Give Students Screens with Substance!

Hello again!

As educators, we all know how relevant and useful ICT tools can be in teaching and learning. In this post I will be highlighting 3 interesting web resources that can be used in helping upper secondary students link their theory to coursework as well as give them good grounds to work on in selecting recipes for their coursework.

1. Pioneer Woman
www.thepioneerwoman.com

This blog is a a definite bookmark! It has a vast selection of tried and tested recipes, that range from asian to western, and starters to desserts. This will serve as an extremely useful tool in selection of dishes for coursework and as a bank for reliable recipes. "Is it supposed to look like this?" I am sure you have asked and heard that question many a time in the kitchen. Well, with a recipe from this website, you will never have to ask again! All recipes come with step by step real life pictures so you can see exactly what you should expect at each stage of the cooking process - my favourite part.

2. Teach Vegetarian
http://www.teachvegetarian.com

Here, we have a website dedicated to the green goodness of vegetarianism. Admittedly, it is no easy feat to impart knowledge about vegetarianism for us meat-eaters. But this website makes things much simpler. It has tabs that cater to the what, why and hows of vegetarianism and it even has a tab on classroom activities that we educators can use. Under this tab there are quizzes and activity suggestions on applicable real life situations. For example, there is an activity on meat burgers versus veggie burgers. This is useful in coursework (vegetarianism as a topic, interesting dish choice, proteins as a topic), and theory (modifying recipes and planning meals). Once again, another reason to love this website is the recipes that it provides.

3. Healthy Kids (Teaching Resources)
http://www.healthykids.nsw.gov.au/teachers-childcare/nutrition-primary-school/primary-nutrition-teaching-resources.aspx

This website does not focus much on actual cookery and practical skills but it is extremely informative and useful as a directory to many available and effective teaching methods and tools for nutrition. It originates from New South Wales and lists a variety of types of activities ranging from interactive whiteboard activities to Teaching and Learning Exchange activities. Though not all may be applicable in our schools, we can certainly adopt and adapt the principles of delivery and the content to suit our lessons in nutrition. They also cite many useful and credible sources which would help our students in the research portion of their coursework. Beyond ICT tools and activity suggestion, they also offer guides on activities to have in class such as Live Outside the Box and Kitchen Garden which could very well be used as a medium of teaching and learning in the classroom.

These 3 websites have inspired me very much in terms of activities and dishes that I would introduce to my students in the future, and I hope they do the same for you!

Happy weekend!
Azmira