Children Love Planting and Eating Chia

Fun With Chia!!

Little chia seeds pack a nutritional punch. These little plants are full of antioxidants, omega three fatty acids, fiber, calcium, and many nutrients. “Chia” means strength in the Mayan language and Aztec warriors and runners ate them often before battles. They are a super food. The seeds grow very fast, thicken liquids, and add nutrition to baked goods like muffins, breads, cookies, and pancakes. Young children and teens who will not touch lettuce or spinach salads will happily snack on chia or other sprouts like sunflowers.

Little Chia Garden

  Chia seeds in the grocery store can be planted. For planting, purchase a few new half inch synthetic sponges with little holes.  Soak the new sponges so they are damp but not dripping. Place the sponges on plates 

Plant Some Chis Seeds

and scatter chia seeds across the tops, gently poking them into the sponge holes. The seeds do not need to be washed first. In fact, when washed they will stick together in a glob.

  Keep the sponges moist by misting with several tablespoons of water often.  It is important not to let the chia seeds dry out. You may cover with clear plastic containers over the plates at night to keep the moisture in. Take off the covers during the day so the seeds do not rot. They will take 4-7 days to sprout about 1/4 inches.  Then it is time to move them to a sunny counter to grow 3-4 inches before harvesting with a washed scissors. They are great for children’s indoor gardens because they grow quickly.

  Strawberry Chia Pudding

  For this fresh tapioca- like pudding you will need: 16 ounces fresh hulled strawberries,

1 ½ cups coconut milk, 1/4 cup honey (maple syrup or to taste, 1 tsp vanilla, again to taste, 3/4 teaspoon finely grated lime zest, 1/2 cup chia seeds. Place everything BUT seeds in a blender until smooth. Check sweetness.

  Place chia seeds in a large bowl, pour the strawberry mixture on top, and whisk thoroughly. Let stand for 10 minutes and whisk again. Cover and refrigerate for at least 4 hours and up to 3 days. Stir the pudding before serving. The longer it sits, the thicker the pudding will become; if you find that it is too thick, whisk in a little water.

Make a Pudding or Parfait With Chia!

    For a parfait, put 1 cup fresh or frozen pineapple cubes in a saucepan. Cook over medium heat, stirring and mashing with a spoon about 7 minutes.  Add 2 cups pitted fresh or frozen sweet cherries mashing and cooking until tender, removing any chunks. Remove from heat.  Add 2 tablespoons chia seeds.  Mix well, cover and refrigerate overnight to thicken. To serve, layer 2 tablespoons of mixture with alternate layers of Greek yogurt.  

For more information on all things Chia go to: https://dengarden.com/gardening/How-I-grow-and-harvest-organic-Chia and https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Salvia_hispanica 

For more of our blogs see grandparentsteachtoo.blogspot.com  or http://wnmufm.org/programs/learning-through-seasons#stream/0

Photos: Dick Culbert from Gibsons, B.C., Canada - Salvia hispanica and 

Fran Darling, fdarling fotos  

Discovering Fresh Snow Prints

Fresh Snow Tell's Its Story 

Every time there is fresh snow a new story appears in the backyard. Families can help foster curiosity and love of nature by showing children ways to observe wildlife. A young nature detective can learn signs of animal life around the neighborhood. Looking for tracks in mud or snow give clues about animal visitors any time of the year. It provides an excellent opportunity for storytelling, taking photographs, and writing little books.

Learning Animal Signs

  Very young children can build an early understanding about how prints are made. You can use mud, sand or play dough to introduce the idea of pressing a little hand or foot in the soft material to make a footprint.      

Hunt for Tracks While Hiking

Walk together outside in a muddy or snowy area and notice the big and little tracks you make. Do boots make different tracks than shoes?  Who makes the bigger print? Drag a stick along the ground to see the kind of mark it leaves. Are there any tire or snowmobile tracks? Look around trees in the snow or dirt for any animal tracks.

