This week's submission:
Why do we have to learn about farms and stuff; what's that got to do with food?
And last week's:
Water... Oh! Why is the ocean blue? Is it really because it's 70% whale sperm?
New -
Student - Are we going to learn about alchemy?
Me - Why would we learn how to turn lead into gold, what do you think that has to do with Home Ec?
Him - Oh. I thought that meant healing diseases with plants.
Me - No. We're not doing that either. Maybe in university.
Friday, April 13, 2012
Wednesday, April 4, 2012
Hipsters don't do the Cinnamon Challenge
The cinnamon challenge is so... last term... it's so... 8th grade. Ew.
Let's just take the fun and games to a whole new level, grade 6/7 style:
It's quesadilla time! I didn't have much success finding a cheese-free alternative to quesadillas, and the kids were begging to make them, so we went with the status quo. I'd been grumbling to myself that quesadillas are so easy... TOO easy... No. No they're not. Not easy. Not for the kids.
The hardest part is listening to all those instructions the teacher gives. How to set up an electric grill. How to grate cheese without grating your fingers (very stressful, actually). How to make sure your ingredients go far enough. How to flip the darned thing once you figure out it might be ready to flip. Nope. There's nothing "easy" about quesadillas.
The students are allowed to bring in extra ingredients, as long as no one in the room is allergic to it. Additionally, they have to reach a consensus in their group about what to share, and what not to share.
A student brought a jalapeno as part of his extras. I knew that little green fruit was trouble when I spotted it in the fridge. During class I spoke to him about the preparation and clean up of hot peppers (yes, I know, it was only a jalapeno. If it were a habanero, I don't think I would have let him use it, honestly.) He's a reliable kid, and it looked good. (Wait for it...)
Class is ticking along reasonably well. Suddenly, a boy bolts from the room, bent double. Two others follow. I worry that he's vomiting, but by the time I get from one side of the room to the other, he's back - and his head is firmly under the water tap, and he's gulping.
My eyes drift to their table. On a cutting board sits a neatly sliced jalapeno pepper. And what do I notice? It's full of seeds. The boy is still gulping water from a tap that the kids are generally reluctant to drink from. Over the roar of the tap and the hum of the class I call to him - Water only makes it worse!
He emerges. Looks desperate. "What makes it better then?" The poor kid is almost begging for mercy. I have to think quickly. I don't eat hot stuff, fortunately though, my son does, so I have some ideas about what might help. The question is - do I have anything in the foods room that will do the trick? I only keep supplies that we're actually going to use for that lab. Milk! I have milk. I bought it thinking we were making muffins. It's in the fridge and it's fresh. I pour him some milk and he finds some relief. Now, he's ready to laugh about it. I warned him it was going in the blog. I don't think he was listening.
Let's just take the fun and games to a whole new level, grade 6/7 style:
It's quesadilla time! I didn't have much success finding a cheese-free alternative to quesadillas, and the kids were begging to make them, so we went with the status quo. I'd been grumbling to myself that quesadillas are so easy... TOO easy... No. No they're not. Not easy. Not for the kids.
The hardest part is listening to all those instructions the teacher gives. How to set up an electric grill. How to grate cheese without grating your fingers (very stressful, actually). How to make sure your ingredients go far enough. How to flip the darned thing once you figure out it might be ready to flip. Nope. There's nothing "easy" about quesadillas.
The students are allowed to bring in extra ingredients, as long as no one in the room is allergic to it. Additionally, they have to reach a consensus in their group about what to share, and what not to share.
A student brought a jalapeno as part of his extras. I knew that little green fruit was trouble when I spotted it in the fridge. During class I spoke to him about the preparation and clean up of hot peppers (yes, I know, it was only a jalapeno. If it were a habanero, I don't think I would have let him use it, honestly.) He's a reliable kid, and it looked good. (Wait for it...)
Class is ticking along reasonably well. Suddenly, a boy bolts from the room, bent double. Two others follow. I worry that he's vomiting, but by the time I get from one side of the room to the other, he's back - and his head is firmly under the water tap, and he's gulping.
My eyes drift to their table. On a cutting board sits a neatly sliced jalapeno pepper. And what do I notice? It's full of seeds. The boy is still gulping water from a tap that the kids are generally reluctant to drink from. Over the roar of the tap and the hum of the class I call to him - Water only makes it worse!
He emerges. Looks desperate. "What makes it better then?" The poor kid is almost begging for mercy. I have to think quickly. I don't eat hot stuff, fortunately though, my son does, so I have some ideas about what might help. The question is - do I have anything in the foods room that will do the trick? I only keep supplies that we're actually going to use for that lab. Milk! I have milk. I bought it thinking we were making muffins. It's in the fridge and it's fresh. I pour him some milk and he finds some relief. Now, he's ready to laugh about it. I warned him it was going in the blog. I don't think he was listening.
