Kindergartners at Holy Cross Elementary in Holyrood had a pretty sweet assignment this spring. Over the past month the students tapped some nearby maple trees for their sap, collecting enough to enjoy the fruit of their labours last Friday. After the clear sap was all boiled down in the school’s cafeteria there was enough delicious homemade syrup to pour over a batch of fresh pancakes. “First we had to tap the trees, and then we put buckets underneath the taps, and then we collected the syrup, and then we sent it to the cafeteria, where they boiled it, and turned it into maple syrup,” explained student Thatcher Fitzpatrick. Fellow student Ben Corbett noted the class made four trips outside to tap the trees. The idea came from their teacher Stephanie Edison who had noticed several tapped maple trees throughout Holyrood on her morning drive to school. She decided it would be a good lesson for the students, who gladly tapped into the idea. And what was the best part of making the syrup? “Tasting it,” said Lyla Green. Edison said students were able to taste the sap straight from the trees. Seated on the floor is Nathan Burke and Danielle Squires. From left are Scarlett Travis, Ivar Veretennyk, Claire Boyd, Leah Coffey, James Murphy, Lyla Green, Maverick Furey-Bartlett, Thatcher Fitzpatrick, Naiya Derwin, Ben Corbett, and Nicholas Parsley. Missing from the photo is Noah Olson. Mark Squibb photo
