Looking at culture, traditions, and use of

grains in society

Activities and Discussion topics

for 5-13 year olds

GrainsEducation Pack

1

Introduction 2

Teachers notes 3

Fact Sheet 1 Food, tradition and beliefs 5

Fact Sheet 1 The People of Boyaca in Rural Colombia 6

Fact Sheet 1 The Atitecho People 7

Activity Sheet 1 The Weather report 8

Fact Sheet 2 Grain Growing 9

Fact Sheet 2 Worldwide 10

Fact Sheet 2 Cultivation 11

Activity Sheet 2 Sour Dough Starters and Rye Bread 12

Activity Sheet 2 Sour Dough Starters and Rye Bread 13

Fact Sheet 3 Harvesting 14

Fact Sheet 3 Harvest Home 15

Activity Sheet 3 Straw Crafts 16

Activity Sheet 3 Straw Crafts 17

Activity Sheet 3 Straw Crafts 18

Activity Sheet 3 Straw Crafts 19

Fact Sheet 4 Milling 20

Fact Sheet 4 Mills 21

Activity Sheet 4 Weights and measures 22

Fact Sheet 5 Baking 23

Activity Sheet 5 Friendship Cake 24

Activity Sheet 5 Celebrate and decorate 25

Activity Sheet 5 Celebrate and decorate 26

Activity Sheet 5 Celebrate and decorate 27

Activity Sheet 5 Celebrate and decorate 28

Fact Sheet 6 Growing grains in the UK 29

Activity Sheet 6 Grow your own grains 31

Activity Sheet 6 Grow your own grains 32

Bibliography 33

Further resources 34

Contents

Grains and bread are universal themes whichare valued and used the world over. They actas a vital food source for the majority of theplanet, thus creating discussion topics forlocal activities as well as wider global issues.Young people can learn by hands-onactivities, such as bread-making and doughcraft, as well as exploring the wider themesof culture and tradition offered in the pack.

The pack can be used for adults and childrenbetween the ages of 5 and 13 in workingsituations, on a farm or inside a teachingroom. It can be used as an informationsource, providing cultural, traditional anddomestic references for grains and bread.

The pack is divided into Fact Sheets andActivity Sheets, which complement oneanother and can be used together orseparately. The activity sheets are designedas 'stand-alone' sheets, which can be pulledout and photocopied for distribution with agroup.

'The pack aims to be a resource materialthat can be used both within the Federationof City Farms and Community Gardensnetwork and within schools and youngpeople’s educational settings.

It can be used as a handout for visitinggroups, and form a starting point foreducational activities producing new ideasand leading to further research.

The teachers' notes provide guidance andcross-curricular information to enable thepack to be used within schools, where it isbest suited for Key Stage 2 children.

Introduction

2

Although this pack is aimed at 5-13 yearolds, most of its contents are best suited toKey Stage 2 children. It has not been writtenwith reference to specific NationalCurriculum programmes of study but offers awider cross-curricular approach to the studyof grains. Alternatively, teachers can useindividual fact sheets or activities, weavingthem into their own existing or futureteaching plans. For this purpose, the tableand additional notes below identify NationalCurriculum subject links with reference tospecific fact and activity sheets.

The fact sheets and activities serve toprovide background and guidance toteachers who will be able to adapt theircontent to the age and ability of their classof children. However some pages aresuitable for direct use with children asphotocopiable resources. Some of the craftactivities require the manual dexterity of KeyStage 3 children, whilst younger childrenmay need more adult supervision to achievesuccess.

Teachers Notes

Teachers notes 3

Grains - Education Pack

Links with the National Curriculum / QCA Schemes of work

Facts and 1 2 3 4 5

Activities Food, traditions Grain Harvesting Milling Baking

Sheets & belief growing

Literacy ✓ ✓ ✓ ✓ ✓

key stage 1, 2 1, 2 1, 2, 3 1, 2, 3 1, 2, 3

Numeracy ✓ ✓ ✓

key stage 1, 2 1, 2 1, 2

Science ✓ ✓ ✓ ✓ ✓

key stage 2 2 2 2, 3 2

Geography ✓ ✓ ✓ ✓ ✓

key stage 2 2, 3 2 2 2

History ✓ ✓ ✓ ✓

key stage 1, 2 1, 2 1, 2 1, 2

Religious Education ✓ ✓ ✓ ✓

key stage 1, 2, 3 1, 2, 3 1, 2 1, 2

Design Technology ✓ ✓ ✓

key stage 1, 2 1, 2 1, 2, 3

Art & Design ✓ ✓

key stage 1, 2, 3 1, 2, 3

Literacy:

• Explanatory text (sayings predicting theweather) - Activity 1

• Instructional texts (using recipes and craftskills) - Activities 2, 3, 4

• Use of diagrams to support texts -Activities 3 & 5 & Fact Sheet 2

• Technical vocabulary (associated withgrain processing) - Fact sheets 4

Numeracy:

• Number calculations - Activity 4

• Measuring (weighing, timing,temperature) - Activities 2, 4, 5

• Using metric, imperial (-with ref. tohistorical background) & N & S Americanmeasuring units - Activities 2, 4, 5

• Data Handling (surveys) - Activity 4

Science:

• Sc2 - Life & Living processes

• Relating weather sayings to knowledge ofplants and animals - Activity 1

• Using yeast as a useful microorganism inbread making - Activities 2

• Yearly crop life cycles linked to religiouscelebrations - Fact Sheet 3

• Structure and function of parts of wheatseed - Fact Sheet 4

• Nutritional value of wheat - Fact Sheet 4

• Role of grain in human food chains - FactSheet 4

• Sc3 - Materials and their properties

• Straw - uses related to properties -Activities 3

• Clay, brick, metal -materials used for ovenfrom past to present - Fact Sheet 5

• Chemical changes by mixing and heating(yeast and cooking) - Activities 4 & 5

• Sc4 Physical Processes

• Forces and friction in milling and grinding- Fact Sheet 4

Religious Education:

• South American religious beliefs andstories relating to crops - Fact Sheet 1

• Past and present religious celebrationsand symbols relating to the farming year -Fact Sheet 3, Activities 3,4 &5

Geography:

• Weather predicting from old or traditionalsayings - Activities 1

• Seasonal food cycles and the globalmarket place - Fact Sheet 1

• Grain as a world-wide food - Fact Sheet 2

• The farming year related to religiousfestivals - Fact Sheet 3

• Processing grains into food items - FactSheets 4 & 5

History:

• History of cereals - Fact Sheet 2

• Traditions associated with the farmingyear - Fact Sheet 3

• History of imperial measures - Fact Sheet 4

• History of milling - Fact Sheet 4

• History of baking - Fact Sheet 5

Design Technology:

• Bread making around the world -Activities 2

• Past to present milling technology - FactSheet 4

• Nutritional value of wheat - Fact Sheet 4

• Design and make a cereal packet -Activities 4

• Investigating cereal products - Activities 4

• Making a friendship cake - Activities 4

• Skills in decorative bread designs -Activities 5

Art and Design:

• Straw crafts skills - plaiting, winding,looping, binding, bending and fixing -Activities 3

• Making decorative breads by rolling,kneading, twisting, knotting, plaitingtechniques, and changing sizes, shapes,textures and colours - Activities 5

Teachers notes 4

Food, tradition and beliefs 5

From seed to supper

Few of us today follow the full cycle from‘seed to supper’, from digging the earth andplanting seed, to cooking with the plantsthat we grow. Most of us live in towns orcities, buy our food in supermarkets anddon’t know when vegetables, grains andfruits are truly in season. We can buystrawberries at any time of the yearnow. In fact, most people inBritain can buy foodseveryday, out of season,that have travelled acrossthe continents of theworld to be on ourshelves.

