One man's trash is another man's treasure....

Now that the school year is just around the corner, I'm going to ask for help to make my garden and cooking activities more dynamic - using what I've learned during my Aussie adventure. Currently, I have a limited mish-mash of kitchen equipment that I use for cooking and even less for the garden. In order to be more creative, it would be wonderful to have some additional equipment. So....here's my call to arms. If anyone has old kitchen / garden equipment collecting dust in their basement or garage that they would like to part with, please let me know! Here are some things that would come in handy: food processor, electric mixer, mixing bowls, electric fry pan, measuring cups, general utensils (wooden spoons, soup ladle, etc), gardening gloves (kids), watering cans, hand shovels, rake, wheelbarrow, magnifying glasses, butterfly nets...One of the big lessons that I learned from the kitchen and garden specialists...reduce, reuse, recycle, scour garage sales, put out wish lists and never say no to help!

Goodbye Australia, So Long Seattle...

The sun has set on my Australian adventure; I am back on US soil, feeling a bit like Jekyll and Hyde while coping with the jet lag that I avoided on the front end of the trip. Somehow on the return to the States, I managed to gain a day...I left Sydney on Tuesday at 1 in the afternoon and arrived in Seattle on Tuesday at 3 in the afternoon. Somewhere in there, I had 17 hours of flight time...slept not a wink from Sydney to Los Angeles and just a quick catnap between LA and Seattle. Tomorrow morning, I'm embarking on the four day cross country road trip to Chicago...2200 more miles to go to round out my 20,000 mile summer! What a once in a lifetime experience....

Bondi Public School

Today's trek to Bondi Public sadly marked the last of my visits to Australian primary schools. Bondi is new to the SAKG program, just opening the doors to its cozy kitchen cottage in December 2009. The only school in the greater Sydney area, Bondi is forging its path with less support than the schools in the Melbourne network. Thus said, the students in Ms. Brown's 3/4 class are getting quite skilled in the kitchen and in their food knowledge. Kitchen specialist Diane provides an experience that blends sensory exploration, problem solving and higher level thinking...the students are most definitely rising to the expectations! During our session, three students with autism joined in the making of vegetable barley soup and spinach dumplings. I paired up with Katrina, a young non-verbal student and together we sliced mushrooms, stripped spinach stems, then rolled and cut spinach leaves. I didn't get out into the garden class today, but found it plentiful with greens, broad beans, herbs and citrus trees....oh, and garden art that included a surfboard (what else can you expect in an Australian surf town?).

Worth mentioning: Five students from Bondi have been chosen to take part in a master class taught by Stephanie Alexander herself. These lucky students (Years 3-6) will showcase their culinary talents as sous chefs on Australian TV...cheers to the achievement!

Notes from the converted...

I could be considered by most as a "non-foodie;" I've found that this experience has not only challenged my mind, but my palate as well. Just as the students in the Stephanie Alexander Kitchen Garden program do, I've tried some new foods and found that I truly like them - quince, tamarillo and fennel - just to name a few. Here are my new "discoveries:"

Quince: gorgeous burgundy fruit on the inside, fantastic as a tart just out of the oven, topped with vanilla ice cream

Rhubarb: once the toxic (yes, poisonous to humans) leaves are discarded, pair with ginger for a slightly spicy preserve or jam

Pumpkin: used for so much more than pie and carvings....spicy Thai soup, roasted and wrapped, gnocci, ravioli, spread...can't wait to share these autumn recipes with Chana

Beetroot: (it's what we call a beet)...beetroot dip is amazing...blended with yoghurt, walnuts and spinach

Fennel: wasn't even sure what this was (looks like an errant onion mixed with lettuce stalks), but was delighted at the fresh crunch and slight licorice flavor...nice alternative to carrot sticks

Tamarillo: a fruit that reminds me a bit of a kiwi, but with a dark orange/burgundy flesh...amazing as chutney...pairs well with cheese and crackers for afternoon tea

Grapefruit marmelade: tangy and sweet...excellent on toast at morning tea

Reflections....

