How to make a wormery
Making a plant pot with an old tin
Bird's foot pastry
Talking tree
Other ideas
Make a wormery
You
need: A jam jar, sand, soil, a piece of old pantyhose, three elastic bands, worm food -
such as leaves, grass cuttings or potato peelings – and a strip of thick brown or
black paper.
Fill the jar with layers of damp
sand and soil. Try not to mix the layers or get them too wet.
Place some worm food on top of the
top layer.
Find no more than 3 or 4 worms and
put them into the jar.
Worms like damp, dark places so use
two elastic bands to hold the paper around the outside of the jar to keep out the light.
Use the other rubber band to hold the pantyhose over the lid.
Put the jar in a cool, dark place.
Check your wormery every day to make
sure that the soil is still damp, and the food still fresh. Take away any food that is
going bad.
After about a week you can take the
paper mask off the jar to see what has happened. Look to see if the layers of soil have
changed. Can you see any worm tunnels?
Always put back the paper when you
have finished looking.
After a couple of weeks, return your
worms to the place where you found them.
The worms you find in your garden
are most likely to be introduced species. However, New Zealand does have lots of native
worms, perhaps you could learn more about worms with your class.
Make your own pest tracking tunnel
Use recycled materials to find out what creatures are lurking in your garden or school ground
Where can I get the equipment?
You can get old real estate signs from your local real estate agent- just give them a call.
If you need a lot of foam try calling an upholstery company because they often have scrap foam they like to donate
You will need an empty tin, eg. from baked beans or
spaghetti, and its lid
Some garden soil or potting mix
2 seeds – sunflower, beans or peas are good
An old saucer
With a bottle opener (the sort shown
in the drawing), make 3 v-shaped holes in the bottom of the tin, so the V’s point
upwards.
Drop the lid into the tin to rest on
the points. Almost fill the tin with soil or potting mix.
The lid will allow water to drain
out (THIS IS VERY IMPORTANT), while keeping the soil from falling through the drainage
holes.
You could decorate the tin with a
coloured paper wrapper, or pictures from old magazines.
Plant your seeds in the soil and
water them. Stand the plant pot on the saucer in a warm spot, but not in the direct sun.
When the seeds geminate and leaves
appear, put the pot in a sunny place. Remember to add a little water to stop the soil from
going dry.
When your plants are as tall as the
pot, plant them in the garden.
You can grow a cutting from a
geranium this way too.
Make bird’s foot pastry
Thaw a piece of frozen pastry
(follow instructions on packet) or use some leftover scraps of pastry.
Roll out to 1/2cm thick on a board.
Cut into bird’s foot shapes.
Sprinkle with grated cheese, poppy
seeds or curry powder.
Place on a baking tray and cook for
10 to 12 minutes in a hot oven (200șC)
Allow to cool before eating.
Talking tree
Each of
your children will need to think of a word they associate with trees, eg. big, trunk,
leaves, berries, food, birds, green. Ask your pupils to put their hand up when they
have thought of a word and after they have told the class, to write it down (or have it
written for them). It's best if each child can think of a different word, so the children
may have to help each other by the time you get to the last child.
When everyone has a word it's time
to make leaves. Each child will need an A5 piece of paper to make their leaf shape.
Before
the leaf is coloured in, make sure their word is written on the leaf.
When everyone has finished making their leaf
with their word on it, you can make a talking tree (as pictured).
You can use the words on the tree
for further learning activities with your class. For example, get the children to imagine
they are the tree and they are going to tell the rest of the class something about being a
tree, using the words on the leaves. When you point to the word 'big' they will make up a
sentence like, "I am a tree and I am BIG and strong." For younger children
it's a fun way to learn more words, simply by pointing to the words and learning them with
your class.
Other ideas for enjoying nature with children
Learn about and explore native New
Zealand trees in your school playground, home or local park. There are some wonderful tree
identification books available, making it easy for everyone to identify native trees. A
recommended author of tree books is Andrew Crowe. His books are easy to use and have good
illustrations.
Plant trees. Planting trees is a
wonderful activity for all ages. For more information about which trees are suited to your
area and attract birds, send a stamped, self-addressed envelope to:
Forest and Bird, PO Box 631, Wellington.
Reuse old magazines and create a
collage with a conservation/environment theme.
Use your Kiwi Conservation Club
magazines for word finds, puzzles and other activities about nature.
