Eat Your Science Homework~ REVIEW

 

Most of my Reviews I wouldn't call them Yummmmmmy.....but, this next one I sure can.  We are a Family that Loves to eat, so you can imagine our excitement when we heard that Ann McCallum Books was giving us a copy of Eat Your Science Homework ($16.95) for a Review.  The Best of both worlds for us, Science and Food! :)

Once we opened up and saw the actual book I was blown away by the artwork and quality of the book.  Kaden was most excited about the Atomic Popcorn Balls.  And I'm sad to say that we have not yet made those.....but we will be.  During the Review period Kaden was sick and he's still sick, we are going on 3 weeks now.  That being said we only attempted 2 of the Yummy Experiments/Recipes.  We have read the whole entire book though and here is a shot of the Table of Contents.
I haven't really went in any kind of order when it comes to teaching Kaden, we are a little unorganized in thoughts as far as subject matter and the order in which we teach it to him.  The other Kiddos had more of a schedule.  So, that being said he was impressed with the Scientific Method explained in the Discovering Delicious.  When I "discovered delicious" I found 50lbs....what happened?? :)  Kaden marveled at the fact that wheat he does every day actually has a name.  I have not gotten around to the formal name of  the Scientific Method, but Kaden is officially not deprived anymore.  He knows it, lives by it and all it well. :)  After you go through safety precautions you get to dive straight into the good stuff.

 
Even though we did not make the very first recipe of Atomic Popcorn Balls we did read through it and can not wait to enjoy both making and eating them soon.  Kaden did take Chemistry towards the end of last school year and this was a great review for him and once he's well, being able to use his hands and make something that he's familiar with in his head is something he will not soon forget.  That is one of the Main benefits I see with this kind of a book.

 


So, let me go over the two we did do.  The first one was the Loop, Whorl and Arch Cookies.  Of course we made the cookies and we also did the fingerprinting Science Sampler afterwards.  We needed sandpaper, tape and a pencil.  He was able to shave down the pencil to get a little bit of graphite for dusting.  I had him dust the plate before we placed the cookies on it and loads of finger prints shined dark gray.  He was shocked to see how a clean plate had been touched by many finger tips.  I used this opportunity to drive home the importance of Hygiene!!!  After he calmed down from all the potential cooties on this cookie plate he carefully placed clear tape over a few of the prints to lift them up off the plate.  And of course doing all this while working through the Scientific Method.  Kaden was mesmerized by the different loops, whorls and arches on our finger tips.  I honestly think he enjoyed this experiment more then eating the cookies. :)  He did have a little trouble with the directions for the cookies.  We didn't have any M&Ms so that was fine, but the whole place two cookies on top of another wasn't computing to him, I blame most of it on him not feeling well.  But, also being on the Spectrum causes him to see things in a different light sometimes.  And that's ok, we just modified it a little. :)

Oh my goodness, the next recipe we tried, we actually did 3 times....yes 3 times.  It was the Sedimentary Pizza Lasagna.  My two youngest Kiddos love all Rocks and Minerals.  So, once again Kaden was familiar with the topic right away.  Here you see the Mohs Scale of Hardness.  Explaining how Not all Rocks are created equally.  It compares the food needed in our recipe the same way.  He enjoyed this so much that he wanted to do one for Breakfast, Dinner and Dessert...and so we did.  Up first is the Breakfast Sedimentary lasagna.

 
Honestly, I don't think he would have ate that had he not been inspired by the book....Thank You Ann!!!  

The dinner version was more like the actual Recipe, he made that one with Mahala and Dad.  That one was super delicious, he was in charge of each layer....Mahala and Dad were just "Helpers" or I should say "Miners".

 The last variation of the Sedimentary Lasagna was for Dessert.  Yeah, this bad boy was just that....a BAD Boy, but very delicious.  Kaden said all Rocks should taste this good.  Dad and I had to confirm that he indeed had never ate a rock.  Just crazy Kaden talk. :)

At the very back of the book you will find a Science Review for each of the Recipes and a Glossary.  So, my thoughts on this book is that it's amazing, you get exactly what you need to understand each recipe and Scientific topic completely.  I didn't feel overwhelmed with a long list of ingredients, I actually had everything in my pantry already.  The format of the book itself is easy to read and understand.  The illustrations are out of this world cool and fun, they are sure to capture the eyes of most any Kiddo....even Kaden. :)  This book offers you a fun delicious alternative to your educational day.  If the Kiddos are having a rough morning or it's raining outside this book may be just what is needed to turn those frowns upside down.  Ann McCallum has many more books to try, we are definitely adding some to our Christmas list for sure.