Looking for something unique to do with your students as the school year winds down…or anytime, for that matter? Ice Cream is a fun topic that most students
enjoy, especially on a hot day! Ice Cream: STEAM Activities gives you a variety of options to explore with your students that will keep them engaged and enjoying a sweet treat!
Not only is May designated as Mental Health Awareness month, but for many schools it’s also the end of the school year! As the year winds down, students get
antsy and yearn to be outdoors as the weather gets nice. Why not combine the two by getting students outside to create sidewalk art that celebrates mental health awareness? Continue reading Mental Health Awareness: Chalk the Walks to learn more!
In my younger years, the first section of the newspaper I would go for was the comics…especially the Sunday paper as they were in color! Even now, when I get the
chance to read an actual newspaper, I enjoy reading the comics (although it’s not the first section I go to). Why did I like them so much? Well, they were fun, humorous, interesting, thought provoking and left me curious with anticipation to see what the next strip would divulge if there was an ongoing storyline. As a teacher, I have used Comics in the FACS Classroom on numerous occasions, in many ways, to excite, engage and assess my students. Read on to learn how.
To help reinforce the information and content you are teaching about, have students help create fun, interactive games with Truth & Fib Activities that are student created reviews. OR teacher created review Truth & Fib Activities as a way to connect students to the materials you want them to work with interactively.
I love teaching students how to make desserts that look elegant, but sound difficult! After learning about The History & Science of Cream Puffs, they are always surprised to learn how simple they are to actually make. Read on to learn how to incorporate this into your pastry or dessert unit.
When creating lesson plans and activities, one of my goals is to try to incorporate as much movement and hands-on engagement as possible. Not only do students
enjoy it, but it seems to pique their interest and gives them a little break from the screens. I love how Shannon Stevens, a FACS teacher from Ohio, does just that in her Interactive Bulletin Boards for Child Development project! Additionally, Shannon wanted to encourage the use of “soft skills” with her students and this project requires student teams to collaborate and communicate with each other as they create and finally provide feedback to other teams after class presentations. While this lesson focuses on child development, the interactive bulletin board concept can be applied in any content area. Read on to learn more…
In the past, I’ve shared some of the EduProtocol teaching strategies and templates such as the Iron Chef Non-Cooking Challenges, Thin Slides and the Amazing
Race that were well received by students. Today, I want to share how I used the # Mania Infographic strategy with you. The Fiber-Full Food Choices: # Mania Infographic was created for use in my nutrition unit. This strategy incorporates technology and has students very engaged as there’s a lot going on simultaneously within small groups of students to create one infographic about fiber filled foods.
Television is so different today compared to when I was young! Back in the day, we had one tv that got three major network channels and one PBS station for free. Cable was available in certain areas (not rural) at a cost. Television services have come a long way! Now, there are so many options to choose from and being able to sort it all out requires some level of comparison and analysis. This On Your Own: Investigating Streaming Services project requires students to do just that given specific budget parameters. This real world activity shows what many of them take for granted because their parents are paying the bill and they have no idea what’s involved!
Several years ago I learned about the teaching strategy called Hexagonal Thinking. There are many variations on how to utilize the concept in class, but the one I want to focus on is the Hexagonal Keyword Links for FACS Content. This is a great brainstorm, review or assessment activity to use with your students to see how they apply the information related to topics you are covering. Read on to see how Hexagonal Keyword Links works and all of the ready to use examples. As always, if you have ideas for others, please let me know.
What’s not to like about rice? It’s got a lot going for it such as versatility, affordability, nutrition and let’s not forget easy preparation! With this Exploring Rice lesson, students learn more about this unique grain including history, varieties available, nutritional contributions as well as proper cooking techniques before heading to the lab.
