This week we'll continue our journey of food by using recipes as a method of study. Monday will begin with an introductory lesson on recipes, and what influences those recipe food choices. Tuesday, the students will have a substitute as I will be out for professional development learning about oral history collections. The students will be working on an article in class regarding what it's like to eat dog in Vietnam.
Wednesday we'll pick back up with a lesson on the Amish, and their food choices and influences. We'll discuss food, religion, areas of living, etc. Thursday and Friday the students will dissect recipes that they have brought from home in order to make sense of why we eat and cook the way we do. Hopefully, the end product will be a recipe collection at the end of the year containing the best of many family secrets, all tied to our culture as members of the Fairless community.
As always, check our website for news and assignments, and email or call with any questions.
- Mr. Johansson
Tuesday, October 30, 2007
Friday, October 26, 2007
Fear Factor, and Tounge Recipe
Today the students are experiencing new and wild foods from a local store. We chose a "Fear Factor" style taste test, where the students challenge each other to try new foods. Everyone wins in the end when the cuttle fish comes out (which isn't that bad...) and the challenge ends in a draw. Additionally, a few students brought some foods in as well, and we all had a small sample. More specifically, beef tongue was on the menu, and here follows a recipe. I must say, I had never tried tongue before, but it's most excellent. Thank you, Mrs. R!
Spiced Tongue (Mrs. R's Recipe)
1 bottle (10 oz.) soy sauce
4 bottles (10 oz.) water
1C. brown sugar
2T. grated onion
1T. minced garlic
1t. cinnamon
1/2t. ginger
1/2t. nutmeg
1 beef tongue
Mix all together, and bring to rolling boil. Add the beef tongue, then return to boiling. Simmer on medium heat for 2 hours. Remove tongue from liquid and remove skin. Return tongue to sauce, and simmer another 30 minutes. Remove from sauce, and slice thin. Pour a small amount of liquid over meat and serve.
Spiced Tongue (Mrs. R's Recipe)
1 bottle (10 oz.) soy sauce
4 bottles (10 oz.) water
1C. brown sugar
2T. grated onion
1T. minced garlic
1t. cinnamon
1/2t. ginger
1/2t. nutmeg
1 beef tongue
Mix all together, and bring to rolling boil. Add the beef tongue, then return to boiling. Simmer on medium heat for 2 hours. Remove tongue from liquid and remove skin. Return tongue to sauce, and simmer another 30 minutes. Remove from sauce, and slice thin. Pour a small amount of liquid over meat and serve.
Optional Assignment - Fire Blog - Due 10/28 - 30 points
Be sure to read this entire blog before beginning the assignment. Here's what to do:
Read Amanda Ripley's article titled "What to Save From a Fire." located on TIME's website. You may click on this link to get there.
Here is the full address: http://www.time.com/time/printout/0,8816,1675600,00.html
Once you have read the article, you will compose a response in the form of at least two (2) paragraphs, answering the following questions in full detail:
Paragraph 1 should include questions 1-4. Paragraph 2 should answer question 5 in a narrative form (not just a list - tell WHY you would bring those items).
1. What is an evacuation? What does the author suggest it is in the third paragraph?
2. What is an evacuation pack according to the article?
3. What is FEMA? (You may have to search using Google)
4. What does the author recommend to do towards the end of the article?
5. What 10 items would you take with you if you had to evacuate your home?
You need to post a response to the above questions by clicking on the comment link just below this blog entry.
You don't have to use your full name when posting a response, however, you need to identify yourself by using the following format (put this information at the bottom of your response):
Class Last Name
Example: 8A Smith
If you do not follow this format, you will not get graded. Good Luck!
Read Amanda Ripley's article titled "What to Save From a Fire." located on TIME's website. You may click on this link to get there.
