Resources, Meltdowns and Melting Shortbread · Monday February 26, 2007 by Rose
Today I received some great free learning resources that I’d ordered.
First off were lots of the Shout About booklets and resources from Friends of the Earth. The “Mad about” stuff I hope to use with SJ, and the other resources are ideal for JJ.
Even more exciting, I received my copy of VGAS. This computer programme allows you to set up a virtual house, in which you put in all your preferences for how you acheive your comfortable standard of living – it then makes you aware of the cost of those choices in terms of greenhouses gases, climate change etc. Playing the game, you then come across regular challenges – maybe there is a new tax on petrol, or some food scare that means you can’t eat pork, etc. How you respond to those challenges acheives – or loses – you points in terms of how your living affects the environment. I can’t wait to load it up and go through it with JJ!
In a similar vein, try out this online Fisheries programme. Designed to help improve awareness of natural resources governance inr elation to attitudes towards risk, lifestyle, the environment and fisheries. Definately one for your older children.
I’m currently sitting here with my foot up, having just twisted it quite badly coming out of my friend’s house. We’d popped over there to wish her a happy birthday, as the boys had made her cards. Unfortunately, since the weekend when we think that SJ and JJ had gluten (at a chinese) their behaviour has been quite difficult and SJ in particular has struggled. An incident at our friends’s sparked off a full blown aspie meltdown, which was a shame. Good to be amongst caring (HE) friends though, who understand, and who were really concerned about him.
As is the way with aspies though, it was forgotten by the time we got in the car, and he is now happily tucking into sausages and chips! (tesco’s now do chilled sausages in their Free From range, for which I am extremely grateful – especially on a night like tonight!).
We’ve been gluten free for a year now, and every time they have it, I remember just what a difference it has made.
If you are gf too, here’s a great recipe for shortbread which I adapted from my favourite “normal” recipe:
100g icing sugar
100g rice flour
50g butter
50g cornflour
Cream the butter and icing sugar together, then add the flours and a pinch of salt. Knead lightly to a soft dough, roll into a cylinder, wrap in clingfilm and put in the fridge for 20 minutes. You can then take it out and slice it into 1cm thick discs. Bake for 25 minutes on 160c. If you sprinkle them with sugar before baking they come out even nicer! This never makes enough.. and the biscuits usually disappear within the hour!
