Food-Plan, Learn, Cook, Share, Taste & Enjoy! A Cooking Skills Project
Addressing unmet literacy and language needs through cooking.
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“This is my first time ever doing this activity and I loved it”- Learner
This project used cooking classes and budgeting exercises to help groups improve their literacy, language and numeracy skills.
Classes took place in the parents’ room at Queen of the Universe National School between September and November in 2024.
19 learners from a wide variety of backgrounds attended classes over six weeks.
Participants had a €15 budget per class to plan and cook meals. They used the MABS 101 Square Meals and Bored of Lunch cookbooks to prepare meals.
Learners tried new recipes every week, including recipes from their home countries.
A family literacy tutor from KCETB was the group facilitator.
Learners got a better understanding of the shopping, budgeting, and the planning involved in preparing healthy meals.
Improving literacy skills through cooking has had a very positive impact. Learners living in International Protection Accommodation Services (IPAS) centres are not allowed to cook, so this class was very helpful.
Some participants have started English for Speakers of Other Languages (ESOL) classes in Bagenalstown Family Resource Centre.
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Delicious meals cooked by learners.
This project was a collaboration between Queen of the Universe National School, Family Learning in Carlow Adult Literacy Service at Kilkenny Carlow Education and Training Board (KCETB) and Carlow Money Advice and Budgeting Service (MABS).
For more information about the project, please contact Helen Walsh, Regional Literacy Coordinator in Kilkenny Carlow ETB, at helenm.walsh@kilkennycarlowetb.ie
The Adult Literacy for Life Collaboration and Innovation Fund
The Collaboration and Innovation Fund supports projects for adults with unmet literacy, numeracy and digital literacy needs and projects that support organisations to be literacy friendly. The closing date for 2024 applications has now passed but keep an eye out for information on our 2025 fund which will be launched in December.
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