We may no longerbe tied to ourenvironment asearlier generationswere, shaping theirlives around thenatural seasonalcycle. However it isessential that wekeep in touch with it.Our future viability inliving sustainably on theearth depends on ourawareness of these naturalsystems.

One way of doing that is bylooking at our relationship with ourfood and where it comes from, both nowand in the past.

Growing grain

Growing grain in Britain has beeninterwoven into our way of life for millennia.It has shaped many parts of our culture -from the festivals we hold and the kinds ofbread we make, to how we weigh andmeasure things and even how we build ourhouses. There has clearly been a time whengrowing grains kept us more in touch withnature than we are today.

For many people across the world, thegrowing of grain and the making of bread isstill a central part of everyday life. Becauseof this, the activities of grain-growing andbread-making are often close to the heart oftheir ideas about nature, the world and

religion.

Looking at howimportant growing grain has been tohumankind, we might think that we began tolearn how to control nature when we learntto cultivate grain. However, there are manypeoples of the world who think that to growgrain means to live in balance with nature -to be working with it, rather than in chargeof it.

On the following pages are two illustrationsof this way of thinking.

Food, tradition and beliefs 1

The rural people from Boyaca say that it isthe nature of the earth to give force, “lafuerza.” We might think of this force assomething like nature’s powers. Over andover again people say, “the land gives” - “Latierra da”. So, to the people of Boyaca, foodis ‘given’, by the land. In fact, they believethat all wealth comes from the land.

People say that the strength in the earth isgiven by God and that it is human work tomove the land and manage it if they want togather what it gives. It is seen as greatgood fortune, luck or destiny to be employedas a farm worker.

The Boyaca people believe that the land haspower that is outside of human control andoften ask for God’s help in farming. Asseeding begins, a man says, “In the name ofthe Lord and the Holy Spirit, may it come upwell”. People also ask for the help of thewind and the rain, which is thought to benecessary if the crops are to grow. The land,its power and God are all held in the highestesteem. People say, “There is nothing likeGod and one’s garden”, as well as “First God,and then maize”.

Some areas of land are known to give moreforce and bigger crops than others. Butmany of the Boyaca people say that despitethis, all their land gives less now and needsmuch more help from humans. The peoplebelieve that this is not the land’s fault, for itis tired and needs to rest. It may seem tobe common sense that the use ofinsecticides and herbicides will reduce theamount of human work required on the land.But the Boyaca people believe that thesetreatments really do nothing for the land’sstrength and that they would need to putmore and more work into the soil, to have asuccessful harvest. Likewise, they believethat some fertilizers are good - like the ashesfrom burnt trees, or animal manure, becausethey add force. Whilst others, such aschemical fertilizers, are bad because theyburn the earth, and take away its force.

The Boyaca people believe that food givesenergy and spirit and that different foodshave different amounts of force. Somepeople say that maize has the most forceand others that beans, lentils or wheat do.This is because the crop that has thestrongest amount of force changes fromplace to place, depending on what the earthgives best in that place.

“Force in work and land and crops is all thesame. Nature’s strength is the substance ofliving”. A Boyaca saying.

Quote from “Colombian Conversations”, S. Gudeman and A. Rivera.

The People of Boyaca in ruralColombia

1

Food, tradition and beliefs 6

“There is

nothing like

God and

one’s

garden”

The

land gives

The Atitecho People 1

Food, tradition and beliefs 7

The Atitecho People live in the highlands ofGuatemala and the Chiapas which you willfind on the map to the south of Mexico andthe United States of America. They aredistantly related to the Maya Indians of thepast, who are known for their advanceddevelopment of ideas such as astronomy,the calendar and hieroglyphic writing.

The Atitecho express their religious beliefsthrough ideas about plant growth and the re-creation of life. “Flowing Mountain Earth”, asthey call it, is an idea about the way that theworld works. It is about how the growth ofplants and the life cycle of humans arerelated to each other, as are things like timeand the movement of the stars.

Flowing Mountain Earth is a place at thecentre of our planet. In Atitechos’ myth,before there was a world or a universe,there was a single, lone maize plant,growing at the centre of all that there was.As the world’s creation approached, themaize seeds became pregnant with potentiallife. The life in the seeds contained physicalthings such as maize and deer, rocks andrivers, as well as elements such as lightningand segments of time. Eventually this loadbecame too much for the maize plant tosupport and the cobs fell, smashing andscattering the seed. As time passednumerous seedlings sprang up out of thesoil at the foot of the grand, old plant whichgave shelter to the young plants andnurtured them.

Finally the old plant was crowded out by thenew and since then it has existed as astump at the centre of the world. Thisstump represents all that remains of theoriginal mother and father - the beginningand ending of life. The Atitechos peoplerespect this original maize plant which, ifproperly treated, looks after and renews theworld. Sometimes they feed it through ahole in the ground and give it offerings.

To the workers in the field, the maize seedsto be planted are called “little skulls” -

referring to the way that the ‘death’ of aplant gives many seeds or “little skulls”,which go back in to the ground to createmany new plants. Seedlings are called “littleones” and when a ‘little one’ sprouts, theysay “His face came out”.

The Atitechos’ ideas about nature and theland run so deep that they can be found inpeople’s everyday expressions. Forexample, when a child is born they say, “Hesprouted”. A new born baby is also said tohave “returned” because, for the Atitechos,‘as with the maize, so with the people.’ Theymean that, just as a seed must containsome part of the plant it came from, so aperson’s essence is regenerated in theirdescendants, particularly their grandchildren.Because of this, children are often giventheir grandparents’ names. It is thought thatthese beliefs go back to the religion of theold Mayan civilisation.

1

Food, tradition and beliefs 8

The Weather Report

Just like the Atitecho and Boyaca people, thepeople of Britain have many old stories andsayings about their crops. As a good harvestso often depends on the right conditions,many of these sayings were a way ofpredicting the weather and the quality of theapproaching harvest.

Here are a few examples.

People say...

Why do you think a swarmof bees in May might beworth ‘a load of hay’ whenin July they weren’t ‘wortha fly’?

Do you know any othersayings that predict theweather, or give advice about planting,farming and making bread?

..that animals such ascows knowinstinctively when badweather is coming -that they lie down ifit’s going to rain andalways turn to face astorm

“If the grass

grows in January,

it grows the

worse for it all

year”

“Mists in May and

heat in June,

makes the harvest

right soon”

“A cold May and a windy, makes

a fat barn and a findy (good

harvest)”

“When April blows

his horn (ie is cold

and windy), it’s

good for hay and

corn.”

