The Differentiated Cook

ERG has a friend – we’ll call her Sally – who appears to be easy going, but in reality, she is pretty high maintenance. She has to sit in the front seat or she will get car sick, she only wears a certain brand of cosmetics, and she has a zillion demands about food. But we love Sally because she is funny, smart, and overall a really good person. Because Sally is so fun to be around, we often end up in settings where she is sharing a table with us.

When Sally comes to eat, we have to steer clear of certain foods for our menus. We adjust what we cook and how we cook when Sally is involved. Sally is very appreciative of our efforts and gets invited back regularly. 

Believe it or not, this is differentiation. And it is authentic! It’s not uncommon for really good hosts to take into consideration the food preferences of the people at the table. They also consider the seating at the table, in addition to food prep routines that will allow everyone to thrive at the meal. Generally speaking, mindful hosts are responsive to the needs of their guests. 

The recipe below is a prime example of how naturally we can differentiate. Caroline, one of our ERG consultants, made this for a family gathering, only to realize later that one beloved aunt could not eat nuts. So, the aunt could not eat it. In the future, Caroline left out the pecans and when gluten free friends are over, she leaves out the flour. So simple. And by modifying the recipe based on the specific needs of the eaters, she is able to strengthen the relationships at the table.

In our classrooms, we can replicate this. ERG suggests you start small, with one modification that makes sense to you and your student(s). Then, you can grow into other ways of differentiation as the days go by. Meeting the needs of students in a strategic way not only will increase achievement, but also solidify the relationships we know are so important to academic success.

In our real lives, we differentiate all the time based on the people we are with. Why should our classrooms be any different?

Questions for Reflection & Discussion:

• How do you differentiate outside of your classrooms? What is the impact of your differentiation in the real world?
• In what ways can you begin to differentiate in your classrooms? What part of your day or class would allow you to be very intentional about your differentiated instructional moves?
• How does differentiating in classrooms and schools grow relationships?

The following is a recipe we love and hope you will, too. It even works when Sally comes to dinner!

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Sweet Potato Casserole

From the kitchen of: Caroline Beam by way of Jim Graham’s Farm Family Cookbook for City Folks. This book was a gift from Caroline’s brother – and for anyone who has a brother, you know they can be short on emotion. Caroline loves that he chose this book just for her, and now that he is becoming a cook, they collaborate!

Why is this recipe significant? Caroline says she goes back to this recipe again and again. It works well for small groups, large groups, nuts, no nuts, flour, no flour. And everyone in her family loves sweet potatoes so it’s a WIN. 

Recipe:

Mix mashed sweet potatoes, granulated sugar, melted butter, vanilla, eggs, and milk in a large bowl until well blended. Pour into a buttered 9 x 12-inch baking dish. For topping, mix brown sugar, melted butter, flour, and pecans in a medium mixing bowl with fork until well blended. Spread topping evenly over sweet potato mixture. Bake at 350 degrees for 30 minutes.