Winter POP Club – Week 7

December 15 – Week 7: This week our POP kids will be playing BINGO! They will each receive a BINGO card and go out into the market answering questions about the market and its farmers as well as learning where they can find certain items. Each child will receive a different shape that they must make in order to get BINGO! Once they’ve done this they can return to the POP tent, try the two-bite and earn their $3 token!

2-Bite Club: Pears

Discover the Power of Produce and join the POP Club this Sunday!

Last Sunday, kids participated in planting beet seeds! They got hands on as they worked with soil and planted their seeds into egg cartons. They were taught how to care for their plant so they could take them home and watch them grow! This teaches them to be more responsible and to feel the joy of taking care of something other than themselves. If you haven’t yet registered, come down to the POP tent this Sunday and join the club! We’ll be doing fun activities for the kids every week 🙂

So, how does the POP Club work?

Well, the POP Club is a farmers market-based kids program. Each week children (ages 5-12 years old) will participate in fun and educational activities that will teach them about fruits and vegetables, local food systems and healthy food preparation. After that, they will be trying the 2-Bite of the week which will be a fruit or vegetable that’s in season and can be found at the market. As they try the 2-Bite we will share with them interesting facts about what they are eating. Once they finish the activity and try the 2-Bite, children receive a $3 market token that can be used towards any fruit or vegetable of their choice. They can either use their token right then or save them for bigger purchases. This teaches kids how to make healthier food choices and how to manage their money.

There is no cost to participate and the program runs every Sunday rain or shine!

Hope to see you this Sunday!

5 Great Reasons to Have Your Children Start Gardening

Gardening with children is amazing for their development. Through gardening, they learn many new skills. They learn to work with their hands, how to take care of something else, and they learn patience as they wait for their plants to grow. Teaching children about planting seeds can be fun and educational. Kids love being creative, and this can also become a great outlet for them to express their creativity. They can make choices in what they want to plant and learn how real, nutritious food is actually made. Things don’t just come from a store, there is a process and getting them more involved in this process will help them become more conscious eaters as they grow older.

5 Great Reasons to Have Your Children Start Gardening:

  1. It builds their self-confidence they are creating something out of nothing.
  2. They learn how to be more responsible because they are now in charge of caring for something other than themselves.
  3. It is a great way to bond with them.
  4. The become healthier eaters because they are involved in the process of growing food and they are more likely to try eating something that they have created.
  5. It teaches them to be more patient as they wait for their little plants to grow.

This Sunday at the POP Club tent we will be teaching children how to plant beet seeds. They will each work with the soil and plant their little seeds into egg cartons. We will teach them about the different stages that the plant goes through and how to care for their little plants. Then they will take their plants home and watch them grow!

Hope to see you there!

If you haven’t yet registered for the program this season, make sure you visit the POP tent to get started!

Learn more about the program here: POP Kids Club

Winter POP Club – Week 6

December 8 – Week 6: This week our POP kids will be planting beet seeds! They will get hands on as they work with soil and plant their seeds. They will be learning how to plant seeds, how to take care of their future seedlings and then take them home to watch them grow!

2-Bite Club: Broccoli

Discover the Power of Produce and join the POP Club this Sunday!

Last Sunday, kids participated in the mystery box challenge! They were only allowed to use their sense of touch, aka their hands, to figure out what vegetable was hidden inside the mystery box. This taught them how to be more aware of shapes and using only their mental memory to figure out what vegetable the shape they were feeling was. If you haven’t yet registered, come down to the POP tent this Sunday and join the club! We’ll be doing fun activities for the kids every week 🙂

So, how does the POP Club work?

Well, the POP Club is a farmers market-based kids program. Each week children (ages 5-12 years old) will participate in fun and educational activities that will teach them about fruits and vegetables, local food systems and healthy food preparation. After that, they will be trying the 2-Bite of the week which will be a fruit or vegetable that’s in season and can be found at the market. As they try the 2-Bite we will share with them interesting facts about what they are eating. Once they finish the activity and try the 2-Bite, children receive a $3 market token that can be used towards any fruit or vegetable of their choice. They can either use their token right then or save them for bigger purchases. This teaches kids how to make healthier food choices and how to manage their money.

