The time has finally come to wrap up my Meal Prep Journey. Over the past two months I have made, frozen and reheated five different recipes that I had never tried before. These recipes were all evaluated for how easy they were to prepare, how long they took to prepare, how tasty they were (including whether it received toddler approval), and how much it cost per serving. In addition, I froze a portion of each and evaluated how tasty each recipe was after being reheated.
Overall, this was quite a fun challenge and a tasty one too! I can see myself making all of these recipes again and this project has been inspiring and really shown me the benefits of prepping larger quantities that can be stored for rainy days. Without further ado, here is the final scoring for each dish progressing from lowest total score to highest:
Recipe
Final Score
Notes
Turkey, Tomato & Butternut Squash Cannelloni
67%
Most difficult & most expensive
Mexican Lasagna
78%
Least affected by freezing
Folded Crispy Buffalo Chicken Wraps
83%
Most affected by freezing
White Chicken Chili
89%
Tastiest
Hearty Corn & Potato Soup
97%
Least Expensive
Meal Prep Recipe Final Scores
If you would like to see more detail for my evaluation of each recipe, you can see the final, fully completed tables for each dish, which now include taste results from freezing, here (with links to the corresponding post if you would like to try out the recipe yourself!):
Inquiry by Maia Kerr, Brendan Bellavance, Tessa Waterman, and Emily Brothman
Intro to Kahoot!
Kahoot! is a game-based learning platform with both ready-to-play games and tools to create unique custom quiz games. Ranging in cost from a free basic program to $14.99 per month for Kahoot!+ Max for teachers, Kahoot! can be accessible for any budget. Quiz creators can start with a pre-designed template or duplicate, combine and/or edit existing Kahoots. Visually the games are customizable and can incorporate YouTube videos. When playing, the teacher can host live in class or virtually via video conferencing, displaying both questions and answers on students’ devices. Students can play individually or in teams and the timing can be adjusted depending on the question’s complexity. This type of quiz can be used for assessment, to check student understanding and get feedback or to review previously covered material. Once completed, the teacher can download basic reports into a spreadsheet and create visual reports on class progress. The platform encourages sharing of Kahoots among users and games can be organized into folders by topic, etc.
Image from Hyett Education
Pros of Kahoot!
As an interactive game, Kahoot! is fun and can encourage student participation, while allowing teachers to confirm their students’ level of comprehension of material already covered. Kahoot! also provides immediate feedback after each question, showing the class the correct answer and giving students a chance to learn from their mistakes, while giving the teacher real-time information on student understanding. The quizzes are highly customizable and can be adapted for students of all ages and abilities. The gamification can get students excited in reviewing material that they have already learned, helping to cement it in their minds. Since the game’s leaderboard only shows the top three players, it allows students to be competitive in an environment that doesn’t show who is doing poorly (win-win!). Additionally, the teacher is able to review which questions the class struggled with and knew easily after the Kahoot!, allowing them to know which subject topics need to be reviewed in class further.
Cons of Kahoot!
While Kahoot! can be engaging, it can also be a distraction if not used properly (e.g. students may focus more on the game aspect than on the content being taught). Since Kahoot! emphasizes answering questions the fastest, it can teach students that speed is more important than fully comprehending the questions or course material. Moreover, even for students who understand the material, they may not have the reaction time to answer quickly enough. The time limit on answering also restricts the types of questions that teachers can ask since questions that take time to calculate or involve deeper critical thinking skills do not fit within the Kahoot! model. Finally, Kahoot! requires a reliable internet connection and may not work properly in areas with poor connectivity. Glitches during class can interrupt student’s answering, changing their overall scores, and leading to frustration and disrupt the learning process. Students who do not have reliable internet access at home may also be at a disadvantage if Kahoot! is used remotely.
Overall, Kahoot! should not be used as a substitute for traditional teaching methods, but if balanced with other assessment methods, it can be a fun way to reinforce learning in the classroom.
