Digital Recipe Book of Third Grade Secondary

May 31st 2020

Cecilia Baridón, Estefanía Gómez, Carolina Sanjurjo, Valeria Machines, María Noel Hernández and Romina Morrone are the English teachers of 3rd grade in Secondary School (Ciclo Básico). During the Coronavirus lockdown they have implemented distance learning strategies that combine digital resources, video calling classes and non-presential activities. 

The fifth chapter of the 3rd grade programme introduces the topic of how people eat all over the world, the cultural differences related to cooking and diets, the personal needs depending on the age and activity, and how climate influences diets. In order to address the issue, the teachers asked the students to think of a recipe they could prepare at home and record themselves while cooking and explaining the procedure. The principal aim was to use English, the foreign language, with a specific and real purpose. 

The students had to use the passive voice, quantifiers, and cooking vocabulary, among other topics. And they also had to share the videos on the Moodle campus in a collaborative Recipe Book. The teachers are very happy with the results, the creativity, and the enthusiasm shown by the students. The Recipe Book is plenty of flavours and techniques, with different kinds of meals for breakfast, lunch and dinner. Most of the recipes were taken from the Manual de Cocina, Crandon’s classical book! The Manual is also shown on the videos as part of the scenario. The students also use Crandon’s kitchen aprons, and all the features they have learned at Home Economics classes: The hygienic conditions, the mise en place (the preparation of equipment and ingredients before cooking), the step by step procedure, and how to serve the meal. 

With this activity, students worked most of the time away from screens ―a specific requirement they had made―  and used their hands to create something. As they mentioned during the feedback classes, they enjoyed cooking for themselves and their families very much, and they also learned a lot.