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As part of their Geography studies this term all Year 3 and 4 pupils have been to visit The Croft a small organic farm in Houghton, Carlisle. One of the aims of the day was to compare local farming to farming methods and food grown in our study area of Tanzania.
The children spent the day on this farm participating in various jobs such as loading the trailer with hay to picking vegetables, collecting eggs, feeding animals, cooking and then eating the delicious food.
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The day was action packed and so we had no time to stand around and get cold! After feeding the sheep ready for market and staking the trailer with the bails of hay which needed to be transported to the far field for the longhorns to nibble and feed on we went and visited the orchard. Local produce here was growing well and pigs were being used to turn the land ……no machines needed here! We then went back to the classroom for a delicious snack of scones and cheese. All ingredients had been sourced locally with the flour coming from the mill in Little Salked and the cheese from a farm on Hadrian’s Wall, not many food miles clocked up there!
Next it was time for us to prepare our pudding for the day, a scrumptious apple crumble. We worked in teams and were totally responsible for peeling the apples measuring the ingredients for the crumble and finally popping the dishes into the oven. A delightful smell began to drift around the classroom which certainly got some lips licking and tummies rumbling. Whilst lunch was being prepared we went to feed the hens and collect their eggs. Some of the hens ate out of our hands with one or two of us getting nipped!
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After a little more fresh air it was back inside for a delicious lunch of pasta bolognaise followed by apple crumble with cream. The tasty beef came from the longhorn cattle reared on the farm with vegetables from the organic allotment. Everyone had a full tum by the end of lunch, with some children having seconds and even thirds! With peelings going on the compost heap there wasn’t much waste!
A final trip out across the many grazing fields to visit the longhorns made our trip out a day to remember. We certainly have a clear picture of how delicious local food gets on our plates and the similarities and differences to farming in Tanzania. Mrs Ward who we all remember from Brunswick school was the perfect hostess and gave us a great tour and a day to remember.