Friday, March 9, 2012
Now you're cooking with gas!
Faced with a 2 day week, just before a 2 week Spring Break (if you don't know, don't ask - things have been difficult around these parts), I promised the Grade 8s that we would cook before the break, and I was determined to get the 6/7s started on their knitting.
The 8s made it through their Apple Crisp lab, some better than others, and the 6/7s are well on their way to becoming knitters, some more than others. Pretty good for 2 days work.
Block 7. Last block of the day. Friday. The 8s have finished their cooking lab, and the last batch of 6/7s settle in to learn to knit. About 2:30, someone says "It smells funny... like gas". And I realize that she's right, and I can smell it too. So can the rest of that group. So can the group closest to them. And the group further away who weren't paying attention to the rest of us.
Dig out my cell phone and call the office. Vice Principal is teaching and Principal has "stepped away from his office" (which could mean anything). I let out a Bad Word. I explain the problem and ask the secretary to send me a Caretaker a.s.a.p., which she does.
I move the students away from the odour while the Caretaker investigates. Noticing that it's nearly the end of class makes it easy to wrap things up without upsetting the kids. They gather their things and move into the hallway to wait for the end of the block.
Turns out that some gas was being purged nearby. I honestly don't know what that means, or looks like. I'm going to look it up.
Do you think that if you're going to perform a procedure near a school that smells like a gas leak, you'd call the Principal and let someone know? Jeez.
The 8s made it through their Apple Crisp lab, some better than others, and the 6/7s are well on their way to becoming knitters, some more than others. Pretty good for 2 days work.
Block 7. Last block of the day. Friday. The 8s have finished their cooking lab, and the last batch of 6/7s settle in to learn to knit. About 2:30, someone says "It smells funny... like gas". And I realize that she's right, and I can smell it too. So can the rest of that group. So can the group closest to them. And the group further away who weren't paying attention to the rest of us.
Dig out my cell phone and call the office. Vice Principal is teaching and Principal has "stepped away from his office" (which could mean anything). I let out a Bad Word. I explain the problem and ask the secretary to send me a Caretaker a.s.a.p., which she does.
I move the students away from the odour while the Caretaker investigates. Noticing that it's nearly the end of class makes it easy to wrap things up without upsetting the kids. They gather their things and move into the hallway to wait for the end of the block.
Turns out that some gas was being purged nearby. I honestly don't know what that means, or looks like. I'm going to look it up.
Do you think that if you're going to perform a procedure near a school that smells like a gas leak, you'd call the Principal and let someone know? Jeez.
Tuesday, February 7, 2012
Cheese!
Close call with the phobia today - I'm going to have to be more careful.
The grade 8s are making pizza. This, of course, includes, cheese. Yes, yes, phobias and cheese. Try to keep up with me here. See the last entry. The phobia victim is not in the grade 8 class, but the class right after.
So. The 8s are scrambling to finish up and get to their next class. I'm scrambling to tidy up and prepare for my next class which is trickling in around the edges. I lead them along with my preamble about our food based science experiment, and if we put cream into a jar and shake it, what do you think we'll get? (Um. Not very many kids guess correctly, in case you're wondering. Maybe 10 percent) Since one of the guesses was cheese (a very common answer, that and ice cream), one boy perked up in alarm.
As he rapidly scanned my work station for clues, I noticed that the mozzarella block was still out and quickly threw a towel over it. I'm sure he saw... but he didn't flee. Any predictions to make about the upcoming term? I'd love to hear them. Just remember, truth is stranger than fiction.
The grade 8s are making pizza. This, of course, includes, cheese. Yes, yes, phobias and cheese. Try to keep up with me here. See the last entry. The phobia victim is not in the grade 8 class, but the class right after.
So. The 8s are scrambling to finish up and get to their next class. I'm scrambling to tidy up and prepare for my next class which is trickling in around the edges. I lead them along with my preamble about our food based science experiment, and if we put cream into a jar and shake it, what do you think we'll get? (Um. Not very many kids guess correctly, in case you're wondering. Maybe 10 percent) Since one of the guesses was cheese (a very common answer, that and ice cream), one boy perked up in alarm.
As he rapidly scanned my work station for clues, I noticed that the mozzarella block was still out and quickly threw a towel over it. I'm sure he saw... but he didn't flee. Any predictions to make about the upcoming term? I'd love to hear them. Just remember, truth is stranger than fiction.