Along this journey, I've been able to witness some truly memorable moments and learn some valuable lessons:

*Given a little guidance, paired with a liberal dose of independence, kids can create and produce masterpieces

*Empathy, though difficult to teach, is alive and well in healthy classroom environments

*Curiosity is a catalyst for learning...at all ages

*Strengths and weaknesses are balanced out when a team works together successfully

*Moving beyond the walls of the classroom enables students to tap into and transfer skills that have real life meaning and quality

*Everyone pitches in; even the smallest task is important and valued

More to come later....it is after all Friday afternoon, and I'm lucky to have a synapse or two past 3 o'clock!

Nunawading Primary School

Nunawading Primary School, the last of my Melbourne schools, was a late addition to my list. Last week I received an email from Prue, a SAKG board member, who had heard of my project via the kitchen garden foundation. She extended an invitation to tag along on her weekly volunteer session. Of course, I jumped at the invitation; I couldn't pass up another golden opportunity! I've got to tell you again, the people I've met couldn't be nicer!!
Lending a hand in the garden and the kitchen, I had time to chat with students and classroom teachers about their involvement in the program. I was schooled in the process of creating a rich, healthy compost, given a thorough tour of the chook pen and house, learned how to make bread dough and talked about how the program is linked to the curriculum back in the classroom.
Off to Sydney next week; sadly, I have only one more school to visit on my quest. As this portion of my fellowship nears the end, I now face the monumental task of digesting and processing the experience and turning it into a reality once I return to Chicago....

East Bentleigh Primary School

Great day of diversity at East Bentleigh Primary School - the school has a warm, inviting and relaxed atmosphere and a true sense of community!
I began my day in the garden with a group of Year 5s who were undertaking various maintenance projects: constructing a brick and cement wall, mulching pathways and adding straw to garden beds. My lucky day...students with autism from a nearby school joined the class for its weekly session...a fantastic opportunity for me to see social integration in action!
My second garden "assignment" was with a group of Year 3s - our mission was to harvest produce for a "salad of inspiration." Baskets in hand, we set off to collect silver beet, spinach, rocket, mint, thyme and some lovely little edible flowers. Kyle, my new found vegetarian friend, and I had a great conversation about raw foods, what it's like to be vegan in a meat eating world, how to not insult meat eaters and what to order in a restaurant...all from a 10 year old!
Rain and wind held off for my last session in the garden, again with a group of Year 5s. We literally dug into our task of digging out plants and potting them for future sale in the school's market.
Moving into the kitchen, Nicki welcomed me and offered me the option of facilitating the salad or the brownies. Despite my insatiable sweet tooth, I opted for the salad group (I seem to have some difficulty with getting measurements correct when baking). A small class, we split into three groups to make a salad, potato pancakes (latkas) and gluten free brownies. For a school in its first year of the SA program, I'm so impressed by the level of commitment and the structure in both the kitchen and the garden!

Worth Mentioning:
EB has chooks, as do many of the schools I've seen. However, these little guys and gals have free range of the school grounds (and sometimes make appearances in classrooms, I hear).

EB hosts a weekly market with organic produce, treats and crafts. Proceeds go toward special projects. Kudos to a successful fundraising venture!

Thanks so much to Deborah, Sandra and Nicki for sharing their time, knowledge and resources. I need another full week here in Melbourne to visit all of the places that they mentioned!

Collingwood Video Clip

Check out the students in Barb's Year 3 class. They were absolutely adorable!