Positive reviews praise how easy the platform is to use and that it is an excellent tool for remote teaching. Teachers have found that Kahoot! is great for student engagement and that it can get kids excited about different subjects that they might otherwise note be excited about otherwise. Reviewers also noted that the real-time data for teachers is extremely beneficial.
Negative reviews mostly focus on the limitations of the free basic Kahoot! platform. Apparently it is difficult to find premade games that are compatible with the free version and when technical issues are encountered, customer service is inadequate to non-existent. Because the focus is on speed, some have found that students guess answers in an aim to be the fastest. Finally, many reviewers reported connectivity issues that affected response times and overall scores and noted that students must have a phone with data or access to a tablet in order to participate.
Kahoot! as the SAMR Model
Substitution
Kahoot! can directly replace typical classroom evaluation methods like quizzes.
Augmentation
Kahoot! can allow you to insert videos and pictures into the quiz with ease and compare students’ success when these feature are added.
Modification
Kahoot! allows you to access pre-designed quizzes made by colleagues.
Redefinition
Kahoot! can allow you to get real-time results for students being quizzed in the classroom or at home.
Kahoot! as the SECTIONS Model
Students
High levels of engagement, students enjoy this visual and unique type of quiz.
Ease of Use
Functionally easy to use, so much so that it reduces frustration levels and stress around formative assessment.Creating the quizzes may be time consuming, but unlikely to take any longer than normal quiz creation.
Costs
Teacher level account is $5.99 to $14.99/month depending on subscription level, however the free platform could meet the needs of many classrooms.
Teaching Functions
Because students are engaged, formative assessment for content knowledge can easily be performed.
Interaction
Energetic and lively, Kahoot! is proven to reduce boredom.
Organizational Issues
Requires a strong WiFi network that can support many devices.Requires the availability of technological devices across all students.
Networking
Kahoot! encourages teachers to collaborate and share their quizzes.
Security & Privacy
Kahoot! uses end-to-end standard encryption and encryption at rest.Students can use psedonyms for an additional layer of privacy in platform.
How would we recommend using Kahoot?
Based on our inquiry research and knowledge of the BC Curriculum, we can see a couple situations where Kahoot! would be quite useful in the classroom. Since BC’s curricular competencies focus heavily on being able to apply and use content knowledge to solve problems and think critically, Kahoot’s testing of basic knowledge does not make sense as an end of unit summative assessment. Where Kahoot! would be much more useful is as a tool for students and teachers to check their understanding, such as a few simple questions in lieu of an exit slip at the end of a lesson or as a review quiz leading up to a final project or test. This way, both the teacher and student can know if enough content knowledge has been gained to successfully showcase critical and higher level thinking.
An example of this in action would be in a 5E unit for middle school science, the teacher could run a Kahoot! at the end of the Explanation lesson to confirm whether students actually understood and retained what was explained. This would inform the teacher whether or not the students have enough knowledge to be successful in the elaboration phase where they would then apply that knowledge to create something of their own!
In conclusion, if prepared by a teacher, Kahoot! quizzes are at most an augmentative technology, but if students are tasked with creating the Kahoots to demonstrate their learning, this tool can be used to redefine learning in the virtual or physical classroom.
According to the Spanish saying, “Quien come con cordura, por su salud procura” which translates as “Who eats with sanity, provides for his health”, we are what we eat. Now that I have made and enjoyed a few servings of Mexican Lasagna, I have to say that I really enjoyed this recipe! I found this fun recipe on Simply Recipes and other than substituting fresh Anaheim peppers for canned, I followed it exactly. I even had a last minute run to the grocery store when I discovered that I was running out of chili powder! I chose to double the recipe and as a result my proportions were gargantuan. This didn’t seem to effect the end result, but it definitely added to my overall time. For this recipe, since it was a layered dish that went in a casserole dish, I decided to try making a timelapse of the assembly which went pretty well and can be found below!
