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FOOD THEME
CRAFTS:
Corn Cob Farmers
Cut a 38 mm section of dried
cob for a body and a 25 mm section for a head. Turn the head on its side,
glue to the body and add a face using a marker pen. Split a 50 mm section
of corn stalk in two for legs and glue to the bottom of the body. Split
a 25 mm section of corn stalk in four, glue on two pieces as arms, then
bend the ends slightly to make hands. Experiment to see if you can add
corn silk hair and other corn husk details (e.g. hat, tie, necker). To
make husks pliable and easy to shape, try soaking them in warm water for
five minutes. When the figure is complete, add a screw eye and loop of
fishing line in the top of the head for hanging.
Corn Husk Farmers
1. Gather the husks, and
tie them tightly together at one end with the yarn or string.
2. To make the head, tie
the husks a little way down from the top knot.
3. Gather three of the husks
and tie them together halfway down arm. Cut away most of the excess corn
husk that is below the knots.
4. To make the body, tie
the remaining corn husks halfway between the head and their ends.
5. Make the legs by taking
three husks and tying them together a little way up from their ends.
6. Make the other leg the
same way.
7. Decorate with coloured
felt-tipped markers, construction paper, fabric or any other craft
supplies you may have.
Cookie
Monster
Give
each child two blue pom-poms and googly eyes. To make a cookie monster,
they must glue the pom-poms onto a straw, popsicle stick or stir stick.
Glue the eyes to the top pom-pom. Next, give each child a toilet paper
roll (or half of a paper towel roll) and ask them to decorate it like a
cookie jar. They can draw cookies or cut out chocolate chip cookies from
brown construction paper. Glue these onto the tube. Help them spell out
the word “COOKIES” around the top of the tube. Poke the cookie monster
up through the tube. He’s now peeking out of the cookie jar!
Dots
Kids should drop a dozen
grains of rice on a piece of white paper. Get them to make a dot on the
spot where each grain falls, then create a picture by joining all the dots.
Decorate
Cookies
Provide
the kids with cupcakes, shortbread or gingerbread cookies. Give each child
a small yogurt container with white icing in it. Also provide food colouring
so they can tint their icing and make decorations on their cookies. Provide
some candies and licorice as well. After the children have admired all
the cookies (feasting their eyes) let them feast their stomachs.
Edible
Art
Materials:
Paper plates, plastic spoons, honey, and small paper cups filled with goodies
(nuts, mini marshmallows, pretzel sticks, corn chips, cheese puffs, gum
drops, popcorn, fruit loops, raisins, flaked coconut, etc.)
What
to Do: Give each child a paper plate, a spoon and a cup of goodies.
The children spread a spoonful of honey over the plate to act as glue and
then make pictures using things from the cup. When everyone is finished,
admire the results, then eat!
Grain Collage
Use corn, wheat, hay, oats,
barley, and other grains that farm animals eat to sort and/or make a collage.
Grain Elevators
Grain
elevators are found in the prairie provinces, usually along the railroad.
Materials: Each grain elevator
will require: an empty 1 litre carton of milk (rinsed and dry),construction
paper, scissors, crayons or markers
What to Do: Fold the top
of the milk carton flat, or cut it off. Glue construction paper on the
sides to cover the milk carton. Cut out a set of doors, folding the sides
so they will open. Design a company logo for the sides and draw it on the
grain elevator.
Hot
Cross Buns
These
yummy treats are part of the tradition of Easter. Here's an activity
that lets you combine them with rhythm and a simple craft. Have the
Children learn to chant this this little rhythm while clapping in time:
Hot
cross buns, Hot cross buns,
One
a penny, two a penny,
Hot
cross buns.
Clap
short-short-long for lines one, two and four; clap quickly in rhythm with
each syllable for line three. When the Children are getting good
at clapping and chanting, have them trace outlines of their feet on pieces
of paper, then cut out each foot shape and tape it to the floor.
When they are ready, Children stand on their own paper feet and stamp,
clap, and chant "hot cross buns" at the same time. Finish with a
treat of hot cross buns and a drink.
Make
Pizza
Give
each child pita bread (cut in half), or half of an English muffin. Provide
pizza ingredients such as sauce, cheese, tomatoes, peppers, salami, pepperoni
and mushrooms so your the kids can create their own pizzas. Bake the pizzas
in an oven at 350°F for 10 minutes, then enjoy.
Oog Juice
You can call any kind of
punch mixture “Oog juice”. Make a warm drink by heating equal amounts of
grape juice and red fruit punch. Add raisins and slivered almonds. Enjoy!