Collingwood College - SAKG flagship school

Collingwood College more than lived up to its expectations! The first school to implement the Stephanie Alexander Kitchen Garden program 10 years ago, Collingwood has been highly praised by specialists at the other schools that I've visited. Collingwood's specialists (Desley and Poppie) and volunteers were so amazing and accommodating - I spent a full day in the program, time with the integration specialist and time with the volunteers. The day went much too fast, but I gained a wealth of knowledge and came home armed with a ton of recipes and left overs from today's cooking.
Currently housed in a small temporary kitchen (construction on the new kitchen to be completed in 2 weeks), the Year 3 students put on a fine show of skills - including the non-cooking group that was preparing grapefruit for marmalade (to be sold at the upcoming spring fair). At the end of this afternoon's meal, Matilda came up to me with a huge grin and said, "I wish we could eat it all over again! It was delicious, wasn't it?" Yes, Matilda, I reckon I agree 100%!
Rain changed Poppie's plans for the garden lesson; the Year 3's spent the hour inside. Before the rains, students had collected snails and worms from the garden. Grouped in pairs, students used magnifying glasses to investigate the worms and snails (and one sinister leopard slug) before moving to more creative ventures. Students orchestrated snail and worm races and built elaborate villages for the critters. Every single student was actively engaged, some even after the bell for home was sounded!
Special moments worth noting: I tasted my first tamarillo today...it's a fruit known as the tree tomato...tastes something like a kiwi...burgundy on the outside, orange on the inside. One of the volunteers is a former autism teacher from a self contained special ed school in Sydney...fantastic insight! Barb, the Year 3 teacher, truly embraces the kitchen garden program and links it with her classroom curriculum. I'd love to be a student in her classroom!!

Altona Meadows Primary School

Trains, trams and buses....those were today's modes to get to Melbourne's outer 'burbs...well worth the trip! Today was a kitchen day at Altona Meadows Primary School (lucky in our case, as the weather was MOST uncooperative with heavy rains). I was a "guest volunteer" with a group of Year 4 students, which meant I donned my apron, rolled up my sleeves and guided a group in the mixing and baking of mini apple cakes. No box mixes here - everything is from scratch (which is rather new for me, I must admit). I'm loving this opportunity to see the Stephanie Alexander program in action...the kids are so relaxed while cooking, they work as a team, they help each other out (such as getting a bandaid for Georgia when she grated her finger instead of the apple), they problem solve and most importantly, they INTERACT. I didn't have much time to wander amongst the other groups (one grating accident was enough; I wasn't going to circulate while they were using the sharp knives or the hot oven!), but it was great to be in depth with the four students under my "tutelage." There were lots of questions and comments about America (as Jayden commented: I've been to Los Angeles. Americans eat a lot of fatty junk food) and questions about why I wanted to visit schools in Australia. These kids are really proud of their accomplishments in the kitchen - the smiles on their faces express so much more than words!

North Melbourne clip

Here's a snippet from my day at North Melbourne Primary. I had so much fun with the 3/4s classes in the garden - they were nothing short of exuberant on a chilly, rainy morning!

North Melbourne Primary School

The enthusiasm of the 3/4s was contagious! They love the time that they spend in the garden with garden specialist, Tash. North Melbourne's garden in entirely in containers due to poor soil quality and limited space. However, Tash has made the most of the space and the garden is abundantly producing spinach, chard, cauliflower, broccoli, beans, carrots and herbs. Today's groups spent the hour-long session harvesting, identifying plants, mulching beds, making garden are and conducting a soil pH experiment. I found that harvesting and bug hunting are two highly prized garden jobs:)
Moving into the kitchen, I spent a session with a group of 5/6s, for whom this was only their second kitchen lesson. Despite their lack of experience, they put out another fabulous meal...celery and potato soup, Mexican street salad, kasbah pastries and lemon ricotta cakes. Seriously....if I keep this up, I'm going to expect a hot lunch every day when I get back to Chicago! In the kitchen, I found myself watching for social emotional skills and found them aplenty: teamwork, cooperation, joint decision making, problem solving, listening to each other, managing time, organizing and social interaction. In just the year that the program has been implemented, kitchen specialist Cathy has created a balance that seamlessly integrates academic and social skills into the engaging context of healthy cooking. Mucho impressed!!

Veggin' Out in St. Kilda

Shifting gears today, my destination was a community garden in the beach town of St. Kilda. Ironically, as I headed to the beach, today was the first day that it felt like winter...blustery winds and a chilly 12 degrees.
I wandered through the gates of Veg Out and immediately felt a huge grin on my face. this is one incredibly cool place: 140 organic veggie patches that are planted, tended and individualized by locals. The combination of thriving produce and funky art is absolutely amazing to see. I was a little bummed that none of the gardeners were puttering in their patches....it would have been great to chat them up! No worries, though, I'll head back Saturday morning to support Veg Out's monthly market. What's better than fresh broccoli and greens in the middle of winter?

