Teaching Science in the School Kitchen

Jeanette Thompson, a science teacher at The Dunham School in Baton Rouge, LA, was teaching her students about chemical reactions and thought there would be no better way to explain than to offer them a hands-on experience with these reactions. So she set aside the textbooks for the day and sought out SAGE's help. At The Dunham School, we have been baking fresh bread to accompany the house-roasted meats offered on the Classic Cuts Deli® bar, and Thompson wanted her students to experience firsthand the bread-making process and witness the chemical reactions that occur. The students learned about bread starter, yeast, the blooming process, the reactions that occur, and the gases released in the proofing process. The best part of all was that they got to eat their experiment when they came into the dining hall for lunch! "The kids had a great time today," said Thompson. We are so lucky to have a real kitchen and a real bakery (on campus)." Chris Bild is SAGE's food service director at The Dunham School.