Here is the full address: http://www.time.com/time/printout/0,8816,1675600,00.html
Once you have read the article, you will compose a response in the form of at least two (2) paragraphs, answering the following questions in full detail:
Paragraph 1 should include questions 1-4. Paragraph 2 should answer question 5 in a narrative form (not just a list - tell WHY you would bring those items).
1. What is an evacuation? What does the author suggest it is in the third paragraph?
2. What is an evacuation pack according to the article?
3. What is FEMA? (You may have to search using Google)
4. What does the author recommend to do towards the end of the article?
5. What 10 items would you take with you if you had to evacuate your home?
You need to post a response to the above questions by clicking on the comment link just below this blog entry.
You don't have to use your full name when posting a response, however, you need to identify yourself by using the following format (put this information at the bottom of your response):
Class Last Name
Example: 8A Smith
If you do not follow this format, you will not get graded. Good Luck!
Tuesday, October 23, 2007
Monday, October 22, 2007
Call the teacher!
You can now call the teacher, Mr. Johansson, for free. Just click the button, enter your number, and it will connect you! Pretty easy, huh?
New Unit: The Culture of Food, week of 10/22/07
This week we will begin our journey of food. The students will explore many areas regarding food, and use food as a vehicle by which we explore culture. Through the study of food, we can expect to learn things like the local economy, how people adapt to change, and why people eat what they eat.
One of our tools is the TV show Bizarre Foods from the Travel Channel. Andrew Zimmern does a great job taking us through many different cultures throughout the world, and showcases what and how they eat. From tongue sandwich in New York City to Balut (partially fertilized, then steamed duck egg) in the Philippines, he covers it all. We'll join in on some of his adventures to broaden our horizons.
Each day we'll cover something new, and ponder why and how food influences our daily lives, as well as how it affects others. We had fudge today, as a starter, and will end Friday with a "Fear Factor" style taste testing competition. Who will be able to eat all of their pickle herring?
In addition, next week, we'll begin constructing our recipe collection using and finding recipes from the family and local surroundings. Please feel free to send us your favorite dish. Also, one or two cooking demonstrations may take place, and if we're lucky, we'll host a guest chef as part of our studies.
So for now, start thinking food, and don't be surprised when your students comes home asking to take a trip to the store to search out new and exciting things to eat. If it looks good, eat it! And if they sell it at the store, it's probably edible...
Posted by Mr. Johansson
One of our tools is the TV show Bizarre Foods from the Travel Channel. Andrew Zimmern does a great job taking us through many different cultures throughout the world, and showcases what and how they eat. From tongue sandwich in New York City to Balut (partially fertilized, then steamed duck egg) in the Philippines, he covers it all. We'll join in on some of his adventures to broaden our horizons.
Each day we'll cover something new, and ponder why and how food influences our daily lives, as well as how it affects others. We had fudge today, as a starter, and will end Friday with a "Fear Factor" style taste testing competition. Who will be able to eat all of their pickle herring?
In addition, next week, we'll begin constructing our recipe collection using and finding recipes from the family and local surroundings. Please feel free to send us your favorite dish. Also, one or two cooking demonstrations may take place, and if we're lucky, we'll host a guest chef as part of our studies.
So for now, start thinking food, and don't be surprised when your students comes home asking to take a trip to the store to search out new and exciting things to eat. If it looks good, eat it! And if they sell it at the store, it's probably edible...
Posted by Mr. Johansson
MW sounds off!
The Trumpet rocks. It is the best instrument in the whole entire world. Of course I play the trumpet. I wouldn't think that if I didn't play it. My sister used to play the trumpet. Two of my cousins used to play it also. Band is fun sometimes but it can be more fun to play by yourself when the things you play in band are easy. At times it can be very fun because we have an awesome band director (along with an awesome multi-cultural teacher). None of my friends play the trumpet. I love playing the trumpet it is so much fun. It is awesome when you play a song that is really hard. Some people say that band is stupid and for nerds but I don't care. I think band is the coolest subject (along with multi-cultural). I make my sisters get mad when I play my trumpet because they think that I practice to much, every other day isn't to much I think they just don't practice enough. I tried to play a song with my sister who plays the oboe and is four years older than me but it didn't work very well because we were playing the same song out of two different books. I love to play the trumpet!
