Creating Our Own Seasonal Round to Inform Us as Consumers

Coal River Seasonal Round

Two days ago, I was reading a Teaching with the Library of Congress Blog post about Seasonal Rounds. Seasonal Rounds was a term that I wasn't familiar with, but it is a visual that shows the annual pattern in the production of food. The Library of Congress example showing activities around the Coal River in Southern West Virginia goes further to add in community events and other seasonal events like splitting wood or what animals can be hunted at different times of the year.

I found the visual of the Seasonal Round intriguing. It did an exceptional job of showing the never-ending nature of the work that people do with food production. I also thought the suggestions by Danna, the author of the post, for students to look at yearly family activities could be displayed in an interesting way using the visual.

Jefferson's Vegetable Market Chart

This morning, I read a post from the Library of Congress Inside Adams Blog entitled The President and the Parsnip: Thomas Jefferson's Vegetable Market Chart (1801-1808). In the post, I discovered an interesting primary source, a chart of the typical times fruits and vegetables were at market in Washington. The detail of Jefferson's work reminded me of his weather record, a primary source some students had analyzed earlier this year. But the yearly pattern that he was displaying reminded me of the Seasonal Round graphic that I had looked at just the day before.

My first instinct was to wonder what Thomas Jefferson's chart would look like added to the Coal River Seasonal Round. I knew there may be a geographical issue with looking for overlap though. Then I started to think a little closer to home. I thought of local restaurants in St. Louis that tout their locally sourced foods. I thought of the local grocery stores (1, 2, 3) that advertises locally grown produce items available during the spring, summer, and fall. I thought of the seed packets at home that would be opened in the next few weeks to plant my home garden.

I think there is an interesting science connection here that may even tie into an idea of creating traditions, a variation of what was mentioned in the original Seasonal Rounds blog. We have a grade level that plants a garden at RM Captain. The next school year, another group of students harvest the vegetables that were grown. There is some initial knowledge of the growing season imbedded here in student learning. What if we built upon that?

Starting with Jefferson's Vegetable Market Chart, we could analyze the document to learn that different fruits and vegetables were available to Jefferson at different times. Incorporating the seed packets used by the students when planting that contain information on planting times and growing periods, students could bridge their understanding to connect the availability with the growing season of the fruits and vegetables. That would give us a very local start. From there, we could reach out to  local farms to gain more information on local planting and harvest times or grocers on the typical availability of different local produce. We could then look at the seasonal round to see how these producers tracked their information. Ultimately, we could create our own local Seasonal Round to inform us as consumers. Students would know when local fruits and vegetables are typically available.

With a focus on the health & science curriculum that deals with nutrition, we could even push the idea further. We could look at types of meals and recipes that incorporate those locally grown seasonal fruits and vegetables. We may be able to connect with a nearby restaurant that utilizes local produce to see how they make decisions about their food choices with what is available to them locally.

Ultimately, students could utilize a document from the past to launch learning that impacts choices they make in the present and future. At this point, it is still only an idea, so now it is time to get to work!