In the kitchen.....

Here's a quick glimpse at the kitchen garden programs at Westgarth and Yarra Primary Schools in Australia....

Yarra Primary School

Visited Yarra Primary School in Richmond today with Jude (garden specialist), Maree (kitchen specialist) and Year 6 students. Once again, I am so amazed at the organization which leads to a smoothly running program. In the garden, groups were assigned to tasks to be completed under the watchful eye of community volunteers: harvesting (cutting and gathering items for today's menu), clearing and planting in the bush garden (indigenous plants that were recently donated), cutting back the perennial garden and "chook patrol" (cleaning out the chicken coop). Yep, city folks, these kids are raising seven chickens that provide both eggs for the kitchen program and fertilizer for the garden program. I found that chook duty is a highly sought after job!! I was able to lend a hand in the bush garden today by wielding my trusty picthfork against invasive roots.
After an hour in the garden, the students headed into the kitchen for part two of today's program. Using foods harvested less than an hour previous, the groups whipped up cream of celery soup, Greek salad (with the olives coming from their own trees!), spinakopata and rhubarb muffins (did you know that the leaves on rhubarb are poisonous?). These Year 6 students are proficient in the kitchen and present an amazing meal complete with edible flowers adorning the plates.
Sitting with 11-12 year olds at lunch, I was peppered with questions about America (and Canada...since we're neighbors)...did I actually cross the international dateline? Do people play cricket? Is our football like Aussie Rules Football? How can anyone stay up until 11:00 to watch John Stewart? Hot topics on the minds of tweens!! I'll find the football answer on Saturday when I head over to the Melbourne Cricket Ground to catch a game of "footy" (ticket courtesy of Frank, the garden volunteer). I'll keep you posted!!!

Westgarth Primary School

Westgarth Primary was the first school on my list...what a great place t begin my hands-on learning experience. As kitchen specialist, as well as a professional chef, Betty spearheads an amazing and dynamic program. Although today was a "kitchen" day, I was able to spend some time in the garden before the class arrived. Having a gander, I found that winter crops include cauliflower, broccoli, beetroot, beans, lettuce and a variety of herbs.
A volunteer short today, Betty inquired whether I'd be willing to don an apron and roll up my sleeves. Armed with scissors and a basket, my group of five sent out into the garden to clip lettuce and herbs for our salad. How cool is it to use a lemon fresh from the tree to make the dressing?!
In just over an hour, the group of enthusiastic 10-11 year olds (Year 5) chopped, sliced and rolled their way to complete an impressive menu of focaccia, salad, spinach and feta ravioli, and cauliflower with roasted fennel. Seriously??? And I brought an apple for lunch.....Once cooked, the groups reassembled, shared their meal and cleaned up. What Betty deemed "organized chaos" is truly an amazing process to watch and be a part of!

After a weekend of walking and tramming around Melbourne, I started my grant project early this Monday morning. I met with Jaqui (senior program officer) and Katie (project manager) at the Stephanie Alexander Kitchen Garden foundation. After months of email, it was awesome to finally put faces to the names and talk in person - sure beats the delays in email responses due to the massive time difference. The two women imparted a wealth of information about the program, the philosophy and the involved schools. It makes me even more excited for tomorrow, which marks my first visit to a SAKG school.
Here's a bit of background on the program: now up and running for nine years, the SAKG program is implemented in 139 schools nationwide, with 45 more to receive funding in the upcoming months. I'll be visiting eight of these schools to get a look at the diversity of the program in terms of garden size and concept, kitchen facilities (one kitchen is converted from an unused boys' bathroom!), funding and student population. The girls at the foundation reinforced my reasons for embarking on this quest...evidence of the success in providing academic opportunities within the garden and kitchen setting is a unique and effective way to reach all students, even "the toughest nuts to crack." A recent program evaluation touted the numerous benefits of the program, but three really stood out for me:
1) school attendance is UP on days that the program is offered
2) behavioral issues DECREASE during kitchen and garden lessons
3) kids are VOLUNTARILY asking for green foods at home!!

Really, it's already August?

Today's posting appears on my 20000milesummer.blogspot.com site.