We sampled some delicious "french fries" this week in Nutrition Expedition! Not only were they tasty, but they were healthy, too!
Due to time constraints, I had to prepare and bake these fries prior to our class, rather than having the children help me. I found this recipe from the Food Network, however, I sliced them into strips, so they were more like a french fry. I also omitted the pepper. They were a big hit in all the classrooms. Get em' while they're hot!!
The infants enjoyed painting with potato "stamps", while the older infants also got to partake in the french-fry tasting!
One potato, two potato, three potato, four! We got down to the nitty-gritty of growing potatoes this week in Nutrition Expedition!
I brought in a handful of potatoes that were beginning to sprout. We inspected the new growths and talked about what to do if you find a potato in your pantry that has sprouted. This means that you shouldn't eat them (unless you cut the sprouts off and make sure the potato is not turning soft or green, which indicates the presence of a natural toxin, solanine), but you sure can plant them! Because the potato plant and stems are poisonous, you never want to eat the sprout, however, it would take a large amount of solanine to make you sick. We also checked out a few pictures of potato plants and sprouted potatoes.
If you want to plant them and grow your own potatoes, you simply have to cut the sprouted potato into pieces, being sure that each piece contains a sprout. Let the pieces dry overnight in a cool, dark place. Plant the pieces, sprout up, about 2-3 inches down, 24 inches apart, using loose, well-decomposed compost and soil. For more detailed instructions, follow this link.
We read the story Two Old Potatoes and Me, by John Coy. It's about a young girl and her father who learn how to grow their own potatoes, after finding old, sprouted potatoes in their cupboard. The illustrations are very unique, and the content is so educational. Even I learned a thing or two about potato farming :) Check it out!
Here are a few videos that the 4-year-olds viewed about growing potatoes:
And there you have it! Potatoes are pretty simple :) Feel free to try this at home!!
Super Sleuth Questions
1. What should you do with a potato that has sprouts (answer: don't eat it! Plant it!)
2. How do you grow many potatoes from one single potato? (answer: cut the potato in pieces and plant in the ground. Each piece will grow a potato plant, yielding lots of potatoes per plant)
3. What did the girl in the story find in her cupboard? (answer: old, sprouted potatoes)
What is round(ish), grows under the ground, and has eyes? Potatoes! That's right, potatoes have "eyes"! That is where the potato, or tuber, is attached to the root of a potato plant.
We learned a great deal about potatoes this week in Nutrition Expedition. For example, did you know that the plant that a potato grows from is part of the nightshade family and is extremely poisonous? Only the tuber that grows beneath the soil is edible, which is what we call a potato. Potatoes are a good source of vitamins B6 (needed for brain development/functions, and the production of serotonin/melatonin), potassium (helps maintain a healthy heart), and vitamin C (helps boost our immune system), just to name a few. Read more about the health benefits of potatoes here.
I brought in a few varieties of potatoes for the children to check out and sample: a Russet potato, a red-skinned potato, a purple potato, and a golden Yukon potato. Delicious!
Super Sleuth Questions
1. What grows from the eyes of a potato if you keep it long enough? (answer: roots)
