Apples and stories

Yesterday the boys continued with the farming project by looking at an example of an apple farm in the UK. Having the internet is such an advantage for work like this. I'm not sure how I would go about gathering information on farms and what they produce without it. Many farms have their own websites, primarily to promote their products of course, but they helpfully give some background information on themselves as well. Of course most such farms are the smaller family run type, especially those promoting organic/free range / unusual varities. Large conventional farms are not so open about themselves, but then they don't need to promote in the same way. I will be pointing these things out. The farming education site has some case studies on it to use too.
Yesterday they used the website to answer the following:
Where is Tullens Fruit Farm?
What varities of fruit do they grow?
How do they sell their crop?
What else is produced on the farm?
What has changed in apple farming?
How does a farm shop seem to be different from a supermarket?

As the weather gradually improves, inshAllah everyone will want to spend more time in the garden. Yesterday the boys played "cricket" out there and the girls went for a run around. U often asks to go out to run around. The boys did well in terms of exercise yesterday as they also got to go cycling with H and had a swimming lesson. It is worth letting them play outside in the afternoon, even if it does mean that we continue studies in the evening.

Ia had a friend over, and we did some English work together. I read them the story of the Enormous Turnip, and we discussed the "list style" it uses. Then the girls did pictures to show what they felt was the most important part of the story (giant turnips), and wrote sentences to explain. Ia wrote, "They all pulled. It came out." When I say wrote I mean that she dictated what she wanted to write, I wrote it and she copied it out. After that I asked them to write their own story, with a list element. Of course they are only young, you must wonder how they could possibly do that! They wrote in pictures of course, adding any words they could. Both girls chose a story about cats which went out to find food. If they feel that they have written a story, they will believe that they can write stories, which will mean, inshAllah, that in the future they really will write stories.