..that if crows buildtheir nests high, itmeans summer will begood and if they buildthem low, it will bebad

St. Swithin’s Day (July 15) if thou dost rain,

For forty days it doth remain.St. Swithin’s Day if thou be fine,For forty days the sun will shine.

If it rains on St. Swithin’s Day it is saidthat “St. Swithins is christening theapples”.

Cut thistles in MayThey grow in a day:Cut them in June,That is too soon:Cut them in July,Then they will die.

A swarm of bees in May

Is worth a load of hay;A swarm of bees in

JuneIs worth a silver

spoon;A swarm of bees in

JulyIs not worth a fly.

Building an oat stack at Twatt Farm, Birsay,Orkney. Picture courtesy of the BirsayHeritage Trust

Do you think this istrue? What was it likefor forty days after thelast St Swithins day?

Why should thethistles grow backso quickly in Mayand not in July?

In Central America, maize (which we callcorn on the cob) has been the main cerealfor many thousands of years. Its use can betraced back 7000 years to Mayan farmerswho called it zea mays meaning ‘that whichsustains the Maya.’ Early European settlersin America learned how to grow maize fromthe North American Indians. This helpedkeep them from starvation.

5000 years ago, in Egypt, leavened breadwas already being made in beehive ovensusing much the same methods we usetoday. Like us, the Egyptians grew largefields of wheat, refined different kinds offlour and used yeast (as did the Chinese atthe time). Wheat was so important to theEgyptian way of life that each year thePharaoh cut the first sheaf with a goldensickle to begin the harvest.

Rice was first grown in the south westHimalayas, India and south east Asia. Itsearliest recorded use dates back 5000 yearsand today it is a staple food for one third ofthe Earth’s population. Today it is the maingrain grown in China and the east.

2000 years ago barley was the main cerealcrop in Britain. Barley bread goeshard very quickly after cooking,and these dayswheat flour ismostly used forbread. Barley isstill used formalting whiskey,beer and vinegar.

Oats growwell incooler

areas and are popular in the north of Englandand in Scotland. They are gluten free andmainly made into flat oatcakes, bannocksand porridge.

Rye is a cousin of the oat family used togrow as a weed in fields of wheat andbarley. Rye went on to take the place of fair-weather cereals in poorer soils and climatesbecause it is very hardy. Because it grewwidely in the colder, northern regions ofEurope and Russia, it helped people colonizethe land 1500 years ago. Unfortunately, ryeis particularly susceptible to a fungus calledergot that causes people to tremble andhave visions, an affliction known as SaintVitas Dance.

Grain growing 2

Grain growing 9

Grain growing worldwide 2

Grain growing 10

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Early men and women got their food byhunting animals for meat and by gatheringedible, wild plants for their grains, berries,roots or leaves. Because of this they wereknown as hunter-gatherers. Many ofthem were nomadic and moved around tofind the places where the plants grew best,or where the animals that they huntedlooked for their own food and water.

Once people learned how to grow and storetheir own food, they could change theirwhole lifestyle. This is often said to havebeen the reason that people first settled,as a crop needs to be tended and cared foryear round, before it is harvested. As peoplesettled around good growing places, wholecommunities grew up, villages and townsappeared as people became sure of a

regular food supply. It was animportant time in history.

Central to cultivating cropswas the growing of grainand the making of grain

into flour for bread.Bread was, and still is,

one of the staple foods oflife. It is an almost universal

food of humankind. It is madefrom the basic ingredients of flour, waterand salt and the simple but transformingprocess of baking that changes the flour andwater ‘dough’ mixture into bread.

Some of the earliest known grain cultivationwas about 10,000 years ago, inMesopotamia (now called Iraq). In an areacalled the ‘Fertile Crescent,’ between the

rivers Tigris and Euphrates, wild prairiegrasses grew with tiny seeds that were veryhigh in protein.

People began to collect the wild seeds togrow them for crops and so the plantsbecame ‘domesticated.’ Barley,‘Einkorn’ and ‘Emmer’ wheats wereamong the first domesticated grainsand it was a cross between Emmerand an unknown species that gave usthe first bread wheat.

Some hunter-gatherers cooked the grainsthey had collected. As you can imagine, earlybaking was very simple compared to someof the recipes we see today. Grains werepounded to flour between stones, mixedwith salt and water and cooked on a hotstone in the fire. Most of these breads wereflat and were either cooked in this way, or ina metal skillet. They are known asunleavened breads and this is how theIndian chapati, the Mexican tortilla and theIranian lavash are made.

In contrast, leavened bread is bread thathas risen into a loaf that is usually cooked inovens, where it can be surrounded by heat.Leavened bread rises because yeast hasbeen added to the bread dough. The yeastacts chemically on the dough to fill it with airand the air bubbles are trapped by gluten inthe flour. No one knows the origins of yeastleavening, but some early methods used theyeast from froth on fermenting beer.Nowadays bread yeast is widelymanufactured although natural yeasts arestill used.

Cultivation 2

Grain growing 11

Cultivation is

the process

by which man

has adapted

the land, the

crops and

animals to be

of use to him

The main kinds of breads across the worldare...

flat breads - made over a fire on astone or in a skillet

soda breads - made using soda andsoured milk

leavened breads - made using yeast

sour-dough breads - bread which isfermented using a bit of the old sour-dough mix from the last bread batch tostart the fermentation in the new batch.

This last kind of bread-making, where a bitof the old mix is kept back to start the new,goes back far beyond the times when yeastwas manufactured for baking. If you couldfollow all those loaves back through time youmight find the first sour-dough starter, madeusing the very first leavening agent. If youwere there at the time, you would probablyfind yourself in the Middle East or Russia.

Sour-dough breads have been popularamong the Russians for a very long time.They are particularly fond of rye in theirbread which, historians now think, enabledthe old Russians to migrate into modern-dayRussia and the Ukraine 1500 years ago. Ifthis is so, then rye really is at the foundationof Russian history. Aside from using ryegrain in bread, the Russians also use it tomake kasha - a kind of porridge, and kvass -a refreshing and weak rye beer.

Here are two ways to make a sour-dough starter.

Potato Starter Recipe

• 450gms (1lb) large scrubbed,unpeeled potatoes

• 450gms (1lb) rye flour

• 50gms (2oz) sugar

• 2 level teaspoons salt

1. Boil the potatoes whole and justcovered by the water

2. Peel, then mash them in thecooking water

3. Mix in the rye flour, sugar and salt

4. Put in an earthenware bowl andcover with a cloth. Leave for 4days in a warm place.

5. The mixture should be bubbly andsmell strongly of yeast. It is thenready.

Yeast Starter Recipe

• 25gms (1oz) fresh yeast, or 12.5gms (1/2oz) dried yeast

• 575ml (1 pint) warm water

• 2 level teaspoons honey or sugar

• 340gms (12oz) flour

1. Dissolve the yeast in some of thewater with the honey

2. Mix in the flour and water and mixto the consistency of a thick paste

3. Leave to ferment for at least 4days, stirring in any liquid thatseparates from the mix

Sour-Dough Starters and RyeBread

2

Grain growing 12

Now have a go at making bread withyour starter.

