とてつもなくおおきなかぶThe Great Big Enormous Turnipを習うときはradishの種を小さな植木鉢に蒔いてその成長課程を観察するのが いつの間にか伝統となってしまった。
火曜ピーターパンの様子はつぎのとおり。 Mr. Alainの報告書です。農業の困難さを実感した子供たちの頭の中は 大きく成長したようですね！
Fine Day for Radish Planting It isn’t the first time we plant vegetables at Paideia.
And it’s not the first time we fail at watching them grow to full size, either. If someone asked me how many of our vegetables we were actually able to eat, I would say about 0.5.
That’s for the time one student uprooted a radish sprout and ate it raw.
What we did different this time, though, was keep a detailed weekly record of our radishes’ growth.
That’s twelve weeks of measuring the height in centimeters and counting the leaves (I know red radishes don’t grow to be twelve weeks old, but just in case).
Every week at the beginning of class, Peter Pan students would take their customized “Radish Growth Report” cards on clipboards to the planting site, measure their plants with a ruler, and write down their statistics in English.
Unfortunately the fun only lasted four weeks thanks to a horde of blue worms that ruthlessly feasted on everybody’s radish leaves. The lesson was a valuable one, though: it’s hard to grow vegetables, so don’t waste your food!
As I sat on the bench outside, explaining how farmers constantly have to deal with countless elements that threaten to destroy their crops, the group fell into complete silence, as four pairs of round, black eyes fixed me intently.
We are learning, though. Our Saturday group of little farmers will sow their seeds before summer comes, and this time we will be better equipped to confront the sneaky creepy crawlers!
