Combining math with community service, fifteen 6th graders purchased, prepared, and served lunch at the Slusser Center in Hopkinton, NH on February 15. Forty seniors greatly enjoyed the menu of pulled pork sliders, cornbread, and roasted vegetables. The strawberry shortcake dessert cups were the sweet conclusion of the delicious meal.
Middle school math teacher Tori Lucas explained,
“We did the math in advance to make sure we had the right amount of ingredients and stayed within our budget.” The students “looked forward to putting their understanding of rates, unit rates, and proportions into action for this service project!”
After several hours spent chopping and roasting vegetables and baking bread and cake in the (very) warm Slusser Center kitchen, the student volunteers made their way around the dining room, offering firsts and seconds, before filling their own plates and joining the seniors for lunch and conversations. After practicing their social communication skills, the energetic sixth graders then cleared all the plates and assembled at the front of the room for the entertainment portion of the program. They first sang a song from the upcoming sixth-grade musical and then rendered a number from the Derryfield winter concert. The seniors gave a round of applause to the young chefs who had worked so hard to nourish them with food and music.
