Continents...

Last week my son's class spent time learning about the 7 continents of the world. As a former geography teacher this was just the type of lesson I've been looking forward to ever since my little man started school. Over the past week we've spent time reading about and discovering unique facts about each of the continents. One thing I thought would be fun was to research different foods that originated from or were customary to the different parts of the world. We learned that if we traveled to Thailand we could buy maggots, grasshoppers, and cockroaches from a street vendor as a little afternoon snack. Or, if we were in Northern Australia we could stop for a tasty treat consisting of green ants! We also found some traditional delicacies from around the world that were a bit much for our western taste and I promise I won't go into detail about them here...I don't want to scare you away.

At any rate, studying the different foods from around the world gave us the perfect opportunity to learn more than just what people eat on various continents. It helped my son understand the climate and conditions that allow certain foods to grow in certain areas and also how in Antarctica, where it's too cod to grow anything, people have to rely on preserved food such as dried foods such as beef, fruit & veggies to survive. All in all we loved this unit and I can't wait for more geography related lessons!

Today's lunch features foods that represent each of the 7 continents: Lefse (Europe), Dried Peas (Antarctica), quinoa (South America), strawberries (North America), sausage on a barbie (Australia), "sushi" (Asia)...made with turkey/carrots rolled up in a slice of bread, "injera" (Africa)...injera is a traditional African flatbread that is often used as a utensil to scoop up food. (I didn't have time to make real "injera" but here is a great recipe for anyone who wants to try it.)

Way to go, kiddo! Mommy's proud of you!