LAKE CHARLES, La. (AP) - COVID-19 and hurricane damage have forced students and faculty at Saint Louis Catholic High School to get creative in their hands-on learning. Under the direction of Barbara McHale, family and consumer science teacher, outdoor cooking and grilling has been the focus of this semester’s instruction.
Like much of the rest of the campus, the school’s usual family and consumer science classroom is not useable due to hurricane damage. “The school purchased some grills through donation; so that’s how we’re learning how to cook, bake on grills, do all sorts of different food on the grills,” McHale said.
In addition to the limited space, this year’s class is limited in the types of activities it can engage in to help mitigate the potential spread of COVID-19. “Anything the students make they have to make it just for themselves. I can’t, say, make a big pot of chili and everybody have some…(But) as long as it can be individual and no one else touches what we’re doing then that’s how we manage cooking.”
Students at St. Louis are encouraged to do service projects and McHale worked with her class to find a way to put their new cooking skills to use. “I felt we’ve received so much from our community, through the state and even out of state in the means of monetary donations, supplies and labor that it was time for the students to come up with a service project.”
The class settled on serving local animals who have also experienced the effects of post-hurricane life. “Even the animals have gone through trauma…After all, we’re all God’s creatures - humans as well as pets,” McHale said.
The class completed a research unit on food safety for animals and settled on a peanut butter, carrots and whole wheat flour treat for the dogs and a similar snack with tuna and salmon for the cats. McHale said the innovative shift in curriculum is perhaps one of many blessings that have come out of the turbulence of 2020.
“There have been a lot of blessing that has come out of this and one of things is that students are learning to cope with what’s presented in front of them..they’re learning to use what they have.”
Students worked on the treats over the course of three class periods and delivered the treats to Hobo Hotel and Cydi’s Adoption Dogs & Brima Strays. Dharma Brassieur, an 11th grader at SLC, assisted with the delivery of the treats.
Brassieur’s family regularly fosters animals in preparation for their adoption. After her most recent volunteer visit to the Calcasieu Parish Police Jury Animal Services And Adoption Center, she says caring for abandoned animals may be more important than ever now.
“They found dogs in fields, tied to a tree. People have all this chaos and they kind of forget about animals. So, I definitely think the animals have suffered as well.”
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