American Centuries

Pocumtuck Valley
Memorial Association

American Centuries > Lessons > History Lessons By Teachers > Toast!

Toast!

Details

Author
Jackie Land
Topic/Subject Area
Food, Cooking, Beverage, Alcohol; Home Life, Household Items, Furniture
Historical Era
Colonial settlement, 1620–1762, Revolutionary America, 1763–1783, The New Nation, 1784–1815, New Millennium, 1990–Present
Grade Level
Elementary (K–5)
Creation Date
2010
Last Revision Date
2024

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About This Lesson

Summary and Objective

Students will understand that people from long ago loved to eat toast just like people do today. Long ago, the tools and the process to make toast were different. Students will demonstrate their understanding by observing, describing, and listing the similarities and differences between how toast was prepared today with past procedures. The comparison will include both how the tool available was used and the person’s “roll” in the toast-making process.

Materials & Resources

Collection Items

Teaching Plan

  1. The teacher models making toast with her/his electric toaster from home using the following steps. As the students observe this procedure, the teacher models “thinking aloud” during each step providing verbal information to students about what is being done.
    1. Plug in toaster – “I need to plug my toaster in so that the electricity will make my toaster work.”
    2. Place bread in toaster – “In goes the bread.”
    3. Adjust darkness – “Hmm…Do I want my toast to be light, dark and really toasty or medium. I think I’ll move this dial to make it extra dark and toasty today.”
    4. Press lever/button to start toaster – “Down goes the lever. I can tell my toast is cooking because I can see the inside is getting red and hot. I think I’ll go read some of my book while I wait for the toast to finish.”
    5. Remove toast when it pops up – “Oh, I heard the toast pop up! Ah, it’s ready! I’ll just pull out the toast and get ready to eat.”
  2. The class will discuss the toast making. The teacher prompts the students with the questions “What did the “tool” do to help make the toast?” “What work did the person do to make the toast?” Ideas shared are listed on a chart. The ideas will be listed along the left side of the chart paper. The teacher places the word “Now” on the top of the chart, stating this is how we make toast now.
  3. The teacher shows students the picture of the Toasting iron from 1790-1800. She/He tells students that this tool was used to make toast long ago.
  4. With an actual toasting iron or 3-D cardboard model, the teacher will demonstrate the toast making process using a pretend fireplace and flames. The teacher models the following steps. As the students observe this procedure, the teacher models “thinking aloud” during each step providing verbal information to students about what is being done.
    1. Place in bread – “In goes the bread.”
    2. Place toasting iron in an ideal spot near heat source – “I need to move my toasting iron near the fire so it can start to toast. This place seems too far from the flame to toast, I better move it closer. Oh, I think this spot is too close and my toast might burn…here is a perfect spot to toast my bread.”
    3. Watch the toast and wait for toast to be toasted on the first side – “I need to watch my bread to make sure it gets toasted just right. I’ll just watch and wait for it to be toasted the way I like it. I’d really like to go and read my book, but if I leave the toast too long it will burn. I guess I’ll wait and watch it.”
    4. Move the swivel with a cloth or poker to cook the second side – “Oh, the first side of my toast looks good. Now I need to move the swivel so I can turn it around and toast the other side. I’ll get a towel to turn it. This iron sure gets hot next to the fire.”
    5. Watch and wait for toast to be toasted on the second side – “I’ll just watch my toast and wait for it to finish.”
    6. Pull iron away from heat source – “Oh, I can tell from looking at it that the toast is all done. I better move this toasting iron away from the fire so I don’t burn myself. The fire feels so hot.”
    7. Remove toast – ” I have to be really careful when I take this toast out. Oh is that toasting iron hot!”
  5. The class will discuss the toast making. The teacher prompts the students with the questions, “What did the “tool” do to help make the toast?” “What work did the person do to make the toast?” Ideas shared are listed on the right side of the chart and labeled under the words “Long Ago.”
  6. The teacher will review items listed on the chart with the students.
  7. The class will have a discussion about what was the same or different between how we make toast now and long ago.