There is no cost to participate and the program runs every Sunday rain or shine!

Hope to see you this Sunday!

Engaging Kids in the 5 Senses

Why would developing our senses be important? Well our senses are the way that we explore the world and basically make sense of what is going on around us. Teaching children about the 5 senses (sight, smell, touch, hearing and taste) is important to help them to stimulate their brains and to better understand their bodies. It is also great for building their self esteem because through activities relating to the senses, they are discovering new and exciting things about themselves.

A great way to have them engage in all their senses is to bring them to the Port Moody Farmers Market! You can ask them questions like what kinds of sounds do they hear? Maybe the musician of the week or vendors making their sales. Then ask what they see, like the assortment of fruits and vegetables we have to offer. There is always so much going on at the market and it’s a great way to engage in all the senses!

Here are some other activities that you can try with your children to help them engage in their 5 senses:

Sight: Playing I Spy with your kids is a fun and easy game to play with them to have them become more aware of the things around them.

Smell: The blindfold test is a great way to help kids activate their sense of smell. Take familiar items like cocoa powder and lemons and have them figure out what it is only by smelling it.

Touch: A great way to have them engage in this sense is by getting a box and hiding a mystery object within it. Cut a hole so they can stick their hands into the cardboard to use their sense of touch to discover what it is. This is exactly what we’ll be doing for this Sunday’s activity at the POP Club!

Hearing: Take kids to a park and have them point out all the things that they hear. Is it a bird, or a plane, or maybe the laughter of other children? Have them describe all the things that they hear.

Taste: The blindfold test can also be used here to help kids differentiate between different tastes. Have them try different foods and answer questions like is it salty or is it sweet?

Join us this Sunday for a fun activity that will help POP kids engage in their sense of touch by using their hands to figure out what vegetable is hidden in the mystery box! They will not only be using their hands, but also their critical thinking skills in order to make sense of what they are feeling.

Hope to see you there!

If you haven’t yet registered for the program this season, make sure you visit the POP tent to get started!

Learn more about the program here: POP Kids Club

Winter POP Club – Week 5

December 1 – Week 5: This week our POP kids will be participating in the mystery box challenge! They will try and figure out which vegetable is hidden inside by only using their hands. Then they will go out into the market and find out which vendor sells the mystery vegetable!

2-Bite Club: Beets

Discover the Power of Produce and join the POP Club this Sunday!

Yesterday kids did a worksheet on financial literacy where they went out into the market and learnt how much the produce they love costs and how many of their tokens they need to make purchases. If you haven’t yet registered, come down to the POP tent this Sunday and join the club! We’ll be doing fun activities for the kids every week 🙂

So, how does the POP Club work?

Well, the POP Club is a farmers market-based kids program. Each week children (ages 5-12 years old) will participate in fun and educational activities that will teach them about fruits and vegetables, local food systems and healthy food preparation. After that, they will be trying the 2-Bite of the week which will be a fruit or vegetable that’s in season and can be found at the market. As they try the 2-Bite we will share with them interesting facts about what they are eating. Once they finish the activity and try the 2-Bite, children receive a $3 market token that can be used towards any fruit or vegetable of their choice. They can either use their token right then or save them for bigger purchases. This teaches kids how to make healthier food choices and how to manage their money.

There is no cost to participate and the program runs every Sunday rain or shine!

Hope to see you this Sunday!

Why It’s Important to Teach Kids About Money

Teaching children at a young age about money and savings will help them become better money managers as they get older. In the POP Club Program, children earn a $3 market token after participating in the activity and 2Bite. These tokens can then be either used that day on produce within the market or saved for bigger purchases in the future. Children get to choose which helps them to develop better decision-making skills.

It’s important to give children a good foundation about money management. Teaching them the basics about how to budget, spend and save will establish good money habits for life. Through our program, we teach young kids the value of money through real life situations to help them understand where money (aka market tokens) come from and how to earn them. We are also able to teach them that there is a process in order to get the things that they want. You work hard at something, earn money from that and then you get to reap the benefits.