Sour-dough Rye Bread Recipe

• 225gms (8oz) sour-dough starter

• 2 litres (4 pints) potato water orscalded milk

• 1.5kg (31/4lb) rye flour

• 25gms (1oz) salt

• 100gms (4 fl.oz) molasses orhoney

• 25gms (1oz) caraway seeds(optional)

1. Add the starter and half the flourto the liquid. Mix, cover with acloth and leave for 3 hours in awarm place

2. Stir well,then remove225gms(8oz) ofmixture forthe nextstarter

3. Add the restof theingredientsto theremaining sponge and make a stiffdough

4. Knead on a floured board till nolonger sticky

5. Knead to prove and shape intoloaves. Cover with a damp clothuntil dough rises up to double size.This may take up to 4 hours

6. Bake at 180C/350F/Mark 4 for 1hour

7. If the bread is a bit heavy,substitute part of the rye flour withstrong white flour.

Grain Essentials

The word ‘corn’ in English was, inpast times, used to describe allsorts of grain - not just maize (cornon the cob). That’s why we oftencall a field of wheat or barley a‘corn field’.

Sour-Dough Starters and RyeBread

2

Grain growing 13

Do you know

any recipes

using sour-

dough?

If so please

send to us

and we can

include it in

our

Community

Recipe Web

Page

Harvesting 3

Harvesting 14

In the UK, even in the quite recent past, the agricultural year had special festivals in spring,summer, autumn and winter which celebrated the different farming activities that needed totake place at those times.

A corn calendar

The following is a summary of some of the main festivals that marked the grain year in Britain. Ifyou know of any more, from Britain or abroad, please let us know.

Plough Monday - the first Monday after the 12thnight of Christmas. The blessing of the plough took

place in church for a good start to the new year. Theplough was then paraded through the streets of

neighbouring towns and the ploughmen danced andasked for money for drink. It was believed that

hunger and starvation could befall thosewho refused.

Candlemas - 2nd February.There is an old belief thatall hibernating animals,

especially the badger,wake upon

Candlemas Dayand come out to

see if it’s stillwinter. If it’s

sunny, theanimals are

frightened oftheir shadows

and go backunderground for

another 40 days. Ifit’s cloudy, they have

no shadows and willstay above ground. In

Scotland, on this day, thefarmer’s wife would dress asheaf of oats in women’s clothes

and put it in a large basket by the hearth.They called this Bri’id’s bed and would say “Bri’id is

welcome.” If the figure moved in the night itforetold a prosperous harvest and year ahead.

Shrove Tuesday - comes at the beginning of Lent.You may know it better as ‘Pancake Day’. On thisday it is said that people “threshed the black hen”

but few can remember what this means.

St David’s Day - 1st March. People planted oatsand barley.

Mid-Lent Sunday - Now known as Mother’s Day.Children would enact mock battles where winter wasdefeated by spring.

May Day - 1st May (Beltane). Marked acelebration of the beginning of summer

in Celtic lands. People woulddance around the May pole

which probably representsfertility or the tree of life.

The May queenrepresents the old

goddess of spring.

June. In Scotland,there was aprocessionaround the cropsin the field withlighted torches.

Lammas - 1stAugust. On this day

there was a blessingof the bread and flour

and of the new season’sgrain crop. This was a

thanksgiving for the harvestjust beginning. The word Lammas

may come from the Saxon word ‘Hlaf-mas’ meaning half a loaf, referring to the way

that some farmers had to give some of their wheatflour to their landlords before the 1st August.

The Saxons called August ‘Arnmonat’ - HarvestMonth. Starting with rye and oats, the crops wereharvested one after the other up until when thebarley was brought in during September, which wascalled ‘Gerst-monat’ - Barley Month.

Harvest Home 3

Harvesting 15

For centuries, throughout Europe a Corn-Mother or Harvest Queen has been animportant symbol.

In some parts of Europe, the last sheaf cutin the field was plaited into a ‘corn dolly’ orneck, sometimes around an apple.Elsewhere, people thought that whoever cutthe last sheaf was killing the corn spirit andwould attract bad luck, so all the reaperswould swing their sickles in turn so thateveryone shared the responsibility. Theywould then make a corn dolly, to keep untilthe following year when a new one wouldreplace it.

In the north of England the last sheaf ofgolden corn left standing in the field was seton end and it was said that the harvestershad ‘got the kern’. They made a figurecrowned with wheat-ears and dressed it in awhite frock and coloured ribbons. The figurewas hoisted on a pole and carried by thetallest, strongest man. This was the ‘kernbaby’ or harvest queen. She was taken tothe barn and set in a high-up place for theHarvest Home - a special harvest suppermarking the end of the harvest.

The Harvest Home was a great event,anticipated throughout all the hard work ofcutting, binding and carrying in the crops.The farmer and his wife would greeteveryone at the farm kitchen or the barn,where they put on the feast as a reward forthe workers’ efforts. Everyone wore theirbest clothes and there would be all kinds ofmeat - beef, bacon, ham and chicken andgreat loaves of home-made bread withbutter and gallon jugs of ale or cider.

This is how the harvest was celebrated inEurope up until the 19th century. As handreaping began to be replaced by machinereaping at this time, customs began to fallout of use. The church also tried replacingthe Harvest Home with the ‘harvest festival’which was thought to be more respectable,but the church festivals weren’t as popularas the more traditional ones.

Grain Essentials

Half our cereals are used to makethings like bread, breakfast andbeer. What do you think happensto the other half?

Farmers need good conditions togrow cereal crops. What do youthink good conditions might be?Crops grow better on the easternside of the UK. Why do you thinkthis might be?

Straw Crafts 3

Harvesting 16

Straw makes up about half the ‘dry waste’of cereal crops and it was once greatlyvalued as a by-product of the harvest. Nowsuch ‘waste’ is dropped on the groundbehind the combine harvester, or baled upand used as animal bedding, feed, or not atall.

Some of the old uses for straw have notcompletely died out and it’s interesting tosee some of the different traditional uses itcan be put to. From earliest times, softstraw, such as barley, was used for humanbedding as well as for animals. Strawmattresses were in common use until veryrecently in Britain and were used forsoldiers’ beds in the Second World War.

Straw can also be used to provide buffersbetween ships in harbour, to stuff the collarsof working horses and as barriers on racetracks. Houses are roofed, or thatched, withlong stiff straw such as rye or long wheat, insome parts of Britain. There is now, also, agrowing trend of building whole houses outof straw bales because of its low-energy,environmentally sound properties.

Amongst other things, straw can be used tomake rope, baskets, bee-hives, chairseats,the targets in archery, hats and decorations.

Make your own Harvest Queen

Straw for corn dollies should be hollowand long-stemmed. Use wheat forbeginners, or oats and rye straw.Barley is not suitable. The best plaitingis done with the length of the stemfrom the ear down to where the lastleaf leaves the stem.