Ingredients for the Mexican Lasagna – Photo by Maia KerrDoubling the recipe resulted in very large portions (note how tiny the 12 inch cast iron pan looks) – Photo by Maia Kerr
Video by Maia KerrThe completed Mexican Lasagna – Photo by Maia Kerr
As you will see in the table below, this dish rated fairly well overall, but lost some points for taking over two hours from start to finish. I really enjoyed the taste, finding it to be another mexican-inspired comfort food that is something I will absolutely be making again. The combination of refried beans, tomato and pepper sauce, and spiced ground beef with the corn tortillas were all very familiar tastes and it was basically a soft taco casserole. My son was a bit picky with this dish the first two nights, but on the third night he was stealing it off of my plate so I gave his score as in the middle range. My husband also really enjoyed this, but commented that he wanted it to have more heat (it is not spicy, just flavourful) and so in the future I would increase the cayenne peppers and possible add something else to boost the heat. In the meantime, he found a dash of hot sauce was enough to appease his palate. Doubling the Mexican Lasagna made a whopping 24 portions and cost $74.42 in total, which worked out to $3.10 per portion, which I consider relatively reasonable in cost.
Today we discussed the cross curricular applications of computational thinking and coding. By supporting students to engage in computational thinking we can help them to develop problem solving skills, explain the world around us, bring virtual worlds alive by making them interactive, and have fun while learning! The BC curriculum is particularly interested in helping students become better problem solvers who can think critically and display creativity. Coding can be used for such varied purposes as interactive story telling, exploring equity and equality in social studies, and learning physics and math. In this way, coding can be incredibly versatile and used for virtual hands-on-learning where students are engaging with the material, manipulating outcomes, and hopefully making new connections and gaining a deeper understanding.
The website hourofcode has many different coding activities that teach computational thinking which can conveniently be sorted by grade, subject, device, length, and popularity. By searching for an activity that can be played on the computer by pre-readers, I discovered “Code Monkey Jr”, a multilevel sequencing and looping game. In this activity, you select different blocks with directional arrows on them in order to move a monkey around a 2D environment to collect bananas and prize chests. As this was a pre-reader game, I was impressed with the simplicity and could see students greatly enjoying this activity, while still learning about patterns, directionality, gravity, and counting. I completed about 15 levels and then chose to print my certificate, which was surprisingly gratifying.
Next, I found a Grade 2 activity called “Barbie Pet Vet” in which I moved code blocks into place to help different pets find their way into the vet’s office for treatment. This was slightly more complicated than the Monkey game as it did require reading different words and phrases, but was still relatively simply. In order to progress through each level, the coding blocks had to be sequenced in exactly the right order. This activity promoted recognition of patterns (there was a repeat block that could be used), counting, and reading comprehension.
Next, I visited a site called Studio Code and tried their game called “Flappy Bird“. This game was a little more complex than the Barbie game, but I also found it more exciting to play. You pieced together different blocks of coded instructions and then got to play your mini game that you had created. Unlike the Barbie game, the player has more choice about what to use and when to use it as they assemble the sequences of code blocks. By the end of the module, I had complete control over the setting, character, movement speed, gravity, obstacles, sound effects and game rules. I also received a certificate of completion for this activity, which looked fairly legitimate and was encouraging as a new coding learner!
As a final activity I briefly visited the site for Scratch which is a free program online that hosts the world’s largest coding community for children. As it states on their website, Scratch uses a coding language with a simple visual interface (movable blocks) that allows young people to create digital stories, games, and animations. I was running out of time to explore this program, but I intend to do so more in the future as I have heard about this program a lot over the last 10 years!
In conclusion, I can see myself using programs such as the four I explored today to teach my students computational thinking skills and rudimentary coding, both of which are increasingly necessary in our job market and society. While I do not think students should spend the majority of their time learning with screens, as I discussed in my previous post “Using Intention with Technology“, some technology is worth the time and effort and can be used to enhance learning. Used appropriately and with intention, I think that these coding programs are a successful use of technology and that they can be used to redefine what students can learn in the modern classroom.