Potato
Print
Cut
several potatoes in half and carve a shape on each flat surface before
the meeting. The the kids can create their own wrapping paper by dipping
the potato in poster paint, then stamping it on a piece of paper.
Pumpkin
Seed Masks
The
masks will require dry pumpkin seeds, paper bags painted orange,
and glue. Ask your the kids to draw faces on the bags. They can glue down
pumpkin seeds for decorations or to highlight facial features. Let them
add small boxes for nose, ears and eyes. Cut holes for the eyes and nose.
Voila! The masks are ready to wear.
Peanut Puppets
To prepare for this craft,
carefully cut off the bottoms of peanut shells and shake the peanuts out.
Have extra shells available in case of breakage. Provide the kids with
felt-tipped markers, yarn for hair, glue and scissors. Draw faces on the
upper part of the shells and glue on hair. Five peanut puppets will fit
on each hand — one for each finger. Let the kids make up stories for their
puppets.
Spoon
People
Make
people and animal creatures from old wooden spoons and popsicle sticks.
Simply decorate with yarn (hair), pipe cleaner (arms), and paper (ears).
Draw faces with magic markers.Gingerbread
House
GAMES & ACTIVITIES:
Animal
Crackers
Fill
a basket with a variety of animal-shaped cookies wrapped in coloured tissue
paper. Seat the kids in a semi-circle. One at a time, each draws a package
from the basket and takes it into a far corner to open. The child then
returns to the others and acts like the animal while everyone tries to
guess what kind of animal it is. When all have guessed, the next child
picks a cookie. Eat the cookies after everyone has had a turn.
Beaver
Soup
The
kids should stand along one wall of the pond. Leaders form a circle in
the centre of the room, pretending they are stirring a giant pot. With
older kids as prompter to help them ask the questions, the kids call, “What
are you making?” The leaders shout back, “Beaver soup!” Then the kids ask,
“What are you putting in it?” Leaders reply “Baboons”. the kids ask, “What
else?” Leaders reply, “Bacon”. This continues until the leaders reply,
“the Beavers!” At this point the kids race to the other side of the room
and leaders try to catch them. Tagged the kids join the leaders in making
the soup; play continues until all the kids are in the soup. If “B” words
are the only words used, a list might be helpful. Or, use the names of
any foods and catch the kids off-guard when leaders shout, “the Beavers!”
Corn Cob and Ring
Make a toy as a craft at
your harvest celebration and play this simple game. It’s based on a Native
game played by Algonquin Indians, Inuit, Ecuadorians and Colombians. Each
kid needs a dried corn cob (stripped of kernels), a 2 cm ring cut from
a toilet roll, a 40 cm length of string, and markers to decorate the ring.
A leader might do the first step while your kids are busy decorating. Knot
the string at one end, thread it onto a tapestry needle, and pull the needle
through the tip of the corn cob. Remove the needle and let your kids tie
the free end of the string around the ring. Younger kids will need help.
To play the game, hold the corn cob at the base, flick the wrist to toss
up the ring, and catch it on the tip of the cob. It’s great for eye-hand
coordination!
Corn Cob Darts
Native Canadian youngsters
made a simple toy kids will enjoy. Push two or three bird feathers picked
up on a ramble or at a craft store into one end of a 10 cm piece of dried
corn cob (kernels removed). Mark a target on the ground and a throwing
line some distance away. Who can hit the target?
Corn Husk Kicking
Take a handful of corn husks
and tie them with a piece of yarn. Make one for each group. Hang the corn
husk so it is level with most of your kids’ waists. Let the kids take turns
going up to the corn husks and kicking them in different ways. Raise the
corn husks to increase the level of challenge.
Collect the Nuts
Divide the kids into two
lines. In front of each child place a peanut in the shell. The “Collector”
has a box or tin to put the nuts into, and stands at the end of the line.
The first player picks up the nut in front of him and gives it to the person
behind him. The second player takes the nut from the first player, picks
up the nut in front of him and passes both to the third player. The third
player takes both nuts from the second player, picks up his own nut, and
gives all three to the fourth. Play continues all the way down the line,
until the last person gives all the peanuts to the “Collector”. The
“Collector” goes to the front of the line and gives all the nuts to the
first player. The first player takes one nut, hands the rest to the second
player and puts his on the floor in front of him. The nuts pass back down
the line until everyone has a nut in front of him once more. What now?
EAT!
Candy
Hunt
Materials:
candy eggs, jelly beans, small bag
What
to Do: Scatter candy eggs and jelly beans over the meeting area or
outside. Carrying a small bag each, send the kids out to collect the treats.
After all the candy has been found, gather in lodges to share the goodies.
Remember nut and chocolate allergies!