Ideally, cut the straw just before thecrop is ripe, while the first joint justbelow the ear is still green. (Do askpermission from the farmer and cutfrom the edge of the field.)

1. Strip the side leaves to give aclean stalk

2. If the straw is dry, soak in waterfor about 15 minutes, let the waterdrain away and wrap in a dampcloth

Five Straw Plait

Tie 5 straws togetherand follow the diagram

To add a new straw,follow the old shortstraw with the new oneand cut off the old afterit has been plaited in.

Each time,you move astraw anti-clockwiseover twostraws

Then you move the onejust before itover two straws- and so on...

Straw Crafts 3

Harvesting 17

Corn Dolly or Neck

This is a five-straw plait around a coreof 18 or so straws that need to havegood ears of grain

1. Tie the ends and add 2 or 3 morestraws without ears

2. Plait these in a five plait around thecore as shown in the picture

Try making other shapes using a coreof straw to make the form.

Maize Dollies

If possible, use fresh maize leavessoon after they have been stripped.Use beige cotton for ‘tying off’, andcotton wool, or sheep’s wool, for fillingin.

Head and arms are made separatelyand then fitted together.

For the main body, cut the narrowends off a large leaf.

Make a slit in the centre to fit the neckthrough.

Slide in the armsand tie off toform a waist.

cut a slit inthe dresscentre to fitthe headand neckthrough

Straw Crafts 3

Harvesting 18

Chinese and Hungarian Straw

Horse

Use straw without the ears

1. First wind its head

2. Fold several long straws over thehead

3. Tie them with several (up to 10)looped pieces

4. For the body, place several stemsacross the lower half, folded intwo. Bind together

5. Bind in the front legs

6. Fold straws over the body for theback legs

7. Cut legs to the same length andfluff out the tail

Hungarian Sun Doll

1. Take 2-3 straws andmake a circle for thehead

2. Loop about 20 strawsround the hair

3. Loop 4 or 5 long strawsover the circle for thebody

4. Bind round the neck

5. Add 4 straws for thearms

6. Bind them in

7. Trim its hair and skirt

You can make this doll inmany different styles.

Hungarian Bird

1. Take 2 long straws

2. Fold one over the other. The shortend is the beak

3. Make a 3-plaitas in the diagramfor the neck

4. Bendroundthe body

5. Tie it near the end for a tail

6. Fix in a short straw for legs

3

Harvesting 19

Straw Crafts

Milling 20

In the UK today, bread is most commonlymade with wheat grain. A wheat grain is aseed that can be grown into a new wheatplant or become food.

The grain consists of three main parts - thebran, the germ and the endosperm, whichis the inner part of the grain.

In addition, between the bran and theendosperm is a layer called the aleurone,which contains fat, protein and minerals.

The bran is the outer part of the grain. It istough and fibrous and acts as a strongcontainer for the seed as it is made fromfive skin-like layers.

Although it was often discarded in the past,bran is now recognised as a valuable foodsource in itself because it is rich in mineralsand is a good source of roughage, which isessential in our diets. Because of this, branhas also become a popular ingredient in highfibre cereals.

The germ is the embryo of the wheat plant- the place where everything will grow from.As the germ grows it changes and splits tobecome a radicle and a plumule. Theradicle will grow into roots and the plumulewill become stems, leaves and new ears ofwheat grain.

A germ of wheat has up to a third of theprotein that can be found in a similar amountof dried milk or meat. It also containsvitamin E, sugar, oil, natural phosphates andenzymes.

In size, the endosperm makes up morethan four-fifths of the wheat grain. It is themain food reserve on which the young plantlives until it has developed a root system andcan get its nourishment from the earth.

Because it is mainly starchy, theendosperm is the main part ofthe grain used for making whiteflour.

If a flour is called ‘strong’ it willhave a high gluten content.This is because a largeproportion (14%) of the proteinin the grain is gluten-producing.Gluten will give bread doughelasticity, which means thedough mixture is better attrapping the gases produced byyeast, helping it rise up duringbaking to make a loaf.

Grain Essentials

Half of our cereals are eaten bycattle, sheep and poultry which wethen eat as meat, eggs, milk anddairy produce.

starchy endosperm

bran

germ

endosperm

aleurone

plumule

radicle

aleurone

(sandwichedbetween the

bran andendosperm)

4Milling: the wheat grain

4

Milling 21

The aim of milling is to break open the grainto get the endosperm out for making flour.

The first job in milling is to separate thegrains from the husks - commonly known asseparating the wheat from the

chaff. In more ancient strains of wheat,the chaff really stuck to the wheat and oneway of separating the two was to singe thehusks until they were dry so the chaff cameoff easily.

Hunter-gatherers singed their grain on thefire while the early Celts singed theirs byholding a burning stick to the bundle ofgrain. It was a delicate operation becausethe sheaf would flare up and the flames hadto beaten it out at just the right moment.

Other early methods included tramplingwheat under horses hooves to break it up orbeating it with flails and tossing it into the airwith a fork, so the wind would carry awaythe light straw. These days wheat has beenbred so that the grain and chaff separatemore easily.

Before wheat is milled it is often blendedwith other varieties of wheat grain to createthe quality of flour desired. This is knows asgristing.

Originally, milling was done by poundinggrains between two stones. Then came anearly grinding mill, known as a saddle

quern, which was a rectangular bottomstone onto which

another stonelike a rolling pinwas rubbed up

and down. In thefirst attempts the

grain was crushed,

rather than ground and the result was verycoarse flour, contaminated with grit andstones. Improvementsled to the domesticrotary hand

mill, whichwasintroduced toBritain by theCelts. In arotary mill the basestone remained fixed while the top onecould be turned.

The Roman army had individual, lightweight

hand mills which were carried oncampaigns so each soldier could grind theirown, daily ration of grain into flour. TheRomans also developed much larger mills,some turned by donkeys and others bywater. Watermills found their way to Britainin the Middle Ages and there were 10,000 ofthem grinding flour in Britain by the end ofthe first millennium. Two hundred yearslater, the end of the 12th century saw theintroduction of mills that used wind power,instead of water, to mill grain.

The stones needed in the large mills wereusually made from granite but nowadaysmost of our flour is ground using steel roller

mills. Roller milling is a more gradualprocess where the grain is first cracked openbefore the endosperm is sifted out. Therollers are set closer and closer until theendosperm has been sifted into a uniformtexture and the wheatgerm and bran havebeen separately extracted.

There are many varieties and blends of flouraside from wholemeal and white flour.Brown flour is an 85% flour which means itcontains 85% of the original grain.Wheatmeal flour has added wheatgerm andself-raising flour has an added raising agentsuch as bicarbonate of soda. Flour that is‘stoneground’ will only produce flour withthe bran and wheatgerm in, which means itis ‘100% wholemeal’ flour.

Milling

Rotary hand mill- top stonerotated byhandle overbottom, bowl-

shaped stone

Grindinggrain

on a saddle quern

4

Milling 22

Britain uses the 'metric' system of weightsand measures; for example, distance inmetres and weight in grammes. Somepeople still refer to the old 'Imperial' systemthat measured distance in inches andfeet and weight inpounds.