It can be difficult for children to understand what money is and why we need it. Especially in this day and age, where most purchases are made by using debit or credit cards or otherwise known as “invisible money”. Here are some tips on how you can help your child be more money conscious:

  1. Start by allowing your children to actually see money.
  2. Teach them the importance of saving by getting them a piggy bank.
  3. Give your kids pocket money so they can start making their own decisions about how they want their money spent.
  4. Exchange money for chores around the house to teach them that money is earned.

This Sunday at the POP tent, the POP kids will be working through a worksheet that will help them understand how to use their POP tokens to purchase the things that they want within in the market. They will also learn the value of patience by saving up their tokens to make big purchases.

Hope to see you there!

If you haven’t yet registered for the program this season, make sure you visit the POP tent to get started!

Learn more about the program here: POP Kids Club

Winter POP Club – Week 4

November 24 – Week 4: This week our POP kids will be learning about financial literacy. They will learn how to manage their money (aka market tokens) by going out into the market and learning how much it will cost to be able to get the produce that they want. They will learn how much things cost and how to save up to make bigger purchases at the market.

2-Bite Club: Carrots

Discover the Power of Produce and join the POP Club this Sunday!

Last weekend, kids got hands on with a cooking demo on how to make a delicious and healthy kale salad! Bringing children into the kitchen helps to get them more excited about what they eat and teaches them valuable skills. The recipe we used was well received by the children and if you want to know what it was, you can check it out here: Kale Yeah! The Health Benefits of Kale. If you haven’t yet registered, come down to the POP tent this Sunday and join the club! We’ll be doing fun activities for the kids every week 🙂

So, how does the POP Club work?

Well, the POP Club is a farmers market-based kids program. Each week children (ages 5-12 years old) will participate in fun and educational activities that will teach them about fruits and vegetables, local food systems and healthy food preparation. After that, they will be trying the 2-Bite of the week which will be a fruit or vegetable that’s in season and can be found at the market. As they try the 2-Bite we will share with them interesting facts about what they are eating. Once they finish the activity and try the 2-Bite, children receive a $3 market token that can be used towards any fruit or vegetable of their choice. They can either use their token right then or save them for bigger purchases. This teaches kids how to make healthier food choices and how to manage their money.

There is no cost to participate and the program runs every Sunday rain or shine!

Hope to see you this Sunday!

Kale Yeah! The Health Benefits of Kale

This Sunday at the Power of Produce Club, children will be participating in a cooking demo to make a healthy kale salad! It can be difficult to get children excited about eating their vegetables, so a fun way to do so is to get them more involved in the process. They will learn valuable skills that will help them understand the importance of cooking their own food and how delicious fresh produce really is. Having kids join in on the cooking process can make it more exciting and enjoyable for them. Plus, they are more likely to try something that they created themselves. Even if it’s a vegetable that they would normally turn their nose up to like kale!

Kale is actually one of the worlds most healthiest foods since its packed with so many nutrients!

Here are some interesting facts about kale:

  1. Kale is a green, leafy, winter vegetable that is high in fiber.
  2. It has more nutritional value than spinach.
  3. The potassium content of kale may help reduce the risk of heart disease.
  4. The nutrients it contains support healthy skin, hair and bones.
  5. The fiber content enhances digestion and contributes to cardiovascular health.
  6. It is a good source of vitamin c and iron.
  7. It contains fiber, antioxidants, calcium, vitamin k and more.

Here’s the recipe that we’ll be trying out:

Kale Salad with Lemon Dressing

Ingredients:

  • 5 cups of chopped kale
  • ½ cup shredded carrots
  • ¼ cup diced red onion

Dressing Ingredients:

  • ¼ cup olive oil
  • 1/8 tsp salt
  • 2 tbsp fresh lemon juice
  • 2 tbsp red wine vinegar
  • 1 tbsp Dijon mustard
  • 1 clove garlic, minced
  • ½ tsp dried oregano
  • ¼ tsp black pepper
  • 1 tsp honey

Instructions:

  1. First make your dressing by combining ingredients above in a bowl and mix well to emulsify. You can make this dressing as sweet or tart as your heart desires! All you have to do is adjust the honey, salt and pepper to taste.
  2. In a large bowl, combine kale, carrots and onion. Pour about 1/3 of the dressing over the salad. Toss to coat and add extra dressing, to taste.