Today we explored the online word of privacy, safety, bullying and consent with guest speaker Jesse Miller who is a national speaker and educator on the subject of social media. As the speaker for Mediated Reality, he has delivered presentations to school districts across Canada and the US as well as professional development training sessions to various corporate and non-profit groups. Mr. Miller is clearly very passionate about what he speaks about and quite knowledgeable, presenting one perspective on the increasing use of technology in today’s society and the potential risks and benefits that accompany this rise in screen time.
As a teacher, these discussions are incredibly important to start proactively since mobile phones, laptops and social media are not going anywhere and are evolving so rapidly. As social sharing has rapidly increased, it has been normalized in our culture and it was surprising for me to realize that most students today have never lived without having their lives broadcasted to a wider audience. Parents today share photos of their children online from birth and make posts about them as they grow up. Students witness their parent’s use and reliance on social media and other virtual platforms as well as their peers’ use and most follow suit. I believe that it is extremely important to support and empower students in their use of online platforms, while also teaching them to find a balance of time off-screens. For example, Mr. Miller suggested that we play video games with our children rather then banning them. In other terms, meet them where they are and teach them how to appropriately engage with online platforms. He explained that by engaging in online platforms with our youth as parents or teachers, we can help kids make sense of their online experiences, teach them to uphold their values, and empower their communication skills in the current social reality, rather than expecting them to conform to the reality in which we grew up 20+ years ago.
Mr. Miller also talked about some of the precautions to keep in mind as a new teacher with both our personal and professional online presence. It was frankly surprising to see how many teachers have made poorly informed or immoral choices when selecting the content to post on personal social media sites. As a teacher, it is especially important to use intentionality when posting images or content online. Privacy and safety are the primary considerations when working with youth and so teachers must be very cognizant of these factors when sharing online. Moreover, as role models and members of our community we must hold ourselves (and will be held by others) to high moral and ethical values.
Over reading break I tried another instant pot soup: White Chicken Chili once again from “The Ultimate Instant Pot Cookbook” by Coco Morante (p.110). This soup called for lots of peppers (Anaheim, Jalapeno, and Cayenne) so I was a little apprehensive that it would be extremely spicy, but to my relief it was perfect! I learned from the small last soup that I made and doubled the recipe, but otherwise followed it almost exactly. I opted to use canned beans since I was unable to find white kidney beans dried at my grocery store and I also used cheddar and mozzarella to top the finished soup rather than Monterey Jack cheese. Had I used dried beans, this recipe would have taken much longer since I would have needed to soak the beans over night and then briefly cook them in the instant pot before starting the soup. The doubled recipe made 12 servings which just barely fit in my instant pot (I did not actually take this into account and was relieved that it did, indeed, fit). Overall the recipe was easy to follow and, while you will see in my time-lapse video below just how much chopping and prep there was, it didn’t actually take very long even though the prep was effectively doubled.
Ingredients for the White Chicken Chili (Photo by Maia Kerr)
Video by Maia Kerr
Once cooked, I topped the soup with grated cheese and green onions and served it with a side of well-buttered Portofino Peasant Loaf. It smelled divine and tasted just as good! Both my husband and I loved the soup and found it to be a wonderful balance of the butter-smooth beans, various peppers, chicken, spices and a creamy tang lent to it from the sour cream. I would describe it as Mexican-inspired comfort food and I will definitely be making this dish again. Moreover, my toddler loved it, eating his entire bowl and asking for seconds!
Completed White Chicken Chili served with Buttered Bread (Photo by Maia Kerr)
This delicious soup also didn’t even break the bank, costing about $45 in total which works out to $3.77 per portion. As you will see from my score table below, this soup has rated quite well and I anticipate that it will also rate well after freezing – stay tuned to find out!
