University of Maine Cooperative Extension   4-H Earth Connections "Creating Sustainable Communities for the 21st Century"
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AGE LEVEL = 8-10 (6-12) DURATION = 10-15 min. LEARNING STATION = Outdoors RELATED ACTIVITIES = None WHEN =

UNDERSTANDING: Taste is a vital sense.

SPECIAL NOTE: This is a good filler activity for between learning stations.

MATERIALS:

• Objects to taste (both from the kitchen and outside)

• Toothpicks

• Blindfolds (optional) (see Activity A)

• Nose plugs (optional)

PREPARATION: Be certain all objects are safe to taste.

LESSON:

Warm-up: Gather the group in a sharing circle and give samples of items from the kitchen. As an option, you can challenge the children to identify the items while blindfolded and with their noses plugged. Discuss the importance of tastes to wildlife and how some animals taste bad as a means of protecting themselves from predators (examples are shrews and monarch butterflies).

Activity: Go outside and taste some wild foods (winter green, wood sorrel, yellow birch, cattail, white cedar). Caution: Even when foods are known to be nonpoisonous, individuals can be highly allergic to them, so give participants only a very small bit to taste. Warn young children against tasting anything wild without having an adult present.

Wrap-up: Ask the group members to vote on whether or not they like the taste of each item by saying together, on the count of three, either a loud “yummmm” or “yechhh!” Note that some foods that taste bad to humans taste very good to wildlife. White cedar is a whitetail deer favorite, yet is considered inedible by us.

OPTIONS AND FURTHER EXPLORATIONS:
Foraging is a popular hobby and many excellent reference books are available. Contact your local library or Cooperative Extension office for materials. Using these resources, learn more about wild edibles and serve a wild foods feast for the group.