I’ve gotten a LOT of questions about how to cook with little to no supplies in the classroom so I’ve decided to do a round up of info to give you everything you need to start cooking with your kids and giving them some amazing skills.
Cooking in the Classroom targets:
+ Life Skills
+ Communication
+ Fine Motor
+ Social Skills
+ Inclusion
+ so much more…
Just like I talked about with field trips… same goes here. Sometimes when you start at a new school… the standard for your classroom before you was different. It is your job to give your students the things they need, flip the perception of the classroom to the school, admin, and community, and start integrating things that will make parents happy too!
First, be up front with administration. Let them know that you understand costs, allergies, permissions, and tools are all barriers. But that you have brainstormed ways to make it work.
Ask for a formal meeting where you can present your plan. The more professional you are, the more serious they will take you.
Make sure to have the following logistics figured out:
+ where you will get tools
+ how you will present to parents (think forms and slip)
+ how these lessons connect to standards and learning
+ who will help make it all happen
+ when and how often
+ and any itemized requests for funding!
(( You can grab my free classroom forms here to help get you started))
YES, cooking does involve lots of supplies. I get A LOT of my cooking supplies from parents, donations, AND my favorite is asking teachers who are getting married (and have old kitchen stuff!) You do NOT have to buy this stuff out of pocket! You can ask parents to send in a couple dry ingredients in the beginning of the year!
Here is my basic supply list:
((This list contains affiliate links))
^This is a great list of supplies I love from amazon because of durability, easy to hold, easy to manipulate, and fun colors! You could find better prices by shopping around at dollar stores and other sales, but make sure you keep these things in mind too!
Dry Ingredients List:
+ Common spices (apple pie spice, nutmeg, cinnamon, garlic)
+ Flour
+ Sugar
+ Powdered sugar
+ Cereals (especially chex mix and cheerios)
+ Baking spray
+ Oil
+ Chocolate Chips
+ FOOD COLORING (never enough!!!!)
Speaking of donations, here are some ways to get them (at no cost to you!)
+ Donor’s Choose
+ Amazon wish list emailed to family
+ Asking for donations on facebook
+ Facebook yard sale (tell them what you are using it for and they will usually donate for free!)
+ Hang signs of supplies you need in the teachers room or email the school staff
+ Ask parents for anything they may have that could be useful
Of course, there will be some supplies you need week to week that you may have to purchase out of pocket (butter, milk… etc). These are write offs for taxes, but most schools do allow you to be reimbursed. Ask your school secretary for the paperwork. Most schools often have a sped budget… they may be willing to give you 10 dollars a week (or as needed) for your supplies.
My absolute FAVORITE part of cooking is sharing what we made! After we try our snack… we prep for others to try it too! My school is food free for students, so we share with staff.
We cut our snack into pieces and put on napkins on a tray. They we walk around the school and deliver to whoever we pass. The staff knows to ask us the ingredients and how we made it (even if they know!) We use the same language each week and I just love when I hear them start to ask ” Excuse me, would you like to try……” It makes my heart so full!
So you are probably thinking: I don’t have time to come up with visuals for every recipe every week! I have some great visual recipes in my store that can be used with all ages. Each recipe includes an ingredients page, recipe page, tools page, and a review page. I just love watching them with their little cookbooks. I send the recipe home, and hope they make it at home with their families too!
“Ive seen your cooking units- but how do I choose the best set for my class?”
Here’s how!—–>
Just click the picture to get the link:
So if you haven’t been brainstorming already while reading this post—- it’s time to get to it!
We have been using the Cooking Through The Year cookbook since the middle of last school year. My students love to cook we try to do it every Friday. My administration is fully on board as well as my parents I often get asked in the middle of the week what we are cooking by the adults in our school and have had them ask for seconds. I have to say the most popular recipe had to be the Pumpkin Pie Dip. We not only made it for the school staff but had a request to make it for the district special education office Thanksgiving lunch. Everyone loved it.