The Making of a Worm Compost

Catching up on some posts!

Ms. Sion helped the children make some worm composts. The weather was still chilly at the time, but this was the kind of work that needed to happen outdoors.

 

Shredded paper was added to the bins. The paper will help to keep the moisture for the worms.

Compost from the digesters was added to the paper shreds. Also, natural materials needed to be put in.

Everyone worked together.

The natural materials will decompose. That will make a perfect home for compost worms!

Water was the final ingredient. Not too much, not too little.

A perfect home for compost worms!

The worm compost bins are for teachers in other schools. They will be so excited!

There's Fungus Among Us!

MUSHROOM - Nope...not a room of mush or for mush.

mush·room

ˈməSHˌro͞om,ˈməSHˌro͝om/noun

noun: mushroom; plural noun: mushrooms

1.

a fungal growth that typically takes the form of a domed cap on a stalk, often with gills on the underside of the cap.

The children listened carefully to Mr. Fields talk about oyster mushrooms and explain what they would be planting today.

Mr. Fields explains to the children that straw is in the bucket. He had already pasteurized the straw before bringing it into our classroom. Mr. Fields explains to the children the word pasteurizing means boiling the straw in water. Pasteurizing the straw reduces the fungi and bacteria that is present in the straw.

The children filled their bags half full with the pasteurized straw.

 

The children stuffed oyster mushrooms into the straw, making sure they were all covered. "The straw feels wet and it's sticking to my fingers!" said Kate. 

"The mushroom is white and brown in colour." Mia noticed. 

After we were done using the pasteurized straw we put the leftovers in our worm house for our compost worms. Our compost worms were in for a great treat today!

Then of course we had to explore and investigate our compost worms. "The worm is tickling my hand when it crawls on my hand." Jackson exclaimed.
"Some worms are longer and some worms are shorter." Maia replied.

The children used magnify glasses to take a closer look at the mushrooms.  Jackson noticed, "The mushrooms have lines through it." 

Danica added, "The mushrooms feel lumpy."
The children also decided to explore and investigate the wild mushrooms we had on our science table. The children discussed the similarities and differences  
between the mushrooms.
Danica observed, "The big wild mushroom feels fuzzy and the oyster mushroom 
feels bumpy."

After we were done stuffing the bags with mushrooms we twist tied the bags shut.

Jackson shared what he had learned, "We have to cut holes in the bag so the air can get through to the mushrooms and help them grow."

After all the bags were full, twist tied and ready to go, the 

children decided to conduct a little experiment. 

The children decided to put the bags of mushrooms in two different spots to see which area in the classroom would grow the mushrooms the quickest. 

They put half of the bags on top of the fridge and the 

other half in the cupboards in our kitchen. 

Which will grow the mushrooms the best? A place with lots of sunlight? Or a dark place? 

Only time will tell!

 Stay tuned for updates and children's observations. 

Measuring Worms

April showers bring May flowers. May showers bring WORMS!

 

The children squealed and busily set about gathering the worms that scattered the playground. A kindergarten playground, filled with fast feet, fast bikes, fast wagons and giant people is no safe place for a worm!

It was decided that the worms needed their own playground. The outside table was quickly transformed into a worm habitat, complete with a slide, tubes (like the children's own playground hollow log) and a bedroom on the opposite side to rest when the worms got too tired.

The children delighted in saving the worms, comparing them studying how they moved. Many thoughts and ideas started to emerge.

Do worms have faces? Do they have mouths? How do they eat? Which side is their face?

Why do they get long and then short?

Many of the worms were gathered and brought inside to measure. The children were so excited!

Some of the worms were very long, some were 'fat' and some were 'skine'.

We just love how Mother Nature gives us everything we need to learn!

Our Resident Worms

Opening up the Worm Hotel is always an adventure! 

The boys and girls have been discovering the worms outside, now that the warm weather has returned. This began some interests in the worms that live in our classroom. 

Since the Worm Hotel was investigated earlier in the year, the children had the opportunity to re-visit their thinking and knowledge of the worms and their compost.

This time, the boys and girls gave us the information! They were excited to share all that they had come to know.

We are anxious to add some of this rich organic compost to our greenhouse where we have many exciting things happening! From pumpkin flowers to pussy willows... this compost will be put to great use.

How Does Your Garden Grow?

It all began with a seed as small as the point of a pencil with a fuzzy white tail!  The children began to notice that seeds were everywhere.  In their fruit, at the hill, on a field trip, in pumpkins, at the science table with big sunflower heads.  

We read 'The Tiny Seed' and took the seeds with fuzzy white tails outside and blew them into the wind.  The interest in seeds continued.  They were sorted, examined, glued into art pictures and finally sunflower seeds and pumpkin seeds were planted into peat pots.  

                                           

 

Our interest in seeds has given us the chance to investigate 'The Worm Hotel'.  Some children investigated the worm composter using a stick, and some dug their hands right in.  Then the children investigated the worms.  Cold, tickly, squiggly, squirmy.... How do they play?  Which end do they eat with? The children described them, and wondered about them.

  

What do the seeds need to grow?  Rain, sun, soil, water, time.  The children know so much!

We added compost and 'worm juice' to some soil and planted more seeds in big pots.  What would grow first?  The peat pots or the big pots?  

The big pots had shoots sprout.  Why didn't the seeds in the peat pots grow yet?  Would they ever grow?

As we waited for the peat pot seeds to sprout, we measured the ever-growing shoots in the big pots.  The children measure in many ways.  They water and care for the plants and watch for more seeds to grow. Finally, seeds start to grow from the peat pots!  They took such a long time!  

 

The children study, observe, record and tell the story of growing seeds. 

Suzuki kindergarten has become interested in roots and stems and are finding out about living things that grow.  We're looking forward to transplanting the shoots into even bigger pots. We'll have sunflowers ready for our garden and next year's pumpkins will be ready for planting in the spring!