Food Technology

Practical cookery and food education is now compulsory in the new national curriculum for pupils in primary schools.

• Here at Lapage we were revolutionary in introducing Cooking lessons to out children at school in 2012 before Cooking was made compulsory.

• We believe instilling a love of cooking in pupils is essential and develops a pupil’s creativity. Learning how to cook is a crucial life skill that enables pupils to feed themselves and others affordably and well, now and in later life.
• Children enjoy participating in cooking. Lessons are practical based and aimed at developing children’s practical cooking skills, fine motor skills and confidence using small tools.
• We employ an ‘all hands on deck’ approach, where all children participate in a recipe. Children are given an instruction card to follow as part of a recipe.
• Children across whole school have the opportunity to do Cooking lessons. Every class of 30 children has access to weekly cooking lessons all year.
• Each year group has a different theme/topic each half term for what we are going to make and the skills the children in reception are also learning simple cooking skills with their teachers.
• Children are taught about safety and hygiene in the food room to ensure we all work safely and hygienically.

Linking Learning

• Where possibly we try to link in special events in the calendar year – e.g. Easter/Christmas/Halloween, making cooking fun for the children.
• Cooking also links to other areas of the curriculum. Where possible cross-curricular links are made – for example last half term Year 2’s were learning about Castles. In our cooking lessons we made castle shaped biscuits.
• Literacy is incorporated into lessons by the use of imperative verbs or ‘Bossy words’. In KS1 we learn the bossy words and act out the actions before a recipe. Older children also have the opportunity to record recipes and instructions in their own recipe books which can be taken home for children to make again.
• Maths is incorporated through weighing and measuring, which children are taught from Year 3.
• PCHSE is also an important aspect of our lessons. Children learn to work together as a team, take turns and eat sociably together.

At Lapage we follow the National Curriculum

In KS1 pupils should be taught:

• To use the basic principles of a healthy and varied diet to prepare dishes
• Understand where food comes from

At Key Stage 2 pupils should be taught:

• To understand and apply the principles of a healthy and varied diet
• To prepare and cook a variety of predominantly savoury dishes using a range of cooking techniques
• To understand seasonality, and know where and how a variety of ingredients are grown, reared, caught and processed