-MW
-MW
Sunday, October 21, 2007
Family Project Evaluations
I asked some of the students to share their responses to the end-of-unit evaluation we did in class on Friday, in electronic form, and here are some aggregate responses from a few students:
Did you like the project?
Yes because we enjoyed learning about generations of our families. It was fun to learn about our families and their history.
What could you have done differently?
We would have bought prettier poster board instead of just white then it would attract much more people to look at them!! We would have done it differently by spending more time on it and decorating it more.
What did you learn?
We learned about our family for one thing and how to make a family tree, which will be useful in the future. We learned about our families and their lives just by talking to our parents and grandparents.
What do you wish you had learned?
We wish we had learned into deeper generations besides just to our grandparent’s moms and dads. We wish we learned more about the details of our families past and not just the basics.
What will you do with the family tree?
We will probably keep them so that we can look at our work and be proud of how hard we worked.
Would you like to share it with the class?
Yes because we do not get embarrassed like some people do when they share things in front of the class.
Could you have done a better job?
No because we worked very hard on our projects and we are proud of them.
Posted by Mr. J
Did you like the project?
Yes because we enjoyed learning about generations of our families. It was fun to learn about our families and their history.
What could you have done differently?
We would have bought prettier poster board instead of just white then it would attract much more people to look at them!! We would have done it differently by spending more time on it and decorating it more.
What did you learn?
We learned about our family for one thing and how to make a family tree, which will be useful in the future. We learned about our families and their lives just by talking to our parents and grandparents.
What do you wish you had learned?
We wish we had learned into deeper generations besides just to our grandparent’s moms and dads. We wish we learned more about the details of our families past and not just the basics.
What will you do with the family tree?
We will probably keep them so that we can look at our work and be proud of how hard we worked.
Would you like to share it with the class?
Yes because we do not get embarrassed like some people do when they share things in front of the class.
Could you have done a better job?
No because we worked very hard on our projects and we are proud of them.
Posted by Mr. J
Friday, October 19, 2007
MF & EC tells us how it is...
Next week we are going to start cooking from all over the world. We will learn some of the People's most favorite foods. And all about their culture, like India , China, Sweden, Brazil, Mexico, Canada and much more things over the 9 weeks.
We finished learning about our families and did a family tree.
Mr. Johansson is so cool because he brings in food, like Monday he is bring in fudge.
He brings in snacks and will make food in class.
We finished learning about our families and did a family tree.
Mr. Johansson is so cool because he brings in food, like Monday he is bring in fudge.
He brings in snacks and will make food in class.
Thursday, October 18, 2007
Thoughts...
Today people are working on their family tree ( they are doing it pretty noisily though). I believe I will get a good grade on the family tree. We are going to have a test tomorrow. I have a good feeling I will pass the test. The 12 weeks in multicultural is almost at the halfway point, I'm not ready to switch yet. Multicultural is so much fun.
-CM
-CM
Wednesday, October 17, 2007
Picture from today's class...
Family Tree Project - Progress Report
The students are working hard at constructing their family trees, and we're keeping busy the entire period, with little time for cleanup. The room is filled with chatter and spirit, and the students are on task, producing quality products.
We use a piece of poster board as the basis for our family trees, and add elements using construction paper, glue, colored pencils and markers, and more.
Oftentimes, it's difficult to fit all of the students at a desk, so we tend to spread out around the room - even next to the fridge. Other students used parts of the hallway as well as a means of getting enough creative room to work. Usually we play some music - yesterday was James Blunt. Students are encouraged to bing in and share their music, and we're expecting some AC/DC this afternoon.
We use a piece of poster board as the basis for our family trees, and add elements using construction paper, glue, colored pencils and markers, and more.