On the menu this week was the Hearty Corn and Potato Soup, from “The Ultimate Instant Pot Cookbook” by Coco Morante (p.87). I also chose to pair this soup with a jalapeno cornbread mix that I received as a stocking stuffer this past Christmas, which is shown in my pictures, but not included in my pricing or ratings. Since this recipe was from a cook book that I have at home, I created the following Sketchnote documenting the ingredients and recipe steps:
The finished soup was a luxuriously rich and creamy comfort-food of a soup (which is surprising given the actual quantities of butter and cream added are not much) with a texture that was smooth, but still had enough substance to give your mouth something to do while eating. It was sort of like a vegetarian chowder, or at least what I imagine a vegetarian chowder would resemble since I have not actually tried one. The only modification I made to the original recipe, was substituting chicken stock for vegetable, and this was only done because it turned I was out of vegetable stock. I do realize that this means my soup was not vegetarian, but I don’t think the change in stock would dramatically affect the resulting soup. In the future, I would be interested to try adding leeks to this, as I feel these would pair splendidly with the celery, potato and onions. I would also like to make it with the correct, vegetarian, stock and compare if this changes the overall taste.
Ingredients for the Hearty Corn and Potato SoupHearty Corn and Potato Soup Finished with Jalapeno Cornbread
As you will see from my scoring table below, this soup recipe was super easy and fast to make and, as mentioned, was very delicious, receiving praise from my husband and requests for seconds from my toddler! As an added bonus, the entire pot of soup only cost about $10 to make and, as this resulted in five servings, this meal came to under $2 per serving which I consider very affordable. My only real complaint is that the recipe only makes five to six servings so next time, I will double it so that I have enough for a few dinners and still be able to set some aside for freezing. For this first attempt, I set aside about 2 servings in the freezer and will report back in a few weeks on how they taste.
Not all technologies are made equal or are appropriate for the elementary (or secondary) classroom. One way to evaluate whether to use (and invest in) a new technology for your classroom is to apply the SAMR theory of technology adoption created in 2010 by Ruben Puentedura. According to this theory, while some technology is designed to enhance learning, others can actually transform learning. Technologies that are simply a substitution for the same non-technical activities sit at one end of a spectrum, while technologies that allow for new, previously inconceivable tasks, sit at the opposite end of the spectrum and can redefine learning. As teachers, is is important to identify what, exactly, a new technology will bring to your activity or lesson. Does the technology improve the process and how is the new task uniquely made possible by the new technology? I think that by asking these questions first and identifying where on the spectrum a tempting new technology sits I will be better able to make intentional decisions about what I want to invest time and money into for my classroom.
Today we explored using doodles and graphics to apply Dual Coding Theory and the Multimedia Learning Theory to learning. Sketchnotes, which I have been reassured emphasize ideas and do note rely on polished artistic skills, allow the learner to process and refine the information that is being presented. The resulting notes and doodles cement the facts or figures in the learners’ mind, ensuring that they retain more information than if they had simply transcribed the lecture or presentation. We also looked at digitally creating infographics which serve much the same purpose of Sketchnotes with one major difference. While Sketchnotes are created by the learner as they are learning (or listening), infographics are created by the teacher in order to share essential information in an accessible and visually appealing way. Effective infographics need to be accurate, have simple legible fonts, and have simple illustrations that complement the information being conveyed. For an example of a Sketchnote and an infographic, please see images that follow below:
Sketchnote Example by Author: Sencoten Words for Marine MammalsAn Infographic Example Created by the Author
As I hope to teach Grade 2 – Grade 6, I think that I could use sketchnoting and infographics to help my students learn and to share information my students and their parents respectively. In a way, that this age group is already familiar with a form of sketchnotes, since much of their written material is accompanied by drawings and illustrations. By the time students reach secondary school, sketchnoting skills could be an extremely useful technique to have already mastered and so starting to practice and develop this skill in elementary could be extremely beneficial to students’ success in high school and post secondary school. In addition, I image that these tools are especially helpful for students who struggle with written literacy and for EAL learners and their families.
For this week’s meal prep challenge I decided to streamline our morning routine by pre-preparing our lunches. I found inspiration on the Half Baked Harvest website and chose to make their Folded Crispy Buffalo Chicken Wraps. These may not be the healthiest wraps around, but they looked super tasty and there were some healthy substitutions such as Greek yoghurt for the standard buffalo sauce cream cheese.
