The Maple Syrup Project

It's hard to believe it's March in Connecticut when our yard still looks like this:

We had yet another snow day on Thursday, March 5th with five more inches of fresh snow...

Still, the snow hasn't stopped Lewie's kindergarten from going outside and exploring nature; their latest project is collecting sap for maple syrup.  Here is the latest note from his kindergarten teacher:

"I'm sure your child has told you about our maple syrup project.  My neighbor, Christopher, now 19, has been tapping trees since he was just 11 years old.  He started out with an idea and tapped a few trees.  Over time, he had dozens and drove his parents' lawn mower from house to house collecting sap every day, and now he and his partner Joey have turned this hobby and passion into a great business.  They've built a sugar shack, outfitted it with equipment, and do everything from tapping and tubing to collecting to boiling to packaging and selling.  Such wonderful, inspirational boys."

She continues, "Christopher was kind enough to come to school last week and talk to the children about the process.  He and the children went on a maple tree hunt.  They then all helped in the drilling, tapping (hammering), and hanging of the buckets.  Our job now is to check on our buckets daily and collect sap.  This exciting project lends itself to rich and meaningful learning opportunities.  We have been reading non fiction books and articles about maple trees and the sugaring process.  We are writing in our journals and drawing and tracking our discoveries in our nature notebooks.  We will be collecting, measuring, weighing, and graphing our totals.  The children are checking the daily temperature and determining if it's a good sap day or if it's too cold."

The best part is that Christopher and Joey will be holding an Open House on March 14th where they serve a pancake breakfast and sell their yummy maple syrup.   The entire class (and families) are going so we can enjoy the syrup that was made from the sap that the children have been collecting in their buckets...  We are really looking forward to this breakfast!

That's my boy hammering away!

Check out the snowshoes the boys and girls have been wearing on their adventures!

I have to admit that up until now, I didn't know very much about the maple sugaring process, but I'm now learning a lot from my six year-old.  I'm so excited Little Lewie is getting this type of exposure.  He's learning much more than how to collect sap or even how to see the perfect beauty of the great outdoors; he's learning that dreams, such as starting your own maple syrup business, can start with a simple childhood passion.  (I just love Christopher's story.)