Friday, February 3, 2012
Food Allergies and Phobias
I had wondered if I would run out of material after a term or two. No fear! Looks like bloggable items will never be in short supply.
The new term of 6/7s started this week, and the first order of business is the allergy/food sensitivity sheet. A few children asked questions to clarify what they wanted to write so I had a general sense of what the concerns were, but I was still surprised.
So it looks like I'm reviewing my recipe ideas this weekend. Nothing with plums, that's for sure. But I might want to keep some cheese strings on hand for self-defense.
The new term of 6/7s started this week, and the first order of business is the allergy/food sensitivity sheet. A few children asked questions to clarify what they wanted to write so I had a general sense of what the concerns were, but I was still surprised.
- A child with an anaphylactic allergy to plums. This is my first encounter with severe fruit allergy.
- A child with lactose intolerance, who can eat small amounts of milk but cannot eat a giant ball of cheese. Well, who can, really?
- A child who reportedly eats only organic food. Staggering to think about, honestly, in terms of cost and effort.
- Another one with allergies who reacts to raw, unpeeled, fruits and veggies.
- A hard-core vegan.
- The usual peanut and nut allergies, a latex allergy and two who revealed medicine allergies - not that I plan to dispense codeine or penicillin in class. But good to know about!
- And the child who reported he's phobic about cheese. That one looked like a hoax, but we spoke, and his teacher checked and it seems on the level. The kid has a cheese phobia. Now there's some kryptonite that you don't want to reveal to your teenage friends!
So it looks like I'm reviewing my recipe ideas this weekend. Nothing with plums, that's for sure. But I might want to keep some cheese strings on hand for self-defense.
Tuesday, January 17, 2012
The Mid Point
Funny thing... we're about at the mid-point of the year. I've definitely recovered from the initial stage-fright I had at the beginning of the first term, and I'm willing to try almost anything in Home Ec now, as long as it can be compressed into my time-frame of 41 minutes. And I'm bored. Not during class...no, class is far too busy for me to consider the luxury of boredom. I'm bored in theory. Now that I'm approaching some recipes for the third time this year, or I do the same recipe three times a week (like I do with the 6/7 classes), I'm getting kind of antsy.
A new group of 8s is in the midst of their first cooking lab. I'm ready to pick up the pace - but they're not. I don't think it's a coincidence that I come home on Apple Crisp lab day, and make a batch of apple crisp - something I rarely made before this school year. Partly, the lab proved how easy it is, so, why not? And partly, it smells so darned good ;-)
The 8s get more restless each term, and I keep trying to move things along a little faster to hold their interest, or at least to tear them away from their iPhones. Today's demo was just an introduction - here's how to prepare the apples, so go to it. They were, as I mentioned, restless. Until they tried it. Payback time. "This is harder than it looks!" Yes, it is. I've peeled a lot of apples this year. I make it look easy.
Some students, not content with the challenge of the task at hand, decided to further challenge themselves... or rather, a classmate. The Cinnamon Challenge, it's called. I guess he succeeded... although I certainly don't advise trying it. Most of the class was too busy to notice, but I decided that cinnamon is now a controlled substance. When one 8th grade boy tries something on a dare, others are sure to follow.
Regardless, they managed to get their apple crisps into the fridge, ready for baking tomorrow, although clean up didn't go too well. We'll debrief. Whether they like it or not.
A new group of 8s is in the midst of their first cooking lab. I'm ready to pick up the pace - but they're not. I don't think it's a coincidence that I come home on Apple Crisp lab day, and make a batch of apple crisp - something I rarely made before this school year. Partly, the lab proved how easy it is, so, why not? And partly, it smells so darned good ;-)
The 8s get more restless each term, and I keep trying to move things along a little faster to hold their interest, or at least to tear them away from their iPhones. Today's demo was just an introduction - here's how to prepare the apples, so go to it. They were, as I mentioned, restless. Until they tried it. Payback time. "This is harder than it looks!" Yes, it is. I've peeled a lot of apples this year. I make it look easy.
Some students, not content with the challenge of the task at hand, decided to further challenge themselves... or rather, a classmate. The Cinnamon Challenge, it's called. I guess he succeeded... although I certainly don't advise trying it. Most of the class was too busy to notice, but I decided that cinnamon is now a controlled substance. When one 8th grade boy tries something on a dare, others are sure to follow.
Regardless, they managed to get their apple crisps into the fridge, ready for baking tomorrow, although clean up didn't go too well. We'll debrief. Whether they like it or not.
