Lesson Plan Title : Cross Contamination of Food

Age Range: Grade 6 through Grade 8 (Middle School)

Overview and Purpose: It is important for students to know how to be safe when they are cooking. In this lesson students will review what they know about cross contamination and ways they can help prevent it.

Objective: The student will be able to name three ways that food becomes cross contaminated.

Resources:

Cutting board

Paint that has been watered down

Activities:

Discuss food contamination with students. Use paint to demonstrate how bacteria can be passed from one item to another in the kitchen. Place an item in the paint and then place it on the cutting board. When you take the item off the board, wipe the board down with a paper towel. There will still be paint left on the board. Discuss with your students how they would clean the board fully.

Have students work in groups to brainstorm other ways that cross contamination can happen. Have them talk about what they would do to stop it. Discuss their answers as a class.

Wrap Up:

For homework, have students watch someone prepare food at home. They should write down as many ways cross contamination could occur as they can. Discuss what they saw the next day.