Harvest
Hunt
A
simple Harvest Hunt fits nicely with a Thanksgiving theme. Play it indoors
or outside. Hide common harvest fruit and vegetables such as potatoes,
carrots, apples, onions and ears of corn around the area, and send out
the kids to gather the harvest. Each group can then create a Cornucopia
(Horn of Plenty) to use as decoration for the rest of the season. Combine
all the Cornucopias together and share the bounty with the kids to take
home. If you use this game as part of an outing, you might like to highlight
the day with a corn roast feast and a dessert of crunchy harvest apples.
Yum!
"Ice-Cream"
Cones
Ingredients:
1 small package of instant pudding (any flavour), 1 1/2 cups milk, 1 cup
whipped topping, ice cream cone What to Do: Pour the milk into a
bowl and add pudding mix. Beat with an egg beater or an electric
mixer at low speed. Gently stir in the whipped topping. Put
the pudding mixture in the refrigerator for at least fifteen minutes before
serving. To serve, scoop the mixture into ice cream cones and top
with candy sprinkles. (Makes 4 to 6 treats)
Pumpkin
Hunting
Hide
lots of paper pumpkins around the pond. Organize the kids in to groups,
and give each group leader a length of string and tape or paper clips for
attaching pumpkins to it. Each group chooses a special signal for calling
their leader (barking, clapping, chirping), because only the leader can
pick up the pumpkins. On a signal, the kids search for the pumpkins. When
they find one, they place a finger on it and signal their leader by their
special call, so the leader can pick up the pumpkin and attach it to the
string.
Neighborhood
Nuts
On
a walk around the neighborhood, see how many different types of nut trees
and berry bushes can be found. Collect samples and bring them back
to the meeting area. Compare the knots that were found. Do
they look alike? Do they feel the same? Do they have the same
smell? Who else might enjoy nuts and berries beside people?
But one of each kind in a bag. Play a guessing game. Have a
child stick his hand in and feel a nut or buried. Have him guess
what kind it is. After he guesses he can take the nut or bury out
and see if he is correct. Note: be aware of allergies.
Pizza
Game
Here’s
a different version of Hit the Deck. Name each wall of the meeting hall
a pizza ingredient, e.g. salami, cheese, pineapple, ham. As a group leader
calls out an ingredient, the kids race to touch the appropriate wall. When
the group leader calls, Pizza!”, the kids race to the centre of the
hall and fall flat on their tummies.
Taste
& Smell
Bring
a variety of different spices and foods in small containers for the kids
to smell and taste. Can they identify them? You might try peanut butter,
vinegar, lemon, orange, pepperoni, vanilla, cloves, chocolate, onion, and
smoked fish.
SONGS:
Found a Peanut
Found a peanut, found a
peanut, found a peanut last night,
Last night I found a peanut,
found a peanut last night.
Cracked it open, cracked
it open, cracked it open last night,
Last night I cracked it
open, cracked it open last night.
It was rotten, etc.
Ate it anyway, etc.
Got a tummy ache, etc.
Called the doctor, etc.
Took some medicine, etc.
Got all better, etc.
Oats,
Beans and Barley
This
is an old English chanting song. Form a large circle and join hands.
One
kid stands in the middle as the Farmer. All chant:
Oats
and beans and barley grow
In
fields and rows,
In
fields and rows.
And
this is the way the Farmer sows:
He
stamps his foot (all stamp foot)
He
claps his hands (all clap hands)
And
turns around and views the land (all turn around)
Waiting
for a partner.
Waiting
for a partner (all fold arms and stand still)
At
this point, the Farmer chooses a partner and the two hold hands.
kids
repeat the chant until all have been chosen and stand with hands
linked
in a new circle.
A
Pizza Hut
A
Pizza Hut, (Action: draw the house shape of a Pizza Hut restaurant)
A
Pizza Hut,
Kentucky
Fried Chicken (action: tuck your hands under your armpits as
wings)
and
a Pizza Hut.
A
Pizza Hut, a Pizza Hut, Kentucky Fried Chicken, And a Pizza Hut.
McDonald's!
(action: draw the golden arches with your fingers )
McDonalds!
Kentucky Fried Chicken, And a Pizza Hut.
McDonalds!
McDonalds,
Kentucky Fried Chicken, And a Pizza Hut.
Pizza
Song
(Tune:
Camptown Races)
I
know something the kids like,
Pizza!
Pizza!
Let’s
all cook some up tonight,
Yummy
pizza pie.
Chorus
Gooey
pizza pie
Chewy
pizza pie
We’re
gonna eat it up tonight
Yummy
pizza pie.
I
know something group leaders like, etc..
