So I Made Pikelets

Happy Shrove Tuesday everyone!

My class at school has been learning about things to do with places and maps and people and community and celebrations.  I love that Australia's multiculturalness means that all these international celebrations happen right in our cities, towns and communities.  Right where we are.  And that we get to travel the world via our kitchens!  A couple of weeks ago we made wonton soup, because it was Chinese New Year.

The kids thought that was the best thing ever.  Indeed, I got to church last week and a good friend said that's all she'd heard about all morning, from some of my kids and their parents - you know - the three or four families that would entail!

Last week I decided to prepare my students for Shrove Tuesday.  In their handwriting practise they wrote about it, so they know it's not just a day to eat pancakes.  There is a reason behind it.  Many mainstream protestant churches these days don't teach on or practise fasting or observe Lent, so many of my kids had no idea that Ash Wednesday was the beginning of Lent.  Or that Shrove Tuesday is about being shriven - a word that means the acts of confessing sin and being forgiven.   Nor did they know that Lent is traditionally a time of restraint and preparation to remember Jesus' death, and celebrate his resurrection, so the day before people clean out (or used to!) all the richer foods in their stores, hence pancakes.

Since we've already cooked as a class, and because it's really warm here in Melbourne, this week (about 33C/91F today), I decided I wasn't going to cook with the kids again this soon.  But mostly because it's really warm, and our Food Technology room is one of the few left with no air conditioning!

So last night I made pikelets for my class to share at morning tea time.  I'll take butter and jam, and they can have pikelets, or not.  So many of our celebrations have some kind of special food attached to them, and preparing for Lent is no different.  I love that we get to experience that in real life!  Hopefully they'll remember why we eat pancakes at this time each year.