Learning to incorporate useful skills to help our highly transitional students engage in the educational process is a daunting task but one that we all have tried on many occasions. One of the ways we have learned to connect is through everyday life task that are transferable to where ever they may end up next.
A great way to capture this difficult group of students attention is by using an item they have seen a million times food, in this case specifically biscuits. In order to make biscuits you have to use principles from both math and science. That is why today my fellow colleagues, I have chosen to show you my quick multi-subject lesson on making biscuits. I build up to this lesson with a serious of lessons in other subjects. For example, with math class we start out with measurements and conversions. How many teaspoons in a tablespoons? How many ounces in a pound? They are all a featured part of our lessons. Spelling we use new vocabulary that includes ingredient words and terms that are used in the kitchen.
The science portion of this comes through the process from the creation of the dough and the chemical reaction between yeast, baking soda and baking powder to the effect that heat and time have on the dough. Working with students using known materials creates a sense of purposeful learning that can not be matched by anything I have found in recent years.
Okay everyone look in front of you, grab your ingredients and let's create biscuits.
The ingredients are:
1 package of dry yeast
2 tablespoons warm water
5 cups all purpose flour
1/3 cup sugar
1 tablespoon baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
1 cup Crisco Shortening
2 cups buttermilk
1. Dissolve yeast in warm water. (Students will notice the changing in the water and the thickening and clouding)
2. Combine flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda and salt in a large bowl. Combine using two knives until all the flour is blended in to form pea size chunks. Stir in yeast mixture and buttermilk. Place in large bowl. Cover with plastic wrap. Refrigerate overnight. Just for this demonstration I have some ready that has set over night. During this part of the demonstration you can tell the students that tomorrow the dough will look different and you can start to explain the process that the yeast is budding and that it is creating lots of yeast buds all of which are rising because of carbon dioxide gas that takes up more room than the flour molecules which were dissolved by the yeast.
3. Heat oven to 400F. While you are doing this you can explain what will happen when you put the dough in the hot oven. That the yeast will continue to make biscuits rise.
4. Pat or roll the dough to 1/2 inch thickness on a well floured surface. In the classroom you can use the kitchen counters like we are using here today. Cut with floured 1 3/4 to 2 inch biscuit cutter. Place on ungreased baking sheet.
5. Bake at 400 F for 10 to 12 minutes or until lightly browned. Explain the starch makes the biscuits brown.
This is a great activity to show students how tasty reaching your goal can be, so co-workers enjoy your biscuits.
