Category: Uncategorized

Garnishing: Student Led Demonstration

Garnishing is defined as embellishing something. In this project, it pertains to food!  In this project: Garnishing: Student Led Demonstration, students compile
the information on garnishing a specific food in a presentation and teach and/or demo the technique that can be used with the class!  This project can then be shared with students via Google Classroom, keeping entire presentations together. Since students orally share, they can be graded as presented, making life easier at the end of the day!

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FCS HOT Topics: Good Idea or Bad Idea

One way to get students talking is to throw out a contentious topic because there are bound to be differing views!  I’ve taken some topics that I feel fit this category
for both food and child development/parenting classes. FCS HOT Topics: Good Idea or Bad Idea has students looking at each topic and researching in more detail the good and bad components of it before sharing with the class. Not only is this an engaging assignment because it includes collaboration, communication and critical thinking, but it could be done weekly or quarterly and is tied to a writing assessment for those of you who need to include writing as part of your curriculum. The lists below obviously do not include every topic, but if you have a great topic that you believe should be included, please let me know by adding it to the comments.

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Healthy Heart Visual

If you teach about healthy relationships and are need of an engaging assignment, check out this Healthy Heart Visual.  In this project, students get a tech break
as they create a hands-on visual representing characteristics needed for a healthy relationship. This semi-old fashioned project has them critically thinking about the meaning behind their selections as they construct and explain their visuals.

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43 Minute Lab Series: Individual Fruit Pizzas

After noticing continuous requests for lab suggestions that are doable in 43 minute class periods, I’ve decided to do a recurring series, featuring recipes that can be completed from beginning to end in a 43 minute time frame. In some cases, longer recipes will broken into two day labs. In addition, I will include my pre-lab review questions that pertain specifically to the recipe. This helps to ensure that students are reading the recipe. It also allows me time to show any videos that may demonstrate the product or specific techniques. So, without further ado, I present the 43 Minute Lab Series: Individual Fruit Pizzas!

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Home, House & Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs

I’ve heard many say “come to my home”, while others say “come to my house”. While similar, the two terms are different in meaning as well as how each meet our
needs.  Home, House & Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs addresses all of these as it explores the similarities and differences between the two along with Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs. This lesson provides an overview while engaging students in a variety of ways. So, if you teach about factors that influence our home and house selections, this may be a new way to go about it!

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Children’s Book Character K-Cups

Last fall, I saw a lot of cute children’s book character pumpkin projects surface all over social media!  While the pumpkin characters are/were super cute, I feel like the project limited itself to only the fall season.  With that being said, I wanted to come up with a similar project, but one that could be done ANY time of the year and with minimal cost as empty K-Cups are used as the base of the character!  AKA~ Book Character K-Ups!  How’s that for sustainability and upcycling!

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Cultural Diversity Assignment

Katelyn Propper, of Indiana, is teaching a new course this year titled, Understanding Diversity. Like many new courses, she is building the curriculum one lesson
at a time. The Cultural Diversity Assignment is one she created this summer for use in this new class to expose her students to a variety of cultures. Continue reading to learn more.

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Plant-Based Rummy Card Game

In my opinion, two heads are always better than one!  When Arlene DeJoy-Meckes of Twins & Teaching reached out about collaborating on an activity for plant
based diets, I was excited to collaborate! The Plant-Based Rummy Card Game is a free resource reinforcement activity and assessment that can be used when teaching about plant-based diets. Read on to see what we developed!

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Clothing Influences

Think about your closet full of clothing…what prompted you to buy all of these items?  Our clothing decisions are often influences by a variety of things.  This lesson on Clothing Influences is a great way to explore what guides our choices when it comes to clothing. Use this as an intro lesson to your clothing or fashion course or unit or as a stand alone overview lesson in a comprehensive FACS class or middle school program when you need to explore various FACS content areas in a short period of time. Be sure to check out all of the engaging ideas as you continue to read this post!

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Food Culture Fridays

Looking to add some culture into your school or program?  I see a lot of teachers requesting ideas on this very topic all over social media. Food Culture Fridays is a way to not only add some culture by way of different foods to your school and student body, but it’s a great way to connect your students to the cafeteria staff,  who often go unnoticed. Read on to learn more about how you can expose your students to some delicious and diverse foods every month!

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