Today (Friday), was potentially our last day at J.A. Laird Elementary school due to a pending full-scale walk-out by teachers next week. The atmosphere in the school was understandably, a bit chaotic – in the morning, teachers were scrambling to finish lessons/assessments, students had high energy levels and were distracted… However, by the afternoon the atmosphere in the school had settled down and a number of classrooms engaged in “Food Friday”, where some classes make food together to eat that afternoon. We were asked to help in a Grade 4 classroom, making fresh pizza!
The night before, the teacher had made some homemade dough (yum!) and students were responsible for bringing different toppings to share with the class. Then groups of 2-3 students would come up and assemble their pizzas! It was great to see students being trusted to safely use sharp knives to chop vegetables, and carry their masterpieces down the hallway to the staff room for cooking.
I think that it is so wonderful that the students are fortunate enough to be able to make food in school (without the restrictions that some schools have), and that they are trusted enough to use the materials themselves without “looming” adults. It was apparent that the students were very proud of their pizzas, making them without much assistance – and thought they were absolutely delicious when it came time to eat!
Having a “Food Friday” or implementing some sort of cooking/baking into the classroom is something I really enjoy doing as an individual and as an educator – and it’s something I think the students enjoy too. Observing/helping with this pizza party, and doing baking in my Kindergarten practicum class has solidified for me that if possible (school permitting), cooking/baking is something that I would want to become part of my practice in my future classroom. I think that its a great way for students to be involved in something that you can integrate/make cross-curricular, and to give students the opportunity to take responsibility for themselves and something that they are creating (as individuals or in a group).