We go to the farm to learn more about agriculture and where food comes from. Also, in these modern times sometimes the boys forget about how important agriculture is as a business sector.
Having now been on all of the farm trips it was great to see each class get their hands dirty and muck in with the fun practicals prepared for them. Each trip started with the journey to the farm in which the boys began to get excited – you could tell by the noise on some of the trips! As we stepped off the bus the boys were asked to look around to see if they could notice the name of the farm, which to my surprise was not originally Trinity Farm. Its original name is ‘William Sinnathamby Farm’.
As we walked through the gates we would be greeted every time by the farm manager who, before taking us to the activities, would tell the boys a little about the farm and what they can expect from their morning as farmers.
We then walked along the path up to the first practical: composting. At first the boys looked side to side and some were horrified they might have to touch dirt and soil! This was the point where some classes pulled their gloves from their pockets so they didn’t have to touch the dirt. However, by the end they loved it, which was lovely to see.
Each class successfully placed a layer of cow dung, then leaves, then poultry litter and finally more leaves and jumped on each layer to compress as they went. By the end of all of the trips there were two full beds of compost. In the background were cows and a very small calf, which distracted some boys, however I promised we would come back to them later.
Then different types of soil (clay, normal and sand) were laid out. These were then mixed together by the boys to plant small seeds in the nursery before planting in the fields.
The next activity we moved on to was planting a coconut tree. On the first trip there were seven deep holes ready for the planting and it was fantastic to see them getting filled trip by trip. The next step was to wait eight years for them to flower! Sadly I won’t be able to see this happen.
The planting consisted of layering coconut husks and then arranging them facing upwards, then soil, and then in went the plant. The final touch was to neatly arrange more husks around the plant after it was fully filled in.
After a queueing to wash our hands, we went to the farm manager’s bungalow for a piece of butter cake and a Milo drink. After enjoying the break it was time to see the animals. We saw chicks and chickens, then turkeys and geese. It was very entertaining watching the boys yell, “gobble gobble” waiting for the reply from the turkeys.
Then we returned to the cows and the calf and some rabbits. Lastly, it was on to the pigs. Everyone held their breath as we walked along looking at all the pigs. Some were huge and the piglets were very cute. After the piggery, it was the end of the trips and we walked back to the gates saying a huge thank you to the farm manager for showing us the farm and letting the boys be farmers for a day.
Tabitha Shaw – Junior and Middle School English teaching intern, terms 1 & 2, 2018
