Ever thought about making homemade conversation hearts?The recipe can be found at Make Monthly and a great photo version of the recipe is at About.com. On day one prepare the dough using your switches with the mixer and our cooking communication pages. This is a fun activity that reinforced requesting a turn, fine motor skills, following directions and switch use. Then let every student have a ball of dough on some parchment paper to knead. Once the dough is formed each student smells the bottles of extract (try lemon, orange, root beer, strawberry and mint) and chooses one to use. Each student is responsible for making one flavor of dough, coloring it with food dye, rolling it out and cutting out the hearts with a cookie cutter. What a wonderful multi-sensory experience with feeling the sugar and dough, see the colors, hearing the mixer and smelling the extracts!
Once the hearts are done set them out to dry. The next morning give students were given a selection of 12 picture symbols showing messages that could be written by their adult partner on the candies (love, friends, sweetheart, you're icky, text me...). Students also have a choice of five colored food dye markers to write their messages. This portion of making conversation hearts is all about choice making!
Have fun!
Wow, the picture recipes on about.com are a great resource!
ReplyDeleteBut a dangerous one, too. I found their chocolate / fudge recipes. Bye bye, New Year's resolutions...
You are such a GREAT teacher! These look like so much fun! Can I ask what the ratio in your classroom is and what ages you teach? Love your ideas, I use a lot of them with my daughter (rett syndrome) at home. Thanks for all you do!
ReplyDeleteUlrich- our cooking activities tend to be a lesson in what not to eat! Although today on of the moms ran the lesson and did authentic Indian recipes - healthy and delicious!
ReplyDeleteThe mac donald family- I currently teach ages 14-18. I actually prefer the 18-22 year old group - but I've done elementary school and middle school as well. Our ratio is 1:2. Currently I have 7 students and myself and 3 assistants. Looks like I will have 8 or 9 next year! My class includes mostly kiddos with lots of positioning and medical needs so we are all hands on deck. Are you coming to the Rett conference in Boston in June? I hope to go. Some of my Rett families were hoping I would present. If you are local to mass I think I am speaking at a support meeting soon - mostly about teaching eye gaze communication.
Wow! Those look super cool and easy to make. I will have to remember this for next year. this year we made http://myblessedlife.net/2010/02/easy-valentines-day-craft.html . Lots of choice making and communication was done with our project.
ReplyDeleteThank you so much for the wonderful ideas. I am just a student right now, but I hope to use this in my future classroom!
ReplyDelete