Dairy Taste Testing

I have learned a lot about farming and living in a small town while working in Milaca, MN Very little about my students or this community shocks me anymore, but believe me my first year things like "drive your tractor to school day" and wearing actual cowboy boots with actual cow poop attached were a little confusing...

I have therefore evolved my Dairy Food Group lesson to meet their understanding. In the city schools I did my student teaching in, milk straight off the cow was a foreign concept for kids (and hard to find) this school is a total opposite, when I ask my class how many have had milk straight off the cow, the majority of the class raises their hands. When I ask who has had/heard of Almond milk most give me puzzled look like I'm making things up again. 

For my dairy lesson I start with the basics- what is calcium, lactose, rickets, osteoporosis, yadda yadda yadda.

Then I get into the fun things like different sources of dairy, and types of cheese! You cannot go wrong talking about cheese in a Midwestern USA  area, they get all sorts of excited!

THEN, the fun: Dairy Taste Testing. Now I fully believe in making my kids actually cook the food they eat in my class but sometimes I like to mix it up and just feed them. For dairy taste testing day I always request in advance that a student bring in some milk from their farm (this year it was delivered in mason jars-classic.) Then I go to the store and purchase a variety of milks, from low fat to lactose free, this year we had coconut milk, almond milk, skim milk, goat milk and of course non pasteurized fresh cow milk. I also purchase a variety of cheese from common cheddar to super ripe blue. This year I even demonstrated how to make fresh mozzarella from the curd (a guest chef I had earlier in the year gifted me the curd and the knowledge). On tasting day I set up a cheese and a milk station that the students must go through and sample each (exemptions apply for allergies) they must fill out a sample card for each, complete with their opinions (super funny to read and have them share) and a spot for them to look up and compare nutrition information for each. This lab usually takes an entire 47min class period. It is so fun to watch their reactions to different flavors and to watch them go back for more of things they have never had before! 

As a bonus any leftovers I feed to my other classes - this is good advertisement to my 7th and 8th graders!!