I forget what the teacher's point was.... all I remember is that she had a 2-Liter bottle of Sprite sitting unopened on her desk.
She picked it up and held it in front of us. "Who can tell me some of the properties of Sprite?" she asked.
No one answered.
"Come on, now. What does it taste like?"
I raised my hand: "I think it would be easier to answer this question if we all had a taste of the Sprite."
To my utter surprise, she reluctantly agreed (it may have been all of the excited cheering coming from the rest of the students). And we all had a cup of pop that morning.
I honestly couldn't tell you anything else about seventh grade science. I don't even remember that teacher's name! But I do remember the day we talked about the properties of Sprite.
Taste is a powerful thing, and I hope to incorporate more of it into my lessons! Maybe not quite to this extent (I don't have the leeway to veer too far from our basal reader series), but maybe in smaller doses....
The teacher who had my kids last year read this book to them:
If you ask my kids today what they remember about Kindergarten, they will all start yelling about pumpkin food! I'm thinking of creating a literature unit on the sequel to that book, and incorporating a "tasting" as well!
Do you like to incorporate taste into your lessons? How do you do it?
16 comments:
Awesome idea Sarah. I'd be very interested in some of your ideas.
~JO
I love that idea! I wish it was easier to incorporate and that I had more time to bake! We did a cookie decorating activity with the SC regions on Friday and it went really well, but it was a lot of work and money spent on my part!
That is a great idea! Definitely a great memory technique.
thanks for your suggestion Sarah..will definitely add the poem to my program!
That is such a neat idea. Taste and smell are such memory triggers so I can see how that lesson plan would be really helpful.
I love this book! I found it last year and I feel in love! I'm doing a whole month of Harvest themed activities. I'm obsessed with pumpkins and all things fall... I'll let you know what I end up doing in reguards to taste.
I did a spontaneous (read: not very well thought out, haha) lesson on fractions last year using edible materials. We broke up licorice, counted edame beans, broke apart flat laces like candy... basically just ate our way through a lesson on fractions. My kids LOVED it. Not sure if they learned that much but hey, they all remember doing it!
You know, sometimes I think elementary teachers have all the fun. You guys do the coolest things. In my 7th grade class we have an "auction" where the kids use fake money they've earned to buy treats. That's the closest to tasting that we get! (How to apply taste to a computer class? Hmmmm...can't think of anything...)
What a great idea! Go for it... I'll be very interested in the result... come visit when you can...
wow. what an awesome concept! This is great cause it could be applied to parenting and teaching your children, as well as teaching within a classroom! Thanks for sharing!!
Chicken Soup With Rice
by Maurice Sendak.
is a favorite in our house. We always have to make some after we read it. We bought the CD where Carole King sings the poems and we dance around the kitchen.
When we look at misleading product labels, I bring in Gatorade "Fruit Punch," Juicy Juice 100% fruit punch, and the Hi-C equivalent which is called something natural-sounding such as "Froot Punch." We look at how misleading the names and pictures are on the labels, and explore the nutritional value. Then, we have the 100% juice for snack. (And then later I chug the Gatorade at home, because I love that stuff! Zero fruit and all!)
It's true. Food is powerful. We are starting a Medieval/Middle Ages unit tomorrow and I was thinking about having a feast at the end or a peasant dinner. This clinched it. We're going to do it. Thanks!
Sunday I illustrates with bread, milk and honey. I'm sure you can guess what I was teaching about! Love you, Mom
I teach first grade, and we have been studying apples lately. We had a taste test last week of each color of apple (red, green, yellow), then the kids got to pick a favorite and we graphed the results... they loved it! We are still doing apple stuff, and I think this week we might make applesauce together... I agree, they do enjoy the tasting activities!
There is a no food brought into the classroom (besides lunch and their own snack) rule at our school. I hate it. No cupcakes for birthdays or treats for school parties. I think taste is a wonderful way to teach.
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