One Berry, Two Berry, Pick me a Blueberry

The state of Maine supplies 99% of the blueberries consumed in the United States so we could not study Maine without a little blueberry fun.



We began by reading Blueberries for Sal by Robert McCloskey. C and R love this book and there are so many topics for discussion. Here are a few things we discussed*:
- How was Little Sal's mother getting ready for winter?
- How was Little Bear's mother getting ready for winter?
- What sound did the berries make when they were dropped into Little Sal's pail?
- Why didn't they make the same sound in mother's pail?
- Why did Little Sal and Little Bear get lost?
- What made Little Sal's mother turn around? Little Bear's mother?
- I wonder what Little Bear and his mother did when they got home. What did Little Sal and her mother do?

We also read Jamberry by Bruce Degen and discussed the different types of berries in the book. C and R compared and contrasted blueberries, blackberries, strawberries, and raspberries.

Blueberry picking is available locally and because we have had a very rainy summer, the blueberry picking is better than usual. Before we went blueberry picking, we talked about how blueberries grow and the fact that blueberries is one crop that is native to the United States. This experience was wonderful because C and R took turns pretending to be Little Sal and Little Bear. I was amazed at how many details they remembered from the book. The owner of the property where we picked the blueberries assured C and R that there are no bears on the property!

R was very happy when she heard that it was acceptable to eat the berries as she picked them!

What did we do with the blueberries?
- counted them
- compared the size and color of our blueberries
- measured them
- froze some to save for the winter (just like Little Sal and her mother)
- and made a Half Raw Half Cooked Blueberry Pie

Ingredients: 4 cups blueberries
2/3 cup sugar
3 Tbsp cornstarch
1/2 cup water
pinch of salt
one baked 9 inch pie shell

Wash/drain blueberries. Mix sugar, cornstarch, and salt in a medium saucepan. Add water and mix. Heat while stirring and add 2 cups of the blueberries. Cook over medium-high heat until thick and transparent (this only takes a few minutes). The mixture gets very glossy and the blueberries will pop. Cool slightly. Pour a small amount into the bottom of the baked pie shell. Add remaining 2 cups of blueberries to the cooked mixture in the pan. Pour mixture into pie shell and garnish with a few fresh berries on top. Cool completely and serve with whipped cream or ice cream! Yum!

*Discussion topics came from Peak With Books by Marjorie R.Nelsen and Jan Nelsen-Parish