Practical Food Skills session – Contents
Practical Food Skills
Practical session led
by Home Economics
staff held within
secondary or primary
setting
Aims: To encourage confidence in planning and carrying out a practical food activity
 To build on key messages of hygiene/nutrition through practical application
 To support a ‘can do’ approach to increasing opportunities for children and young people in the early / primary
sectors to engage with the mental, emotional and social benefits of such a fun experience
 To provide opportunity for collegiate dialogue around preparation and planning for practical activities
 To recognise skills involved in following a recipe – literacy & numeracy, sequencing.
Prior Preparations:Getting organised – Prior preparation is required to run this session. Food needs to be ordered /bought in advance. If you
are not working in the secondary school practical food rooms, you may also need to consider the area you are going to use
and any equipment you need in advance. You may not decide to do the recipes suggested or even restrict the number you
do, but try to give a variety to cover a number of practical skills suitable for developing through early to second level.
Planning required to carry out a practical food activity
Planning booklet - 1. Planning a practical food activity for primary children
Letter to parents - 2. Permission letter
Hygiene & Safety Checklist- 3. Hygiene & safety checklist

Discuss advance preparation & set up for age & stage. Look at Vegetable soup exemplar in Comic Life format
3a – Vegetable soup

Aim to make approximately 5 recipes looking at prep, skills, practicalities, what support would be necessary,
identify equipment- Working in groups to generate discussion around the planning and preparation.
Recipe ideas
4/4a. Rainbow Pasta Salad- audio around aesthetics
( ideas for focus – numeracy (fractions), 5 a day- variety of vegetables, Pasta varieties/Italy,
boiling as a method of cooking, quick lunch ideas, energy foods)
5. Ruby Red Cous cous salad- limited equipment
(ideas for focus – limited equipment, colour/appearance/garnish of foods, quick lunch idea, use
of convenience and fresh produce, alternative foods (beans), chopping skills,)
6/6a. Root Vegetable herby cheese parcels
(ideas for focus -prior preparation/storing (filling) , emphasis on parcel making, use of
garden produce, Seasonal foods, methods of cooking, boiling, baking)
7/7a. Carrot Caribbean lunch box bites- emphasis on weighing & measuring
(ideas for focus- weighing & measuring, food miles (carrot/pineapple),fibre in diet, portioning,
Lunchbox content)
8. Mango chicken pittas- use cooked chicken, ideal for younger children
Discussion about taking it forward in the early years/primary setting.
Q – What additional support / resources would you require to ‘make this happen’ in your class/school?
Q – Could time be identified for planning within levels/across whole school/cluster?
Additional support :http://www.foodafactoflife.org.uk/section.aspx?t=84&siteId=20&sectionId=82
Primary school recipes
Photos of actions/equipment
How to..... basic skills
Words & numbers
http://www.bbc.co.uk/cbeebies/icancook/#
- Games, songs, recipes, story times
9. I can cook – cookery tips
10. Basic skills for young children