Junior Herbalist Club (JHC) is a 2-year extracurricular course for children (aged 7-12, but teens also welcome) which runs for 90 minutes, once a month, for 10 months of the year.
Junior Herbalist Club has been designed to engage and educate children, on a journey of discovery through play to learn about the healing and medicinal plants all around them in a safe and supervised environment. The course covertly incorporates core subjects including English, Maths, Biology, Chemistry, Botany, Latin and Cookery, as well as helps children to gain in confidence, improve fine motor control and develop a new skill set.
Each month the children learn about the medicinal uses of plants and make something to take home (lavender bags, lip balms, bath bombs and much more!!). JHC has been planned so that each month the children build on their knowledge and skills. In the second year, the tasks become more complex, building on the skill set developed in the first year. At the end of each session the children are given a worksheet to complete so they can develop a portfolio of learning.
The course includes:
- Identification of common herbs growing all around
- Safety – which herbs are safe to use and which are poisonous
- Folklore – taught through stories and songs
- How to grow and harvest herbs
- Medicinal uses of common herbs
- How to use a variety of common herbs for first aid
- How to make a variety of herbal preparations to keep and take home
- Respect for all plants and their environment
JHC was created and developed by Medical Herbalist Mel Hornby and has been delivering herbal education to children in the UK since 2014, and is now available in Australia.
Virginia Maddock has been a qualified herbalist since 2000 and will be offering this wonderful education in plant healing for children in West Ryde, and other areas if there is interest, from February.
JHC is designed for 7-12yo’s, however teens also really enjoy these classes too. Get in contact with Virginia for enquiries!
Nov 12 – Final class for the year + Year 1 graduation presentation for kids who have completed minimum 8/10 classes!
Price for the year is $400, or $120 per term (x4).