   Families can check out guidebooks like “Tracks, Scats, and Signs” by Leslie Dendy to see if any of the prints match. What kind of tracks does your dog or cat leave?  What direction was it going?  Are there any deer or squirrels around?  Can you see hoof marks or hand- like paw prints?  What marks to bird feet leave? Did they leave parts of their lunch behind?

  Before you go outside or when you come back inside, read some books about common backyard animals.  Some suggestions include “The Snowy Day” by Ezra Jack Keats, “Tracks in the Wild” by Betsy Bowen or “What’s in the Woods?” by Zoe Burke.

Making Casts

Check All Tracks and Take Pictures

Children can take some photos or casts so when you are back inside, they can draw a picture showing some of the tracks you made or saw on your walk.  You can print a simple sentence on the bottom of the page to tell about the picture. Use the play dough to make animal tracks found in the guidebook. It’s great fun! In a few days, check out the yard again to see if there are new tracks.  If you visit a beach or pond area, look for different tracks.  What kind of animals might live here?

Families will be helping to build curiosity and observation skills which are important for an appreciation of nature and problem solving.  Talking together as you walk outside develops good vocabulary and conversation abilities. Families will be fostering a life-long habit of noticing animal clues and signs.  If you use a guide, children will learn the importance steps of searching in a reference book. For more see grandparentsteachtoo.blogspot.com, wnmufm.org/Learning Through the Seasons, and Pinterest.

Kids Enjoy Paper Core Projects

Many Ways to Recycle and Reuse 

Families are often looking for ways to recycle and reuse materials instead of throwing them in the trash. Think of how many paper towel and bathroom tissue cores we throw each month.  They can be used in a myriad of ways with children.

Poster Paint Stamps

  Paper cores make excellent stamps because they are easy for young children to hold. They can dip the end of the core in homemade or commercial poster paint and make all sorts of designs and figures on computer paper or card stock. The circles can be flowers, roly-poly Santas, chubby animals, snowmen, caterpillars, lady bugs, imaginary characters, and designs.  They are quite durable and can be thrown away when they get too mushy.

Make Stamps for Posters

  Fill containers with different colored paint or white paint for snow or night scenes on colored paper. The paper towel cores or tubes can be cut to the size needed for small hands, as long as they are sturdy. Children can cut the ends like fringe to make interesting designs, too.

  To make homemade poster paint measure ¼ cup of flour into a saucepan.  Slowly add 1 cup water while stirring to make a smooth paste. Heat on low temperature, stirring constantly until the paste begins to thicken.  Allow to cool.  Measure ¼ cup of the paste mixture into each small container.  Add 3 tablespoons of powdered tempera paint and 2 tablespoons water into each container. For a glossy finish add clear liquid detergent. The mixture will not store well. When the circles are dry children may add details with markers.

Core Creativity

  The cores make excellent bird feeders. Reinforce the core with duct tape. Coat a tube with peanut butter or shortening and roll in birdseed. Loop a long piece of string through the tube and tie it. Hang outside for the birds.

 Cores also make bracelets and pretend watches. Children can decorate them with markers first. Then adults can cut them to the desired thickness, usually about 2 inches and slit so the tube can open slightly to fit the wrist.

Combine Tubes and Create!

 The tubes can also be taped close together as a zig zag tunnel for small cars and secured to the refrigerator or a door with a small looped pieces of masking tape on the back. Show children that because of gravity a sharp angle decent (closer to a vertical line) will make the car go faster and a gentle slope will slow down the car.  Marbles can be used if everyone in the house is no longer in danger of swallowing them.

  These versatile cores can be made into flowers or snowflakes when squished and glued together. Decorated cores become gnomes, animals, racing cars, or plain little pots for growing seeds. For more see grandparentsteachtoo.blogspot.com and wnmufm.org/Learning Through the Seasons.

Photos: Fran Darling, fdarling fotos.