What few people know isthat our old system of weight isbased on the heaviness of agrain of wheat. Originally, 32 drygrains of wheat made onepennyweight, 20 pennyweightsequalled one ounce, and 20ounces made one pound.Later, this was changed so thata pennyweight only had 24 grains. Lateragain, an Act of Parliament in 1825 made5,760 grains the standard ‘troyweight’pound.

Activities

• Use dry wheat grains to measurethe weight of 10 different objectsin the room.

• If you have a good set of scales,find out how many grains there areto a gram. How much does onegrain weigh?

• Work out how many grains ofwheat your body weighs.

• Do the same with rice and popcornseed (maize).

• Which grain crop does yourbreakfast cereal come from? Whathas been added to it and why dothink it has been added?

• Make a survey amongst yourfriends and find the most popularcereal.

• Design your own cereal andpacket. How much would youcharge? Would you enclose a freegift and if so, what would it be?

• What other products have cereal inthem?

Weights and Measures

5

Baking 23

Early baking was done over an open fire, oron a hearth or baking stones, the methodwas most suitable for making flat breads.

Leavened dough (dough that has yeast in)makes risen loaves that cook best inside astructure. Ancient people fromMesopotamia and Egypt would have usedconstructions such as a clay pot turned ontop of a flat stove, or a clay-brick oven suchas a ‘tandoor’ or a ‘beehive’ oven. Both thebeehive oven and the tandoor are still usedin some areas across the Middle East andAsia today and they work on the sameprinciples as they always have done.

Beehive ovens work in much the same wayas a storage heater. A fire is lit inside thebeehive and built up until it becomes as hotas possible. The fire is then removed,replaced by the bread dough and the doorsare shut. The beehive then releases the heatthat has been absorbed by the oven wallswhich bakes the bread.

In Britain brick ovenswere used in this way

for manyhundreds of

years virtuallyunaltered.

Theearliest

survivingovens, which may

have been introduced by the Normans, werefound in castles and monasteries. In thelate 16th century they became a built-infeature of manor houses, but were usuallyseparated as bake houses, or grain and bakehouses. From the year 1600, built-in ovensbecame more of a feature within houses, asfireplaces became more popular andchimney stacks were built or added on tothe medieval buildings.

The bread baking ovens used to be lit using‘faggots’ of brushwood, hawthorn or furze.

Wood was then added until the righttemperature was obtained which could beworked out by putting a special stone thatchanged colour, or by throwing in flour andseeing if it coloured brown. When the ovenwas ready the ashes were raked out and theoven was wiped clean with a damp rag on astick, which made a hissing noise. The steamgave a good crust to the bread once theloaves were inserted and the door closed.

You could tell when the bread was ready bythe smell and the amount of steam that wasgiven off. Once the loaves were removedthere would still be enough heat left to cookother items of food. The ovens could holdheat for a whole day and, generally, whitebread, scones, rye bread, custards andmeringues were cooked in that order.Because it was a lengthy process, bakingwas often done just once a week. Today,brick ovens are similarly heated up and thenswitched off while the bread is baked. Thereare very few brick ovens still used in thiscountry and bakery ovens nowadays aremainly heated by steam, which is carried insteel pipes.

Baking

This cake works in much the same way as achain letter, but it is much more tasty - andfriendlier! First you make the cake starter,then you grow it, then you can pass on a 1/4to two friends. They can then do the samewith their starters.

Yeast base ingredients

• 1 tsp caster sugar

• 230ml (8fl oz) water

• 11/2 tsp dried yeast

• 250g (5oz) flour

How to make the yeast base

1. Dissolve caster sugar in water

2. Whisk in yeast and leave 25minutes till frothy

3. Stir into flour and leave in a warmplace for 3 days. Stir each day.

This is now ready to be used in thecake starter.

Cake starter ingredients

• 325g (10oz) plain flour

• 450ml (16fl oz) milk

• 175g (6oz) caster sugar

How to make the cake starter

1. Mix together your starter, half theflour, half the milk, and half thesugar.

2. Mix well. Chill for 24 hours.

3. Stir once every day for 3 days.

4. On the 4th day, add remainingflour, milk and sugar.

5. Cover for 3 days, stirring each day.

Divide into four parts. Keep 1/4 for thecake mix, one for your next batch, andpass 1/4 each on to two friends.

Cake ingredients

• 250g (8oz) plain flour

• 2 tsp baking powder

• 1/2 tsp bicarbonate of soda

• 1/2 tsp salt

• 2 tsp cinnamon

• 2 size 3 eggs

• 250g (8oz) caster sugar

• 125g (4oz) raisins

• 125g (4oz) walnuts

• 230ml (8fl oz)

• 1 tsp vanilla essence

• 125g (4oz) apple (cooked to a pulp)

• 62.5g (2oz) demerara sugar

How to make the cake

Mix together all ingredients; sprinklewith the demerara sugar and bake for90 minutes at 180oc, Gas mark 4, in a9 inch cake tin.

This activity will work best if you give yourfriends a photocopy of this page, along withyour starter. Get them to copy it for theirfriends too when they pass it on.

Friendship Cake 5

Baking 24

Many people across the world have beenmaking celebratory and decorative breads formany thousands of years.

The Egyptians made bread in the shape offish, birds and pyramids while the Greeksand Romans made bread into images andsacrificed them to the gods. In Europe,gingerbread has been made in fancy shapesfor hundreds of years. In fact, most breadmaking cultures of the world have somespecial breads they decorate.

Here are some descriptions and pictures ofdecorative breads. Copy the patterns belowor design your own.

The following eight designs are classicBritish breads which are made using regularbread dough, so you can eat them onceyou’ve finished, if you like.

The Twist

1. Carefully roll out a length of dough

2. Pull one end around and cross itover the other

3. Twist the loop on itself and neatlytuck the ends under

4. If you make a very long twist, youcan then knot it round on itself bymaking it into a circle and foldingone end into the middle.

The Staffordshire Knot

1. Make a long thin roll of dough

2. Make a knot at each end of theroll and then merge them together

The Coburg

1. Make a cross shaped pattern in around loaf just before it goes in theoven

2. Make a long cut one way, and twoshort cuts out from the centre

The Cottage

1. Make two balls of dough, oneslightly smaller than the other

2. Flatten the bigger ball with thepalm of your hand and wet itslightly on top

3. Put the second ball on top of thebigger one

4. Push a spoon handle downthrough the centre of the two ballsto make it stick

Celebrate and decorate 5

Baking 25

It was

believed that

cutting a

cross into an

unbaked loaf

released the

devil

Welsh and

English

Cottage

Loaves take

longer to

make than

the more

familiar loaf

shapes and

are generally

produced by

specialist

bakers or

restaurants

The Lattice

Do as with the Coburg but make aseries of diagonal cuts from opposingdirections.

Plaiting

This can be done with three or fivestrands.

