A group of Langley students were in for a treat on Monday afternoon: Ted McGinn, the school's longtime volunteer and garden educator gathered students in the garden for a yummy lesson. Mr. McGinn prepared okonomiyaki, a Japanese savory pancake containing many nutritious ingredients - some harvested right from the garden in front of the school. The Japanese word okonomi means "how you like it," Mr. McGinn explained, and yaki means "grill." While the grilled snack wasn't to everyone's liking, some children couldn't get enough.
Over several years Mr. McGinn has developed Langley's garden into a beautiful and abounding outdoor classroom. Preschool students help place plants in the raised beds and planters and older students help care for them. A Three Sisters planting (corn, beans and squash) occupies one bed each year, as part of a Native American hands-on living history project, which also includes bead and pottery making with clay collected from the garden's clay pit and fired in the fire pit.
Stop by and say hello to Mr. McGinn next time you see him working in the garden - you are sure to learn something new! And don't forget to have him introduce you to the rescue turtle that is our garden's year-round resident.
By Dawn Madura
Stop by and say hello to Mr. McGinn next time you see him working in the garden - you are sure to learn something new! And don't forget to have him introduce you to the rescue turtle that is our garden's year-round resident.
By Dawn Madura
RSS Feed