Geobar World Cookbook
In this project the class creates a cookbook full of recipes which use Fairtrade ingredients from around the world.
Curriculum Links
This lesson plan links to Curriculum aims and programmes of study in English, Maths and Science and DT. It can also be used to develop Computing and Art & Design skills and will meet the objectives of non-statutory programmes of study in PSHE.
Resources Needed
Different recipe books, a wall chart, access to internet, Geobars.
Learning Objective
To understand the features of an instruction text (a recipe)
Learning Outcome
Children will understand the format and language used in recipes and create a class "Geobar World Cook Book."
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Using the images or real Geobars as prompts, ask the class to guess what the fairtrade ingredients are in Traidcraft’s Geobar range.
(Traidcraft currently make four different types of Geobar: Crunchy Granola; Mixed Berries; Chocolate, and Apricot. The Fairtrade ingredients are raisins, rice, nuts, sugar, honey, blueberries, cocoa, apricots).
Who are Traidcraft? What do they do and why is it important? What does the Fairtrade Mark mean?
Discuss the different ways that we use these Fairtrade ingredients in this country and in meals from other cultures and countries and start to make a list of recipes/meals which use these ingredients.
Using The Fair Trade Cookbook website look for recipes which (a) include the Geobar ingredients and (b) originate from the producer countries: India, Thailand, Chile, South Africa, Malawi, Mauritius.
In groups pupils explore the structure of the recipes, the type of language used and the layout of a variety of recipes books. Challenge pupils to create a class recipe book using the Geobar Fairtrade ingredients and examples of different recipes from the producer countries which can be sold to parents, carers and other children. They will need to draw images of their finished dish and include pictures of producers, producer stories and quotes to illustrate the difference fair trade makes. They may also like to include an introductory page, explaining Fair Trade.
Groups should research food groups and what is needed for a balanced diet. Where possible, recipes chosen for the book should reflect healthy choices.
Pupils could label recipes with the percentage of the recommended daily allowance of key nutritional components it represents (Carbohydrates, sugar, salt etc.)
A key Fairtrade ingredient is sugar so it is likely that some sweet snacks will feature in the book but these could be labelled as 'treats'. Pupils could calculate the sugar content in different portion sizes and compare it with the recommended daily allowance. They could suggest portion sizes based on their findings.
Some groups may want to mark healthier recipes as "good for you" and the book could include a 'nutrition' or 'eating healthily' page where they summarise their findings.
Each pupil can contribute one page and the pages can be photocopied and bound. As a class, pupils decide on a suitable price to sell the book for, and decide what to do with the profits. They need to keep track of sales figures on a colourful wall chart.
Alternatively, the pupils may want to try and make some of the recipes and sell them at a "Fairtrade Day" to make money for a Fairtrade charity. Small groups could visit the supermarket and see whether they could buy these ingredients as Fairtrade at the supermarket. Are the Fairtrade ingredients the same price as non-Fairtrade? If there is a difference, why do they think this is? Where else might you be able to find Fairtrade ingredients?
There could also be a class competition to design the front cover of the cookbook and the children could even write or perform advertisements for the cookbook, film them and show them in a school assembly.