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Ruakura Strawberry Farm Experience
Today the BestStart Powells Rd Kindy children experienced picking their own strawberries at Ruakura Berry Farm. We travelled by Kindy Van in two groups and spent a few hours searching amongst the green leafy crops of strawberries for the reddest, ripest, biggest, and sweetest looking berries. When we had filled our buckets to the very top, and eaten a few on the way, we gathered together at the strawberry shop for a real fruits ice cream.
The opportunities for learning were endless. Not only was it fun, and tasty too, but we learnt through our conversations both on the drive and at the farm about where our food comes from, and how it is grown, and what it looks like before it ends up in the supermarket or grocery shop.
While picking the strawberries some if the children noticed some of the over-ripe berries had fallen to the ground and were beginning to rot. This led onto a conversation about identifying which berries were ready to pick and which ones we should leave on the vine, by looking at their colour, size, and texture. We then discussed what kind of weather might be needed to grow strawberries or any fruit and vegetable for that matter, and some children identified that they need sunlight and rain. We observed some crawling living bugs in the crops, and this led to discussions about how weeds, fungus, worm, and insect pests are managed. Sometimes growers will use sprays, others use physical removal only and others use a combination of the two.
At home of the Brave, we are open to new and exciting opportunities to extend our matauranga (kete of knowledge), by stepping outside the four walls of our safe Kindy environment, and experiencing the real world through active exploration within our community and beyond. Through these simple experiences, Tamariki are given opportunity to not only learn new ideas, strategies and theories about the world around them, but also make meaningful connections between people, places and things in their world, strengthening their sense of belonging.