Tag Archives: Soul Flour Bakery

Celebrating Summer in the School Garden

A long and productive spring in the school garden led right up to the last day of school! What better way to celebrate and culminate another school year than with a pizza party in the garden?2016PizzaParty_SchoolGarden (11 of 17)

Orcas Island Elementary students each spend one hour a week working in the school garden in a class I teach called Farm to Classroom. At almost 8,000 square feet, the school garden requires individual attention from each of the 200 students. Some children take on assigned tasks such as weeding, hauling compost and planting.

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Harvesting strawberries and pulling weeds.

Other children take on projects of their own choosing. One class was dubbed “the diggers” for their love of digging!

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“The Diggers”

Another group of students took weekly responsibility for watering plants.

13499604_1783696268532929_564887034_oOne boy decided it was time to properly install the large stainless sink we salvaged from the old shop building before it was torn down. Each week he would lead a group in the many steps it took to put  the sink in its final resting place.

When the wood chips arrived, donated by Tim’s Tractor Service and delivered by Tim’s son James Segault of Island Climb Inc., the students ban together to move the massive mountain all around the garden. Throughout all of this garden work you can see real-world examples of children caring for the environment, working together, problem solving, communicating, using physical skills, and eating healthy. These are important life skills that no standardized test can ever measure.

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A delivery of wood chips for our paths from Tim’s Tractor Service and Island Climbing Inc.

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Working together to move a mountain of wood chips!

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Unloading a truck full of firewood. Many hands make for light work.

A cornerstone of the children’s time in the garden is the idea that you may only enjoy the fruits of your labor, after you labor! The last ten minutes of each class is dedicated to “harvest time”. During this time the children graze in the garden, eating fresh from the plants they have nurtured. This may be one of the most rewarding times for me as the teacher. It only seemed fitting to end our school year with a garden pizza party using our cob oven.

The pizza party couldn’t happen with out the help and generous donation of James Ferraris of Soul Flour Bakery, AKA The Pizza Man!  James makes the best pizza dough and knows how to bring each pizza out with the perfect amount of doneness.

The children are the real artists at this event. They are supplied pizza sauce and mozzarella cheese. The rest is up to them! The toppings come from the plants they lovingly grew. Pizzas topped with strawberries, sorrel and mint are popular. Garlic scapes, borage flowers, rosemary and raspberries top others. There is no limit to the creations they come up with. After each pizza comes out of the oven the chef or chefs responsible tell their classmates what ingredients they used. Then the creators get the first slices and the other children sample after them. Pizza after pizza comes through in this way. The children turn into food critics, analyzing the combinations placed before them. The pizza is devoured and never are the usual pepperoni and sausage toppings missed.

Another remarkable year in the school garden has been completed. If you would like to see our garden please stop by and check it out. If you would like a tour of the garden, we will be on this year’s Orcas Island Garden Club tour June 25th and 26th.

Now that school is out, I’ll be spending the summer with family and friends, taking road trips, and helping people buy and sell real estate on this amazing Island I call home. I love summertime on Orcas Island!

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Johnny visiting Momma in the garden.

 

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The Edgy Art Scene on Orcas Island

Posted by Sandi

Opening night of the Edge art show at Orcas Center, Orcas Island WA

Opening night of the Edge art show at Orcas Center’s Madrona Room. There were so many participants the displays spilled out into the reception area and hall.

This weekend marked the opening of the Edge Art show at Orcas Center, featuring alternative art from artists in our community. The techniques and mediums varied wildly and included felted puppets, indian headdresses, venetian plaster/gold leaf abstracts, collage of homeless persons’ signs and stunning “gun powder” art from Clyde Duke, a local contractor and fire commissioner.

Writers composing poetry at the Orcas Center Edge art show 2012

Writers composing poetry “while you wait” on old fashioned typewriters.

Most unusual was a group of poets typing poems on ticker tape using old-fashioned typewriters. Give a keyword to one of them, and they’d compose a poem around it. My word was “autumn” and I was surprised when a gal named Kat tracked me down to recite it and give me the carbon copy as a memento. What a creative bunch! This group also published a Zine which was a new concept to me.

Soul Flour Bakery wood-fired pizza on Orcas Island

While waiting for my pizza, I munched on one of their delicious organic cookies — a chewy concoction of oatmeal, berries and chocolate.

The Friday night opening event included yummy wood-fired pizza from Soul Flour Bakery as well as beer from our new Island Hoppin’ Brewery. Many of the artists were present, and it was fun to see familiar faces in a different context from their day jobs. The show will continue at Orcas Center throughout October. And although there won’t be food or “poems while you wait,” I recommend you attend to see the alternative art side of Orcas Island!


Looking to enjoy the simple life on beautiful Orcas Island?
Contact T Williams Realty  – we’ll help you find your way home.

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