Three Strands

1. Roll out three equal strands ofdough

2. Press the ends together with themiddle strand on top

3. Take the left and right strandsalternately and cross them overthe middle strand

4. When you get to the end, tuck theends underneath

Five Strands

1. Make five thin rolls of dough andcut them to the same length.Arrange them side by side and onein the middle, on top

2. Fold the outside, left strand overthe next two strands so that it liesin the middle

3. Now fold the outside, right strandover three strands so that itbecomes the second strand fromthe left

4. Continue inthis wayfolding the leftstrand overtwo, the rightstrand overthree

5

Baking 26

Celebrate and decorate

Wheat Sheaf Harvest Bread

1. Make 500g (1 lb) of dough

2. Press half of it into a rough harvestsheaf shape as a base.

3. Use the rest of the dough to formwheat stalks and bunch thesetogether on the base

4. Model a rope to bind them and dofruit shapes to decorate the base -maybe a mouse to run up it, or acat on the side. You should modelin small scale to allow for thedough rising

5. Brush with milk or melted butter.You can also sprinkle wheat grainson top of the sheaf before baking

6. Bake at Gas mark 7 for tenminutes, then reduce heat slightlyfor a further 20-25 minutes.

Celebrate and decorate 5

Baking 27

Some countries such as Ecuador, other partsof South America and parts of Europe makeinedible breads out of bakers clay, usuallymade to celebrate special occasions.Baker’s clay consists of flour, salt and watermixed together to make a clay-like dough.

Here are two recipes:

Clay-like Mix

2 cups flour

1 cup table salt3/4 cup water

This mix resembles ceramic clay

Dough-like Mix

4 cups flour

1 cup table salt

11/2 cups water

This mix is more like dough

For both recipes, make as follows:

1. Mix flour and salt

2. Add water

3. The clay should be soft andsmooth, but stiff enough to hold itsshape

4. Knead on a floured board for 5-10minutes. This will make it moreelastic and easier to mould

Roll out on a floured board, 1/4 inchthick is good for cut-outs.

Use biscuit cutters or a blunt knife tomake shapes.

Don’t expose to air for any great lengthof time. If your work starts to dry out,try spraying it with water

Cook models for 1 hour at 350oF / 140oC, and cook rolled-outobjects at 150oF / 60oC for 8 hours(the low temperature stops bubbling).

Wheat Sheaf

designs are

usually made

for display in

harvest

festival

celebrations

A Different Kind of Dough

Working with your clay

If you want to hang up your cut-outs,make a hole in them before you bakethem using a hairpin or a piece of bentwire.

If you want to join on arms and legs,likewise make holes at the ends of thejoints with wire.

Another way of making a model is

to press it into a mould.

You can make a mould of any objectyou would like to copy by:

1. covering it in clingfilm

2. pressing bakers clay over the top,to cover it.

3. Leave for a short time to hardenslightly

4. carefully lift it off and bake.

You will then have a mould which youshould use in the same way - bypressing bakers clay into it, but useVaseline or similar, instead of clingfilm.

Colouring and texturing the

clay

You can colour clay with

food colours

coloured inks

tempera

or

spices such as turmeric

Fabric dyes dissolved in water

Fabric dyes dissolved in water andtempera in water give stronger colours- or you could paint it after baking.

You can try using different kinds offlour to get different texture.

You can also glaze your work, eitherwith egg or milk, before cooking, orwith varnish after cooking.

Celebrate and decorate 5

Baking 28

If you seal

or wrap

your dough

clay in

clingfilm it

will last

about a

week

Harvesting

In Britain, our ancestors grew and harvestedgrains by hand for thousands of years. But inthe 18th and 19th centuries, the invention ofmachines to cut and thresh wheat began tomake the whole process a lot easier.

These machines, which were driven byhorses or steam power, took some of theback-breaking work out of harvesting. Butthey also meant far fewer people wereneeded to work in the fields. This led tounemployment and eventually protestsknown as the Swing Riots, when some ofthe machines were smashed and broken.

Farming of cereal grains changed forever inthe UK in the middle of the 19th centurywith the development of the combineharvester, although it took some yearsbefore the idea caught on.

A combine harvester at work

Combine harvesters are very clevermachines. They carry out several operationsat the same time, though the machine isoperated by just one person.

The big blades at the front of the machinecut the crop, which is then fed into the heartof the machine where it is spun very fastagainst a metal grate with holes in it. This isknown as 'threshing'. In the process, thegrain is pushed through the holes andseparated from the ear and straw. The grainis then further "cleaned" over a series ofsieves before being moved to a grain tankfor unloading. Some combines also gather

the straw together to create bales, used forcattle feed and bedding.

Modern combine harvesters are soadvanced they use computers and satellitenavigation to make sure they work perfectlyday in, day out until the whole crop isharvested.

Drying

Although the crops need to be as dry aspossible in the fields before they areharvested, they also need to be put aside todry afterwards, before any threshing cantake place. This prevents problems likewheat or corn going mouldy.

After harvest the grain is stored in purposebuild stores that are free from pests and therisk of contamination.

Threshing

This term means separating the grain fromthe stalks. In Britain, this process has alsobeen made simpler and easier sincethreshing machines were first developed 250years ago. These huge and noisy machineswere rarely bought by farmers because theywere too expensive. Instead the farmersrented them and they travelled from farm tofarm during harvest time.

These days, threshing is done by thecombine harvester and there is no need fora separate threshing machine.

Growing grains in the UK 6

Growing grains in the UK 29

Cut wheat that needs to be threshed

Winnowing

This is how the grains are separated fromthe chaff. Chaff is the name for the dry,inedible casing of the grain. Traditionallywinnowing was done on a windy day, whengrains would be thrown up in the air by handor using a fork. The wind would blow awaythe chaff while the heavier grains fall to theground (or into a container).

On farms in the UK today, the cleaningprocess carried out by winnowing hasbecome part of the work done by combineharvesters.

Once these incredible machines have donetheir work and the clean grain has beenstored it is ready to be milled and grounddown into flour to make things like bread,pastry, pasta, biscuits and cakes.

(You can learn more about milling

in Section Five of this Grains Pack.)

After winnowing inside the harvester, chaffis blown out.

Growing grains in the UK 6

Growing grains in the UK 30

Growing a one square metre

crop

You can grow a one metre square patch ofgrains to create a crop. You may not getmuch in such a small area, but it will beenough to see how the whole cycle works.

Materials Needed

• Children’s spades, digging forks

• Rake

• Hoe (a short thick stick, or a trowel, willdo instead)

• 300g of cereal seeds

• Garden netting and canes/stakes tocage against birds

• Strong scissors (for cutting stems)

• Hand-operated coffee-grinder for milling (type with

top hopper and drawer)

Use a garden fork todig up the soil in

your plot

Preparation

Use a variety ofwheat or other cerealsthat can be sown in theautumn or early spring.

Find a planting area which is:

1. In a sunny spot

2. In an area which gets some wind (butnot too much otherwise stalks may getflattened in gusty weather)

3. Away from anywhere it could gettrampled on

Measure out roughly the one square metrearea. You can make the plot bigger if youhave the space - the more room you havethe more crop you can grow and harvest.

Sowing

Prepare the soil by digging and raking it afew times first. You can sow the seed byhand in rows - roughly about 200 seeds persquare metre at a depth of 2.5cm. Oncesown, cover the seeds with soil.

