Class Details
1 Hour
4th Grade to Adult
moderate
What is the maple syruping tradition all about?
Maple syruping is a seasonal activity that supplements Ojibwe Heritage Class as we go from snowshoeing to basket making. Wolf Ridge taps approximately 40 sugar maple trees and conducts a small-scale demonstration sugar operation. Students will have the opportunity to participate in/visit Wolf Ridge’s sugar operation. Depending on the time of the season and weather students will discuss connections between syruping and Ojibwe people, tap a tree, collect sap, conduct a taste test, and discuss the boiling of the sap.
Concepts
- “Knowing the land” increases your survivability.
- Maple trees play an important role in several different ecosystems – food, forest, and money.
- The basic principles of maple syruping have remained the same since its discovery; gather and concentrate.
Outcomes
- Explain the connection between Native Americans and modern day tapping.
- List at least three attributes of sugar maple trees.
- Explain the process to get sap from a maple tree to the end product of maple syrup.
- Participate in some of the aspects of maple syruping.