A recent article in Nutridate* (Volume 27, March 2016) asked the question ‘Are cooking skills essential to improving public health?’
The article looked at the relationship between those who cooked meals and making healthy food choices.
An interesting outcome was the evidence that showed people who prepared their own meals reported a higher intake of vegetables and enjoyed the cooking process.
Design Technology Teacher, Nicole Bradford fully supports the idea that improving cooking skills leads to better overall health through better food choices.
“Cooking is an essential tool of life. Like any skill, the more you use it the better you become and cooking is no different.
“In Design Technology, we teach the students about food, how it can be prepared, how you can cook it and most of all, I give them the forum to experiment.”
Once students become familiar with food and how to prepare it, they can start to design their own meals.
As part of their Term 1 assessment, the Year 9 Design Technology students were asked to design a meal that could be sold in the School’s Café.
“I wanted the girls to think about the purpose of eating a healthy lunch at school and design and prepare a suitable solution,” Nicole said.
The outcomes far exceeded Nicole’s expectations.
“I am extremely proud of the students, their meals were well thought out, nutritious and appealing to a wide audience.”