Oftentimes, it's difficult to fit all of the students at a desk, so we tend to spread out around the room - even next to the fridge. Other students used parts of the hallway as well as a means of getting enough creative room to work. Usually we play some music - yesterday was James Blunt. Students are encouraged to bing in and share their music, and we're expecting some AC/DC this afternoon.
Monday, October 15, 2007
Multicultural Class and the Behavior of Students
Today in class, we drew out our family trees on whiteboards. It’s really cool to see how everything connects between all of your family members. I’d say that the class is absolutely out of control though. The students just don’t listen and don’t behave. I would think by seventh grade, almost every one would be able to behave maturely as young adults should. Someday, hopefully all of the students that are acting up will learn to behave. In the long run, it isn’t going to get them anywhere except for an irresponsible adult.
JW
JW
Materials Needed Week of 10/15
Students in 6th and 7th grade will need to bring a posterboard and construction paper to class in order to work on their family tree project. Any color is okay, as long as they have a large piece to work with.
Sunday, October 14, 2007
Game Plan - Week of 10-15-07
6th and 7th grades:
This week we'll continue to work on our Family Projects, and the students will begin constructing their family trees using poster board, construction paper, glue and whatever else they may need. We have most of the tools such as scissors and glue, markers and crayons in the classroom, but if you would like to donate to us, that would just fine!
8th grade:
The students in eighth grade will continue to sort their research materials, and planning their PowerPoint presentations. Hopefully, by the end of the week most will be ready to present in front of their classes.
If you have any questions, feel free to send us an email, or leave a comment. We would love to communicate with you, and answer your questions. Be on the look out for student contribution this week, and maybe some more pictures.
This week we'll continue to work on our Family Projects, and the students will begin constructing their family trees using poster board, construction paper, glue and whatever else they may need. We have most of the tools such as scissors and glue, markers and crayons in the classroom, but if you would like to donate to us, that would just fine!
8th grade:
The students in eighth grade will continue to sort their research materials, and planning their PowerPoint presentations. Hopefully, by the end of the week most will be ready to present in front of their classes.
If you have any questions, feel free to send us an email, or leave a comment. We would love to communicate with you, and answer your questions. Be on the look out for student contribution this week, and maybe some more pictures.
Thursday, October 11, 2007
Photos from today - Research
The 8th graders are hard at work researching individual topics in culture, varying from "who's going to pay for my skatepark?" to "what's good about dress codes and curfews?" Today was our last day in the LMC (Library Media Center), as we will focus on content, how to highlight and extract data tomorrow. We have used a variety of search engines, databases, and book materials in our studies. Students are doing well, with some really going above and beyond! I am excited to see how it all turns out!
-Mr. J
Photos from today - Family Studies Project
We have been working hard at entering all of our family data into Excel spreadsheets. Not only do the data look better, but they are easier to handle, format, and understand. The students are doing really well, and we have almost all on board and ready to go. We also get to learn how to format individual cells, and a bit about how databases, or dbs as we call them, really work, and what they're good for...
Sure, some students finish early and pose for a few snapshots...
... while others work hard...
Nice work!
-Mr. Johansson
Sure, some students finish early and pose for a few snapshots...
... while others work hard...Nice work!
-Mr. Johansson
School today...
School was so fun and cool ,and I got candy today. I Went to every class to day ,and I an going to go home and ride my bike all day .
- DC 7B
- DC 7B
Lesson
The comments I’m going to leave are nice and not mean! This lesson I learned a lot about people’s families and stuff.
-NB 6B
-NB 6B
Football
Football is going really well we are 6-0. We only gave up 3 touchdowns the whole year. I threw 6 touchdown passes and ran 1 touchdown. We are in the playoffs this week.
