Poplar Tree ES Teacher Connects With Students Via Weekly Cooking Show, Fairfax

Press release from Fairfax County Public Schools:

January 05, 2021

Finding ways to make personal connections with students in a virtual learning environment can require some creative thinking. Sixth grade teacher Kaylin Daniels at Poplar Tree Elementary invites her students into her kitchen each week for a cooking show she calls “Dining with Daniels.” Every Wednesday, Daniels chooses a recipe submitted by her students to make during their scheduled lunch hour. “I encourage them to submit family recipes that are special to them,” she says. Recipes range from simple banana muffins and chocolate chip cookies to vegan lemon bars (submitted by a student with food allergies), and international dishes like carrot halwa--an Indian pudding—and tanghulu, Chinese candied fruit. “I was thinking of ways to help promote diversity and acceptance in the classroom,” she says. “Our population at Poplar Tree is very diverse and I wanted a way to celebrate our differences.” The weekly lunch bunch is very popular among her students, with 15-20 in attendance each week, and Daniels loves the opportunity to engage with them in a more casual setting. “They make fun of me a lot. I make a lot of substitutions based on what I have in my kitchen that week. I take a lot of shortcuts due to time and I make a mess! It is a fun way to connect with one another outside of schoolwork. They get to see me as a real human.” Of course, there’s always learning to be had, especially in the kitchen. “I also include some fun facts based on ingredients or the food we are making. I always have some challenge questions relating to math: for example, doubling or halving a recipe or asking how many ingredients I would need if I needed to make 3/4 of this recipe.” For Daniels and her six-graders, the cooking show has brought them closer as a classroom community. “In the beginning of the week, they always ask what I’m making and then at the end of the week we laugh about things that happened—it’s a great way to connect during lessons and have fun while still learning.” Contact Stefanie Riddile at sjriddile@fcps.edu.

This press release was produced by the Fairfax County Public Schools.The views expressed here are the author’s own.