Overhead watering after sowing causes acrust to form which can prevent theseedlings from emerging. Instead, moistenthe soil by filling a nearby furrow or bywatering deeply beside the row. If a crustforms because of rainfall, wait until the soilsurface dries then break it up carefully.

Stake out canes and cover with netting toprevent birds pecking for seeds or seedlings.

Growing

Seedlings emerge in 4 to 10 days, dependingmostly on soil temperature: warmer soilusually means earlier emergence.

As wheat plants mature, the need for waterdecreases. When a pinched seed feels likesoft dough, stop watering. Now the plantswill gradually turn brown and dry, ready toharvest.

Grow your own grains 6

Food, tradition and beliefs 31

Wheat ready forharvesting

Harvesting

This activity needs to be supervised at alltimes. Cutting each stalk with a pair of strongscissors is probably the safest method.

The stalks should be bound into sheaves,using wire or string and left to dry out. Thisshould be done in a well-ventilated area freefrom rodents.

Threshing

Choose a dry day. 'A dry plastic sheet canbe laid underneath the wheat. Beat thesheaves with a stick or rub out the grains byhand into a bowl. Alternatively, place theears into a pillowcase with the stalks pokingout the bottom and then hitting repeatedlyagainst a wall.

Alternatively lay the wheat out on a sheet ofplastic and hit repeatedly with the back of aspade.

Winnowing

If you do this outdoors it is vital to pick agood day for the job. If it is too windyeverything will be blown away, so a gentlebreeze is best. Toss the wheat about twofeet in the air, allowing the breeze to blowaway the chaff while the heavier grains willfall back down to the ground. If doing thisindoors, you can use a fan to recreate thewind.

To make the wheat as easy to mill aspossible, clean further by using a sieve orseed cleaner.

Storing

If you are not using the grain straight awaystore in a dry, vermin free place. This couldbe anything from a canvas bag hung up froma wall or door peg, or a wooden or metal binwith a close fitting lid.

Milling

Use a coffee grinder,electric grinder or stonemill if available todemonstrate how the grainis milled (the milled grainmay need to be groundfurther before it can beused as flour). Once youhave got your own flourwhy not add it to somecommercial flour and use itfor the baking ideas inActivity Five of the GrainsPack (see page 25).

Science Activity -

growing conditions

You can study the effects of the weather,soil and sunlight on crops by creating twoplots of crops in different areas. Monitor thegrowth rate, grain size and weight of a cropusing one or more of the following threescenarios:

1. One crop planted in plot with regulardirect sunlight, one crop planted inshady area.

2. One crop planted in heavy, clay soil. Theother planted in sandy soil.

3. One crop watered regularly, one croprarely watered.

Grow your own grains 6

Food, tradition and beliefs 32

Use a coffee grinder to millthe grains

A handful of cleaned cereal grains

33

Field Days

Angela King and Sue Clifford, for CommonGround. Published 1998 by Green Books,Devon.- poetry about fields.

One Straw Revolution

Masanobu Fukuoka. Published 1992 by TheOther India Press, India.- a ‘must-read’ adult book about ricepermaculture.

The Little Red Hen and the Ear of Wheat

Mary Pinch. Published 1999 by BarefootBeginners, Bristol.- children’s story book.

Bread Around the World

Odile Limousin. Published 1991 byMoonlight, London.

Discovering Corn Dollies

M Lambeth. Published 1987 by ShirePublications, Princes Risborough.- more corn dollies - for adults.

Bread and Yeast Cookery

Glynn Christian. Published 1978 byMacdonald Guidelines, London.- great all round book on bread and grain.

Festivals, Families and Food

D Carey and J Large. Published 1982 byHawthorn Press, Stroud.- full of activities, recipes and traditions.

Straw and Straw Craftsmen

Arthur Staniforth. Published 1981 by ShirePublications, Princes Risborough.

The Playground Potting Shed

Dominic Murphy. Published 2008 byGuardian Books, London.- charming and practical guide to gardeningwith children.

Bibliography

Further Resources

34

Websites

The Flour Advisory Bureau

Web resource with educational activities todownload. Website: www.fabflour.co.uk

Wee Green School Pack

An introduction to creating wildlife projectswithin school grounds for nursery andprimary aged children. Website:www.highschoolyards-nur.edin.sch.uk

Get Your Hands Dirty

A downloadable web-based resource to helpteachers considering the issues involved ingrowing plants or keeping animals in yourschool grounds. Website:www.growingschools.org.uk/resources

For a resource pack cover email:schoolfarmsnetwork@farmgarden.org.uk

The Grain Chain

The Grain Chain programme is acollaboration of the Home-Grown CerealsAuthority (HGCA), Federation of Bakers (FoB)and Flour Advisory Bureau (FAB). Thewebsite features information on the processof growing and using grains for children agedfrom four to 16. Website: www.grainchain.com

Learning Through Landscapes This sitehas a great deal of information on thedevelopment of school grounds. Website: www.ltl.org.uk

Learning Outside the Classroom

A manifesto and web resource promotingthe idea that every young person shouldexperience the world beyond the classroomas an essential part of learning and personaldevelopment, whatever their age, ability orcircumstances. Website: www.lotc.org.uk

Federation of City Farms and Community

Gardens (FCFCG)

Produces information packs on subjects suchas: community gardening and composting.There is a similar education pack on nomadic

shelter called 'The Yurt' aimed at the same5-13 age range, with links into Key Stage 2schoolchildren. For details on prices andfurther materials contact FCFCG on 0117 923 1800.Website: www.farmgarden.org.uk

Places

Your nearest City Farm or Community

Garden is probably growing grains, includingwheats. Contact the Federation of CityFarms and Community Gardens on 0117 9231800 to find your nearest grain growingproject or check the website atwww.farmgarden.org.uk

The Centre for Alternative Technology

Leading centre, based in Machynlleth,Powys, specialising in alternative technologyand environmental resources. Tel 01654 703743. Website: www.cat.org.uk

Growing Schools, an initiative run by theDepartment for Children, Schools andFamilies has been designed to supportteachers in using the "outdoor classroom" asa resource across the curriculum for pupilsof all ages. Website: www.growingschools.org.uk

Farming and Countryside Education

FACE is a charity aiming to help educatechildren and young people about food andfarming in a sustainable countryside. Thewebsite has various resources for teachersand details about farm visits. Website: www.face-online.org.uk

Publications

Think Food and Farming is the legacywebsite of the Year of Food and Farmingwhich aimed to help children find out howfood is grown and produced; make informedchoices about food and healthy nutrition anddiscover what happens on a real-life farm. Website:www.thinkfoodandfarming.org.uk

Compiled by: Federation of City Farms and Community Gardens

The GreenhouseHereford StreetBedminsterBristol BS3 4NA

Tel: 0117 923 1800 Fax: 0117 923 1900

e-mail: admin@farmgarden.org.uk website: www.farmgarden.org.uk

A company limited by guarantee and registered inEngland No: 2011023Registered Charity Number 294494

Research and text by: Stephanie Bunn

Design by: MJT Design 0117 977 5746