Thursday, January 5, 2012
Quinoa Brownies 2.0
I still haven't figured out why there was such a difference in this term's QBs and last terms. Granted, the grade 8s were woefully inattentive during the demo - so much so, that I'm wondering if I should have just cancelled the demo in progress, or the cooking lesson. I think making them struggle on was probably for the greater good.
Because they were so inattentive, all the "improvements" I made to the recipe instructions were for naught. Like good little automatons, they brought up their trays with bowls and measuring cups - even though I'd been VERY CLEAR that I wanted: someone to bring up their saucepan to start the quinoa; someone else to bring up a glass bowl to get the butter melting, another to start on their dry ingredients... face-palm...
Two of the girls spent a great deal of time analyzing the vanilla bottle. One of the ingredients was "alcohol". Back in their unit, they announced that they would be unable to eat the product because of the 1 millilitre of alcohol contaminated vanilla... it didn't (seem to) occur to them, that they could just OMIT it. (Someone, please calculate for me, how much of that 1 ml was alcohol) face-palm again. And a big sigh. Oh well, the boys of the unit were under no such restrictions and were happy to eat the extra portions.
Despite the frustrations, we were on task and on time at the end of the block. It was baking day where the oddities came through. Two groups found their quinoa mixture so thick that they couldn't get it out of the blender (I guess it was undercooked and absorbed the rest of the liquid ingredients overnight?) The brownies took longer to bake today... or they got in the oven later. Either way, it was the end of the block and the finished product was barely "done" enough to be removed. One group stayed late. I didn't even get to check to ensure the product was edible! Oh well, I'll get some feedback tomorrow.
The poor 6/7s. In they trickle, to a room that is saturated with the smell of chocolate. "What are we making?" they ask eagerly. "Nothing." is the teacher's heartless reply. "That was the grade 8s. You're cooking next week."
We're doing quesadillas and smoothies next week (not at the same time, although... that would, almost, work.) I think I'll put "Mudpies" forward as a bonus if-you're-good lesson.
P. S. the alcohol content estimate... artificial vanilla is reportedly no more than 25% alcohol, so that 1 ml of vanilla contains 1/4 or 0.25 ml of alcohol. Divided by the six portions then each student is consuming 0.042 ml. Leaving it OUT would have been a workable solution.
(Hmm... Do I still have some leftover rum balls around here somewhere???)
P.P.S the last of the leftover rum balls were gone. Made mudpies. All of the chocolatey goodness, but none of the zing.
Because they were so inattentive, all the "improvements" I made to the recipe instructions were for naught. Like good little automatons, they brought up their trays with bowls and measuring cups - even though I'd been VERY CLEAR that I wanted: someone to bring up their saucepan to start the quinoa; someone else to bring up a glass bowl to get the butter melting, another to start on their dry ingredients... face-palm...
Two of the girls spent a great deal of time analyzing the vanilla bottle. One of the ingredients was "alcohol". Back in their unit, they announced that they would be unable to eat the product because of the 1 millilitre of alcohol contaminated vanilla... it didn't (seem to) occur to them, that they could just OMIT it. (Someone, please calculate for me, how much of that 1 ml was alcohol) face-palm again. And a big sigh. Oh well, the boys of the unit were under no such restrictions and were happy to eat the extra portions.
Despite the frustrations, we were on task and on time at the end of the block. It was baking day where the oddities came through. Two groups found their quinoa mixture so thick that they couldn't get it out of the blender (I guess it was undercooked and absorbed the rest of the liquid ingredients overnight?) The brownies took longer to bake today... or they got in the oven later. Either way, it was the end of the block and the finished product was barely "done" enough to be removed. One group stayed late. I didn't even get to check to ensure the product was edible! Oh well, I'll get some feedback tomorrow.
The poor 6/7s. In they trickle, to a room that is saturated with the smell of chocolate. "What are we making?" they ask eagerly. "Nothing." is the teacher's heartless reply. "That was the grade 8s. You're cooking next week."
We're doing quesadillas and smoothies next week (not at the same time, although... that would, almost, work.) I think I'll put "Mudpies" forward as a bonus if-you're-good lesson.
Not what they're supposed to look like. I think the guys went overboard on the blender step.
P. S. the alcohol content estimate... artificial vanilla is reportedly no more than 25% alcohol, so that 1 ml of vanilla contains 1/4 or 0.25 ml of alcohol. Divided by the six portions then each student is consuming 0.042 ml. Leaving it OUT would have been a workable solution.
(Hmm... Do I still have some leftover rum balls around here somewhere???)
P.P.S the last of the leftover rum balls were gone. Made mudpies. All of the chocolatey goodness, but none of the zing.
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