Food & Nutrition
As you approach the department, there are often the unmistakable sumptuous smells of fresh baking, the heady spice of cinnamon from freshly made swirls, or the comforting aromas of baked focaccia. Our philosophy is to give our girls the knowledge and skills to cook healthily with a wide range of local seasonal ingredients; dishes may include everything from a sweet potato and lentil dhal, to a traditional lasagne or a spinach and feta filo. Occasionally, we turn a blind eye to healthy eating and some of our sweet favourites include panna cotta with rhubarb coulis, lemon crunch flan and chocolate profiteroles.
Devon is a place filled with local culinary talent as well as excellent produce, and we try to take advantage of this whenever we can. Notable visiting guests have included celebrity chefs, local producers, talented parents and even a lesson on sculpting with chocolate. We never cease to be amazed by the talent and enthusiasm of our girls. We hope that as well as providing a fun environment, we can set them up with skills that they can use for life.
From Year 5 onwards we encourage students to develop an enthusiasm for and understanding of Food and Nutrition skills, giving them the opportunity to develop their knowledge and understanding of human nutrition, diet and health throughout life; to gain an awareness of global responsibilities as consumers; to enable them to discover the nutritional, physical, chemical and sensory properties of food; and to develop their manipulative, organisational and high-order practical skills for planning and preparing meals and making food choices.
We achieve this using a wide variety of teaching methods within the department, from demonstrations and taste testing to trips and expert input, and making and taking delicious food products home to share. Students develop confidence and competence from handling and producing food products in the purpose built Food and Nutrition teaching room.
Food Preparation and Nutrition is an exciting GCSE course from AQA with a very strong practical element on a weekly basis, enabling students to investigate a wide variety of nutritional and health issues. During the course we build upon the work we have completed in Year 9 and investigate the relationship between nutrition, food choice, diet and health. We aim to equip students with a range of life skills including organisation, management and practical skills, problem solving and decision making, all in the context of a relaxed and fun environment.
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