Teaching Food

Fallen, originally uploaded by nutrigardener.

I’ve just wrapped up another teaching contract with SummerGATE teaching my favorite mix of nutrition, food science and just plain fun cooking classes to some really wonderful groups of middle school-aged students. I’ve had so many return students over the past years that I have had to get really creative with a variety of lessons all looking at the same core subjects. When a friend and I began this project to teach food science and real cooking skills to school-aged students, I had a lot to learn about integrating the science and real skill-building activities with the fun stuff. Now it’s natural and I can really say that the students who participate in the class leave with a lot of excitement about good food, a sense that they can cook even without a recipe and that they understand what’s going on in the process. Good stuff!

Lately I’ve been thinking about what makes these classes a hit. Below is a list of some of my observations over the years.

1. When teaching, allow students to explore their curiosities as much as possible. I try to say YES most of the time.
2. Never make a big deal about students trying/tasting. A little encouragement is OK, but staying neutral on the subject will create a safe place for students to have fun and explore.
3. Always use fresh produce. First impressions mean a lot!
4. Don’t rescue too quickly-even if they’re taking forever to cut up that cucumber! Practice is the only way to learn!
5. Teach the logic of cooking-recipes are great, but if you have not realized that a salad dressing is just a balance of sour, salt and and oil (of course with herbs too), you’ll be stuck if the recipe calls for lemons and all you have is red wine vinegar!
6. Remember that cooking and eating connect to everything. Introduce food to a child with that in mind and you’ll have no problem dealing with whatever reaction you get. You’ll also be giving that child a bit more resilience in life, something we all need as we face the challenges around us!

Funny. All this really applies to adults too. When I’m learning new things, this is exactly what I want a teacher to do-give me space to explore, give me time to learn and try, help me understand the “why” behind things and to present only the best material.