- HW
- HW
Volleyball
I have a volleyball game tonight against Massillon at Massillon Middle School. I’m really excited. I think we’ll be able to win. Tonight is our last regular game before the Pac 7 tournaments. Last night, against Manchester the 7th grade team won. We played three games, lost the first one, and won the 2nd and 3rd games. I can’t wait for the Pac on Saturday. We play in Tusky Valley, against CVCA. Hopefully we get a win!
The coolest person ever - JW
The coolest person ever - JW
Wednesday, October 10, 2007
Multi-Culture Displays - Our Own Cultural Gardens
We spent some time on the topic "What is Culture?" As a summative event, the students brought items from home representing their specific culture to showcase our differences. As a result, we built displays in the cafeteria.
Students also took part in a lecture on the Cleveland Cultural Gardens, and how they came about. We discussed the history of them, how they played a role in neighborhood traditions, and what specific symbols and themes were used to portray culture and nationality.
The students were then asked to observe others' displays in order to describe what they saw, what conclusions they could draw, and what, if anything, could be deduced from a simple observation. Here are some pictures of the displays, some of the students - all in the cafeteria.
Student created displays in the cafeteria - "What is Culture?" and "What have we learned so far?" Each class created their own cultural gardens to show others what they value as middle school students.
Students working on their observation pieces - very successful, with lots of insights!
Posted by Mr. Johansson
Students also took part in a lecture on the Cleveland Cultural Gardens, and how they came about. We discussed the history of them, how they played a role in neighborhood traditions, and what specific symbols and themes were used to portray culture and nationality.
The students were then asked to observe others' displays in order to describe what they saw, what conclusions they could draw, and what, if anything, could be deduced from a simple observation. Here are some pictures of the displays, some of the students - all in the cafeteria.
Student created displays in the cafeteria - "What is Culture?" and "What have we learned so far?" Each class created their own cultural gardens to show others what they value as middle school students.
Students working on their observation pieces - very successful, with lots of insights!Posted by Mr. Johansson
Commentary from SW
Multi-Cultural is a really cool class. It’s a lot of fun learning about our family Trees and researching generations of family traits and traditions. Mr. Johansson is a really cool teacher and makes what we learn about more interesting then you would think it is. We get to work on Laptops and laptops aren’t only used to type things and what not but to teach responsibility to the class. Everybody is learning Responsibility because no one wants to pay 1,000 dollars for something they accidentally broke. The laptops are fun to use because they are fun to type on. I’m going to be disappointed when we switch classes for the 12-week rotation because Multi-Cultural is so fun and Mr. Johansson is so nice.
S.W
S.W
Family project # 3
Multicultural is a really fun class! We get to do a bunch of cool projects. This week we’ve worked on family trees. Mr. Johansson is a super cool teacher!! He makes class really fun. I can’t wait to learn more exciting things in class!
~JW
~JW
Family project # 2
I have had a lot of fun learning about my family and many others. Learning about other cultures can be a lot of fun. We have done some posters that were fun and also have taken some fun quizzes!!! Mr. Johansson’s class is a lot of fun. And so far I have learned a lot, and I can’t wait for the other exciting things we will do as a class!!!!!!
- MD
- MD
Family studies project
This project is so fun because we get to use laptops, and we get to learn about our families that we never knew we had !!!! Now we all know about new tech. and new ways to use it.
I have learned great things I never new before I have had such a great time in this class such as making posters, projects and much more!!!!!!!!!!!!
p.s. Mr.johansson rocks
- MF
I have learned great things I never new before I have had such a great time in this class such as making posters, projects and much more!!!!!!!!!!!!
p.s. Mr.johansson rocks
- MF
The purpose of this blog...
This blog will host entries from students in my Multi-Cultural Studies course at Fairless Middle School. Students create, as part of a review session every week, a blog entry in order to share their learning with their community, friends, and global students alike. Stop back often for updates, news on special projects, etc.
Send us email here: falconculture@gmail.com
-Mr. Johansson
Send us email here: falconculture@gmail.com
-Mr. Johansson
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