Come join us this Sunday at the Port Moody Market so the POP kids can come and try making this recipe!

Hope to see you there!

If you haven’t yet registered for the program this season, make sure you visit the POP tent to get started!

Learn more about the program here: POP Kids Club

Winter POP Club – Week 3

Discover the Power of Produce and join the POP Club this Sunday!

Last week, kids were taught about the different hats that farmers wear. They learnt that farmers not only grow delicious produce for us, but also take on many different roles in order to their farms running smoothly. This week, we’re changing things up with a cooking demo! If you haven’t yet registered, come down to the POP tent this Sunday and join the club!

So, how does the POP Club work?

Well, the POP Club is a farmers market-based kids program. Each week children (ages 5-12 years old) will participate in fun and educational activities that will teach them about fruits and vegetables, local food systems and healthy food preparation. After that, they will be trying the 2-Bite of the week which will be a fruit or vegetable that’s in season and can be found at the market. As they try the 2-Bite we will share with them interesting facts about what they are eating. Once they finish the activity and try the 2-Bite, children receive a $3 market token that can be used towards any fruit or vegetable of their choice. They can either use their token right then or save them for bigger purchases. This teaches kids how to make healthier food choices and how to manage their money.

There is no cost to participate and the program runs every Sunday rain or shine!

November 17 – Week 3: This week our POP kids will be making their own salad! We’ll take the ingredients found at the market and together create a simple, delicious kale salad. Kids will learn the value of cooking their own food and using healthy, fresh ingredients to do so!

2-Bite Club: Kale

Hope to see you this Sunday!

A Farmers Work Never Ends

Just because the harvest season is over, doesn’t mean that a farmers work ends. Farmers play many different roles and this Sunday we will be teaching our POP kids what these roles are. From being a veterinarian to a scientist, the daily tasks a farmer takes on varies. There are many different types of farming such as livestock, crop, tree, dairy and many more. Each type of farming requires specialized skills and knowledge.

There are farms that grow crops, others raise animals and some do both! For the winter season, farmers focus on preparing for the harvest season. They make decisions on what crops to plant on which fields, they prepare the fields, and they budget for and purchase items likes seeds and fertilizer. They also take on the role of a mechanic and work on farm equipment like tractors and planters to prepare for spring planting. Since our winters can get very cold, they also need to ensure the water lines don’t freeze, and that their animals have proper shelter, enough food and bedding to keep warm. A farms tasks varies greatly according to the type of farming, the type of crop or livestock, which machinery and equipment are used, and what size the farming operation is.

Here are a few examples of the different roles a farmer has:

Veterinarian: farmers must be able to recognize early signs of disease in animals, assist with the birth of animals, and administer medicine to any sick animals.

Weather Forecaster: farmers must understand weather and climate, be aware of possible weather changes, and know how to prepare for these changes.

Mechanic: farmers must be able to operate and maintain both simple and complicated machinery, make repairs, and keep machines in good working order.

Nutritionist: farmers must know how to prepare feed rations for best growth and production of livestock.

Scientist: farmers must be able to conduct experiments that help answer agricultural questions like which crops grow best in particular climates or soil.

Engineer: farmers must know how to plan and construct fences and buildings, build irrigation ditches and control the flow of water, and use natural resources to grow products useful to people.

Business Manager: farmers must be able to balance accounts, sell farm produce to the market, be responsible for making payments and payrolls, and keep track of equipment, products, and land.

Forest Ranger: farmers must be able to recognize the various kinds of trees, detect fires and know methods of controlling them, and clear trees from land and prevent soil erosion.

This Sunday, children will participate in a fun activity that will teach them more about the different role’s farmers play. Come down to the Port Moody Winters Farmers Market and let’s learn together!

If you haven’t yet registered for the program this season, make sure you visit the POP tent to get started!

Learn more about the program here: POP Kids Club