As we continue to work through our project, we are continually identifying new struggles and changes; however developing effective solutions is coming easier over time as we become more comfortable and cohesive as a group.
Weekly Objectives
Week 7
Objectives:
-Provide bulk cooking tips for the recipes used at the BCC
-Identify tips that utilize less equipment, and fewer ingredients and steps for ease of preparation
Strategies:
-Review past recipes to analyze steps and seek areas that could be expanded on
-Equally divide the existing 20 recipes amongst the 5 of us
-Individually research 1-2 online sources that discuss relevant bulk cooking tips applicable to the recipes provided
-As a group, select the most appropriate tips for the BCC
How we achieved them:
- We began researching sources for bulk cooking tips
- We compiled a list of tips from online sources and included personal tips
- Reviewed the bulk cooking tips as a group to come to a consensus on which would be the most applicable to the BCC’s recipes
Week 8
Objectives:
-Increase student involvement in the breakfast program for both the preparation and presentation of BCC recipes.
Strategies:
-Analyze 20 BCC recipes to determine which steps should be focused on
-Refer to 1-2 literature resources each with recipes tailored to children of varying ages focusing on the practicality, safety, and ease of preparation for the younger population
– Focus on the age groups 5-7, 7-9, 9-11 to incorporate age appropriate activities aligning with the “functioning” of the program, from set up to cleanup
-Use an excel spreadsheet to tally which recommended tips are currently used or could be incorporated into existing BCC recipes.
How we achieved them:
- After reviewing past recipes, we started researching literature sources for child involvement in cooking
- We quickly learned that literature in this area (specifically age groups) is very limited
- Since we are tackling a number of tasks already and because this objective was not a high priority, we collectively decided to email Robin to notify him that we would not be completing this objective
Week 9
Objectives:
-Modify existing recipes and generate new ones – include smoothie recipes
-Develop recipes that can be prepared in large quantities, are not repetitive, and are more creative
Strategies:
-Review 20 existing recipes and modify them to comply with BCC standards: healthy, appealing, and practical with accessible and affordable ingredients
-Remove or adjust recipes and ingredients accordingly and make substitutions that have similar nutritional value
-Research online resources that suggest appropriate recipes for children
-Incorporate modified and/or new recipes into tables with recipe names, ingredients, equipment, preparation steps and tips.
How we achieved them:
- We equally divided the 8 weeks worth of recipes (sit down and grab and go) among all group member to look over and make improvements if necessary
- On a google doc, each member researched more creative breakfast recipes and smoothie recipes to add and replace to the existing menu
Week 10
Objectives:
-Extend the 11 essential food items list to 15 items with items commonly used in BCC recipes
Strategies:
-After modifying and developing new recipes, we will include the additional necessary items in a complete list by comparing each recipe and required ingredients
How we achieved them:
- After completing the new recipe list, we compiled additional essential ingredients that we thought would be beneficial to be included with the existing ingredients
- We also added descriptions that explained the reasoning behind the addition of new essential food item
Week 11
Objectives:
-Create a list of top 5 brand suggestions based on nutritional value and price for 3 (yogurts, cereals, and whole wheat or multigrain breads) of the 15 essential food items
-Develop a list of the top 5 products with cost analysis included
Strategies:
-Visit 3 different grocery stores commonly visited by schools affiliated with the BCC – Safeway, Superstore, and Costco
-Explore available common and commercialized brands for the three food categories and collect data for price and nutritional content/tables
-Create a list of the top five products based on their nutritional value by comparing content of fibre, fat, sugar, and protein between brands
-Determine recommended products from the Health Canada website and valid nutrition web sources, which will be used in comparison with our findings
Week 12
Objectives:
-Create a functional, and engaging document that comprises all of the necessary information addressing our aim and objectives
Strategies:
-Gather all tables with collected data
-Ask Robin for guidance as to how the document should be presented
Reflection on Moment of Significant Change
Figure 1. Our group’s moments of significant changes, and our reactions. Above the middle line represents satisfaction, and below the line represents increased stress. Labels outlined in yellow indicate moments of significant change.
Our group identified four events where there were changes in tempo or direction of our project (outlined in yellow in Figure 1), however there was one Moment of Significant Change that stood out above others: when we met our community partner, Robin, and discussed his expectations for us carrying forward. Before this point, our group had only a vague idea of the work we would be doing with the Breakfast Club of Canada, and we were feeling uncertain of where to begin.
It was a pleasure to meet with Robin at Lord Strathcona Elementary School to observe a breakfast program in action, to understand how it functions, and to discuss with Robin ways in which it could be improved. Robin brought us into one of the most established breakfast programs in the area so we could see and experience an ideal system. He discussed what he had in mind for us moving forward, while we brought forth some of our ideas we thought might help strengthen the current system. After this meeting, we continued to communicate with Robin via email to solidify our aims and objectives with his plans and expectations. This initial collaboration and continued communication was very exciting for our group, and our project began to take form shortly after. This moment of significant change allowed us to truly begin our work with the BCC by providing us with a defined guideway into our objectives.
Strategies for Successful Project Completion
As we began to work on the bulk of our project, we were able to identify ways in which our group worked best as a team, one of which was using Google Docs as a convenient platform where all group members can contribute to each objective draft without having to meet in person regularly. This has been very practical as it can be challenging to arrange meetings for five individuals with different schedules. The Google Docs has helped us to stay on task, complete each assignment, and assisted us tremendously in tackling each objective. Moving forward, we will continue to use this platform to compile our work while also communicating within our group and updating Robin on our progress.
We place great importance in maintaining clear and consistent communication with our community partner to ensure that we are completing objectives that will indeed be useful for the BBC organization and to prevent unwanted surprises due to miscommunication. Therefore, we emailed Robin the link to our Google Docs file where he is able to track our progress at his convenience. This way, he is able to monitor our team’s progress and offer feedback when necessary.
Our objective to “increase student involvement in the breakfast program for both the preparation and presentation of BCC recipes” has been removed from our project due to time constraint, lack of literary resources, and its lower priority and importance compared to other objectives (we have contacted Robin to inform him of our decision and we are currently waiting on his response). By excluding this task, our group will be able to put more focus and effort into the objectives which are more useful to the BCC and to the volunteers that run the breakfast programs.
Figure 2. (From left to right) Alex, Lan, Cherub, Marianne, and Emily, proud to show their moments of significant changes.