(Substitute
other names to continue
the
song, such as Keeo, Bubbles,
Rainbow,
or each child’s name.)
STORIES:
Mr.
Jones Bakes a Cake
Organize
the kids into two lines of equal numbers. Player one in
each
line is Mr. Jones and player two is the string bag. Each additional pair
of players are various other items: cake, eggs, shortening, sugar, recipe,
wallet, money, etc.. All the possibilities have been italicized in the
story.
Read
the story. Each time they hear their “name”, the appropriate the kids run
to a mark to tag a group leader before running back to the line again.
When
they hear “everything”, all the kids run up to tag the group leaders before
returning to their lines.
One
day Mr. Jones decided to make a cake. He needed eggs, shortening
and
sugar. He looked in the refrigerator for eggs and shortening, but
could
not find any. He looked in the cupboard, but didn’t see any sugar.
So,
Mr. Jones decided to go to the store. He put the recipe in his wallet,
checked
to see he had some money, picked up a string bag, and walked
to
the corner store.
“Hi
there,” Mr. Jones said to the grocer. “I want to bake this cake.” He
took
the recipe out of his wallet. “I need a dozen eggs, 250 grams of shortening,
and a bag of sugar.
The
grocer helped him find the things he needed for the cake. Mr.
Jones
took some money out of his wallet, and paid for everything. He picked
up
the string bag, put in the eggs, the sugar, and the shortening, and walked
home.
Back
in the kitchen, Mr. Jones took the recipe out of his wallet, took
the
eggs, the shortening, and the sugar out of the string bag, and baked up
the
biggest chocolate cake with gooey icing you could ever imagine.
Wow!
Was Mrs. Jones ever surprised when she came home! Mr. Jones
and
Mrs. Jones enjoyed the wonderful cake for dessert after supper.
FOOD SUGGESTIONS:
Apple Fritters
Serve these warm and sprinkled
with icing sugar. Try adding pineapple rings or chunks of banana to the
batter.
250 mL flour
30 mL sugar
75 mL milk 3-4 apples
10 mL baking powder
1 egg
30 mL vegetable oil
cooking oil
Stir together the flour,
baking powder and sugar until mixed. In a separate bowl, beat the egg with
the milk and oil, then add this to the flour mixture and blend well. Don’t
beat it too much! The batter should be thick enough to coat the apple slice.
If it seems too thick, add a little more milk to thin it. Peel and core
the apples and slice them into rings. Dip slices into the batter, then
deep-fry until brown on both sides, turning once. Drain on paper towels
and sprinkle with icing sugar.
If you run out of fruit
before all the batter is used up, try dropping globs of batter into the
oil and see what weird shapes you can create.
Farm Foods
Discuss and taste different
foods that come from the farm.
Martian
Mix Juice
Ahead
of time, mix all these ingredients together except the club soda.
•
large can of unsweetened pineapple juice
•
2 tbsp. lemon juice
•
small can of frozen orange juice concentrate
•
bottle club soda.
Add
the club soda just before serving. Quenches the thirst of 10 - 12 kids.
Potato Latkes
(Eat with applesauce, sour
cream or just “as is.”)
6 medium potatoes 30 mL
flour
1 onion 5 mL salt
2 eggs oil for frying
Peel potatoes and grate
them on the large holes of a hand grater or in a food processor. (Supervise
children carefully with the grater. This method can take a long time and
their attention may drop just long enough for an accident to happen.) Dump
the potato shreds into a colander and squeeze out all the excess liquid.
(It’s essential to get it all.) Transfer the potato to a mixing bowl. Grate
the onion and add it to the potatoes along with eggs, flour and salt. Mix
well. Heat about 2 cm of oil in a large frying pan and drop large spoonfuls
of the batter into the hot oil. Fry one side until golden, then turn them
over and fry the other side. Lift out and drain on paper towels. A 4 kg
bag of potatoes makes approximately 24 latkes. Serve warm.
Sweet Potato Candy
450 grams sweet potatoes
500 mL sugar (1/2 brown,
1/2 white)
15 mL lemon or orange juice
250 mL marshmallows (optional)
Add pineapple juice, vanilla
or cinnamon for flavouring.
1. Wash and boil the sweet
potatoes.
2. Cool, peel and mash the
potatoes in a colander.
3. Place in a pan and add
lemon juice, sugar and marshmallows.
4. Cook over low flame,
stirring constantly until very thick.
5. Set aside to cool.
6. Add vanilla and/or other
flavouring.
7. Spoon out candy into
paper cups.
8. Dust with powdered sugar,
or sprinkle with sugar candies such as candy beads.
TIPS/NOTES:
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