It can be a very emotional time, as I have learned. This past Mother's Day, the moms in my class celebrated in the childminding area with their children. They were given some special artwork and enjoyed story time together. One of my students returned to class and said that they had read a beautiful book. I asked her to describe it, and I knew right away it was the book that always makes me cry: Love you Forever by Robert Munsch. As she retold the story, I (of course!), along with some other students, began to cry.

Here is a link to the book and a bit of the background of the song within it.
http://robertmunsch.com/book/love-you-forever

As a class, we talked about how life changes and we are often in the process of growth / new beginnings and loss. Deep ideas for Mother's Day.

It was interesting, though, to learn that different countries celebrate Mother's Day on different days (e.g., March 8, March 21). Not many of my learner's celebrated Father's Day in their previous countries. This makes for some interesting class discussion!