Some students at Cardinal Middle School took over the classroom kitchen to put their recent culinary lessons to the test.…
Students Get a Taste of Transition
Some students at Cardinal Middle School took over the classroom kitchen to put their recent culinary lessons to the test. About 20 students from Ms. Berigan’s, Miss Karg’s, Mrs. Libby’s and Mr. Ruscitto’s classes participated in the activity on Jan. 23.
“Once a month our classes get together to participate in a project like this,” says instructor Karen Berigen. “The group activity gives students a chance to apply the transition and career-readiness skills they’ve been learning about in class, and this time they get a little snack to go with their efforts.”
Students in the eighth-grade classes gave the group presentations on kitchen safety and hygiene rules before students washed hands and split into groups for their cooking activities. Once at their stations, students were eager to follow recipe instructions to concoct their culinary creations. With the help of teachers and four Cardinal High School student volunteers, the middle school chefs made mini-pizzas, no-bake cinnamon rolls and s’mores all of which got a rousing “thumbs up” after a taste test.
One student was heard saying, “This was a lot of fun, I can’t wait to try this at home with my family.”
Instructing students on transition and career-readiness goals together as a group is a new part of the curriculum this year at the middle school. Each month the students in the teacher’s last period classes focus on a new goal and then participate in an activity that utilizes that goal.
“We’ve seen tremendous success so far this year in implementing these activities as a group with our students,” says Berigen. “As an educator, nothing is more satisfying than seeing your students succeed using a lesson or skill they learned in the classroom.”
Autism Program Filmed
The Cardinal Local Schools Specialized Teaching for students with Autism and Resource Support (S.T.A.R.S.) program was selected for inclusion in an online training video to be used in classrooms across the country. A video production crew with the Ohio Center for Autism and Low Incidence (OCALI) out of Columbus came to Cardinal intermediate and middle schools on Feb. 10 to film S.T.A.R.S. students receiving instruction in their academic inclusion classes.
“This is an incredible distinction for our program to be selected as the example to be used for other autism classrooms around the country to model their curriculum around,” says S.T.A.R.S. program director Dana Eggers.
For more information, contact Dana Eggers at 440-632-9062.
