Kindy cottons on to farmers’ plight
FANCY THAT Concerned kids pull on costumes – and udders!
LITTLE Eugenie Lee showed her knowledge of farming life with an impromptu milking demonstration at her kindy yesterday.
Eugenie, dressed as a cow, and the other kids at Chiselhurst Kindergarten (dressed as farmers – or farm animals) helped lend support to the Buy a Bale campaign.
She wasn’t the only young farmer who showed an intricate knowledge of rural life.
Connor Brownlie explained how production worked on his grandfather’s cotton gin from start to finish.
“There are little cotton seeds that you put in the ground in little rows. There are discs and blades on a row maker,” he said.
“When they harvest it the cotton goes to the place where they take the seeds out.
“There’s a big machine that slides the plastic off the bales. A man gets a stick and puts the bale in a squishing machine and puts it outside.”
Chiselhurst Kindergarten assistant Marnie Armansin said many of the children had connections out west with parents or grandparents owning properties.
“The day was for children to learn about farming life and where their food comes from. It’s also for them to understand it can be hard for farmers,” Ms Armansin said.
“As a kindergarten, we aim to help the children connect with their community.
“Last year, we fundraised for a school in Cambodia. This year we thought it was important to focus on our local area.”
The Buy a Bale organisation’s target for 2014 is to purchase the equivalent of 230,000 bales to support farmers who occupy 70 per cent of Queensland and 50 per cent of New South Wales.