My students were super excited this week to make Pumpkin Fluff.  I try to incorporate monthly cooking activities into my lesson plans because it is a fun way to target following directions, sequencing, requesting, learning new vocabulary concepts, answering questions, and turn-taking with peers.  Here are 3 Fall recipes that you might want to try with your students: Pumpkin Fluff, Caramel Apple Nachos, and Harvest Trail Mix.

First I get all the material and ingredients ready and I go over the vocabulary terms before we even start cooking.  For my students who are non-verbal I have the student point to the items to make sure they know the vocabulary terms.  I might hold up the bowl and the spatula and ask the student to “touch the bowl” I have my verbal students name the different material and ingredients used in the recipe.

The students take turns completing different steps of the recipe.  I continue to model the order of the ingredients while the students are adding the different items.  For example- “first pumpkin pie filling, second vanilla pudding”.

For my higher functioning students I try to make it a little more challenging.  For example, when adding the cinnamon I have a tablespoon, teaspoon, and ½ teaspoon measuring utensils on the table.  I have the students decide which spoon to use and why.  I like that students to have to problem solve and refer back to the recipe to decide how much of an ingredients is needed instead of me just setting it up for them.

The students thought it was fun to take turns using the hand mixer!

This look delicious!

Have your students decide which is his/her favorite dipper!  I had my students create a chart to see which dipper was the favorite.

After the kids finish eating the Pumpkin Fluff I had them complete the comprehension questions.  Use either the visual questions or written questions depending on the student’s ability.  Have the students refer back to the recipe to help answer the questions.  I even had one of my groups write a “How To” paragraph which explained the step involved in making the Pumpkin Fluff.  We worked on including those transition words such a “first, next, and finally” in the paper.  This activity was perfect to work on those writing skills which can be so challenging.

Follow-up Sequencing Task.  Cut out the 4 pictures – Pumpkin Pie Filling, Vanilla Pudding, Cinnamon, and Cool Whip.  You can have your students cut out their own pictures if you want to work on some fine motor skills.  The occupational therapist I work with has my younger students use adapted scissors to work on cutting out the pictures.  Then have the kids place the pictures in the correct order and glue them on the page.  If the students need some additional prompting you can hold up the items again with the numbers on them or refer back to the recipe.

Hope your students enjoy Pumpkin Fluff as much as mine do!

• Author
• Recent Posts

Sarah Allen, MA CCC-SLP

Latest posts by Sarah Allen, MA CCC-SLP (see all)

• Vehicle Themed File Folder Activities - May 18, 2021
• Counting and Sorting Vehicle Fun - May 4, 2021
• What Color is the Vehicle? Adapted Book and Free Vehicle Themed Bingo Games - April 20, 2021