Ingredients for the Buffalo Chicken Wraps
I decided to approximately double the recipe in order to make enough for the upcoming work week for both my husband and my own lunches. For the buffalo sauce I rather conveniently had some buffalo spice mix on hand (woot!) which I mixed as directed with ketchup etc. To prepare the shredded chicken I simply boiled the chicken breast for about 30 minutes until fully cooked and then shredded with two forks in a bowl. I have used this method before and it is very effective and ensures the chicken doesn’t dry out too much. I also chose to simplify my life by using the remainder of a jar of Jalapeno Ranch sauce (convenient again I know) rather than making that from scratch as the recipe suggests. Over all, the recipe took about 1 hour 15 minutes and while the chicken boiled I had time to prep everything else, before assembling the wraps using the four quadrant method shown in the picture below. The trick with this triangular wrap is the small slit that runs from the center of the circle outward between the cheese and chicken to the edge. When you are ready to wrap it up, you simply fold the chicken onto the greens, then onto the sauce and then onto the cheese forming a triangle. The resultant package is then fried in a bit of olive oil on the stove and then I packaged them up for storage in the fridge.
Buffalo Chicken Wraps Ready to FoldFinished Buffalo Chicken Wraps
As you can see from the image above, these wraps looked quite tasty and I was able to make 10! I only froze four as I am extremely skeptical about how well the lettuce will freeze. I was able to make more wraps than expected, and so I am also a little concerned that even in the fridge, the lettuce in them may not be very tasty by midweek. However, I can confirm that fresh these are fantastic. They have a nice mild heat from the peppers, onions and spices and are very satisfying. The cost was also very reasonable, coming to $38.85 for the entire batch, or $3.89 per portion. We will definitely be making these again!
Today we explored the importance of accessible and inclusive classrooms and the technologies that can be used to create this environment in our schools. Not only is accessibility mandated by law, inclusive classrooms are better for all students. If a student couldn’t see clearly, we wouldn’t hesitate to encourage them to wear glasses; however, providing speech-to-text or text-to-voice programs to students who struggle with writing or reading can be controversial. We watched a video on accessibility which helped re-shaped the lens of how I view technological aids for diverse learners. While I appreciate what well-chosen technology can offer for learners, I generally believe that technology should should be used with careful deliberation and moderation in schools. However, as some of the speakers in the video attested, by empowering students to learn from text in a way that works for them, these students gain independence and can grow the confidence and self-efficacy to see themselves as learners. It makes sense that some students, having gained enough confidence while using their technological aids, are more likely to want to try writing or reading without the aids. This speaks to the effectiveness of using these forms of technology and helps me to better understand just how beneficial technology can be in the classroom.
Screenshot of Wave Web Accessible Evaluation Tool report for one of my blog posts
Digital Accessibility
We also discussed how to make online content such as websites and videos more accessible and watched an enlightening video on the how some viewers experience barriers to reading text online. Simple changes such as clearly defined headers, ensuring text colours and background colours have appropriate contrast, explicitly labelling hyperlinked text with a content description, using alt text to describe images, and captioning videos can make a huge difference for viewers who have visual, auditory, or physical/motor disabilities. To apply some of what we had learned, we explored the WAVE Web Accessibility Evaluation Tool, which is an online program that will evaluate the accessibility of websites. As a result of checking the accessibility of my WordPress blog, I opted to change some colours to increase contrast and readability as well as add alt text to my images for viewers with visual. In addition, I explored the world of captioning videos, using YouTube to caption my video from last week’s post (see below).
Concluding Thoughts
As a result of this discussion I feel even more motivated to create an inclusive classroom for my future students and better informed on how to accomplish this aim. Ultimately, by embracing the multitude of technologies that are available (after carefully evaluating their merit of course), we can ensure that all students have a chance to succeed in our schools, an endeavor that is, after all, my ultimate goal as an educator.
