Today we began the next story in our anthology.  We are reading Jalapeno Bagels by Natasha Wing. If you aren't familiar with the story, it is about a little boy of diverse cultures who is trying to decide what treats to take into his class for International Days to represent his heritage. His mother is Mexican-American and his father is Jewish.  His parents own a bakery that make tasty treats from both cultures. The recipe for the bagels is a representation of both cultures coming together.
As a class project, I ask my students' parents to submit one or two simple recipes that represent their family heritage or culture.*  I ask for two because I know that some of my students come from diverse backgrounds, just like the boy in the story.  Over the years I have gotten recipes from all over the world:  France, Puerto Rico, Germany, Ireland, China, India, Vietnam, Iran, Lebanon, and Mexico, to name a few.  I can't wait to see what recipes are submitted this year!
Once all of the recipes have been submitted, I type them up and organize them into cookbook sections.  I then submit to book to be copied so that each child has a copy to take home as a keepsake.
  
Do you have any neat heritage/culture projects you do?  Feel free to share in the comment box!
*This project can also be used for a cultural/heritage unit in social studies.
 
 
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