Author: K.Graybill

Kim Graybill is a veteran Family and Consumer Science teacher who teaches both middle and high school in Pennsylvania.

Celebrating Mister Rogers: The Man Behind the Neighborhood

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I remember watching Mister Rogers Neighborhood on PBS when I was a child! I had no idea then that I would grow up and become a child development teacher, nor did I fully realize the influence and impact this man had on children’s programming, education and development! The following lesson is a tribute to this man and contains a variety of activities that can be used all together or completed individually depending on your time and classes. Even if you don’t use this lesson, I highly recommend watching the documentary “Won’t You Be My Neighbor?” if you grew up with Mister Rogers like I did!

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Food Labeling Claims

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Do you know the difference between a health claim and a nutrition claim?  Most of my students don’t!  This lesson explores the difference between the two as well as why it is so important to understand what food labeling claims actually mean when reading a food label.  This lesson includes some informative and creative activities, incorporating the information learned so that others might be enlightened.

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Digital Version: Human Reproduction & Anatomy Breakaway

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Always wanted to do a breakout but didn’t have the locks or boxes to do so?  Now, thanks to Sahvanna Mease and Mary Mullikin of Colorado, you can do just that using Google Forms!  How cool is that…less prep, less expense, but just as fun!  Even cooler, the same materials are used as in the original version of Human Reproduction & Anatomy Breakaway!  Thank you for the adaptations, ladies!

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#ShowMeYourOvernightOats

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Oats are a staple most cooks cannot live without!  How many other whole grains pack as much healthful variety into their product?  The thing I love about oats is the fact that they can be customized in so many recipes from breakfast foods, baked goods, healthy snacks, and even used in place of bread crumbs when making things such as salmon patties or meatloaf!  I wanted my students to see, taste and appreciate the goodness that oats have to offer so when I saw a YouTube ad by Quaker Oats promoting an oats contest, I knew how I wanted to incorporate this information into my grain unit.  However, if you don’t teach a unit specifically about grains, no worries as this can easily be incorporated into a breakfast  or healthy snack unit!

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Characteristics of Development: Station Activities

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After teaching about P.I.E.S: The Areas of Development, I move directly into the characteristics of development because they tend to go hand in hand. This concept seems to be a bit more difficult for my students to wrap their brains around, so to help them better understand, I have  interactive stations set up throughout the room that they work through, completing activities that mirror each of the characteristics.  Students must utilize their notes to help discern between the answers. Students enjoy completing the activities and after discussing correct responses and showing the connections, most students have an easier time with the practice scenarios that follow.

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Halloween Wars

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Want a fun, creative and competitive way to incorporate Halloween themes into your foods class?  Check out the project shared by Beth Beattie, a FCS teacher from Missouri who incorporates various parts of Halloween Wars into her Food Science class at Montgomery High School. It started as a way to showcase professions within the program and after viewing Halloween Wars, students decided they wanted to make it a competition!

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Styles for Handling Conflict: Lesson & Activities

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Conflicts exist everywhere: at home, at school and at work!  No exemptions!  However, just as the problems vary so do the ways ways that people may deal with them. Check out the interactive lesson below on how you can teach your students all about the various styles for handling conflict in both their personal and professional lives.

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HANGRY: A Healthy Eating Talking Points Activity

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Have you ever needed a short activity to fill time due to a “surprise” assembly, early dismissal or one class finishing before another?  This activity can be stretched or shortened depending on your needs!  Hangry is a real concept that most of us have experienced at one time or another and because of this, it can be a very relatable topic for students to talk about and make connections to. I’ve included some activities that work well with this topic, so, pick and choose or do them all!  

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Teaching Employability Skills with “The Pursuit of Happyness” Movie

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When I first started teaching about employability skills, my lesson was pretty dull, a real snoozer!  Over the last few years, I’ve reworked the lesson to make it more interesting and engaging for my students.  One of my all time favorite movies, The Pursuit of Happyness, is also incorporated into this lesson because it contains a ton of examples of employability skills in actiont!  Check out the lesson below if you need to spice up your employability skills materials!

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Kids in the Kitchen with Children’s Book Inspired Recipes: A Literary Feast!

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It does my heart good to see young children helping out in the kitchen!  Back in the olden days, children learned to help out in the kitchen and even cook and bake at a fairly early age.  Today’s children, not so much! One thing that I have noticed about my incoming 7th graders is that their culinary skills are severely lacking!  Sadly, many students aren’t allowed in the kitchen to cook or experiment with food preparation, others simply can’t be bothered because “convenience” is easier and has become a way of life. Lastly, many may want to learn, but have no role models in their lives that can or will teach them as their parents and even grandparents just don’t cook!  This lesson combines literacy and food prep as students learn the importance and benefits of why young children should be in the kitchen, helping to prepare foods with their parents. It also shows them how creating fun recipes can be an extension of the very books the children love to read.  So, take literacy and food prep to a whole new level and show students how they can enjoy a literary feast!

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