Where Passion Meets Plate: Exploring Culinary Arts in High School

What is your favorite part about homeschooling a high schooler? For me it is the interest-led electives. Part of the fun and freedom of homeschooling is that you can support your student in their interests and hobbies while providing them with high school credit. You may be wondering, how does this work?

I’ll give you an example. My son is a foodie. Fortunately for our family, he loves experimenting with different ingredients to find the perfect combination for a delicious meal. He will research recipes, make a list of needed ingredients, accompany me to the store, and spend hours in the kitchen preparing the meal. The entire process teaches him many important skills including understanding kitchen safety and sanitation, accurately following and modifying recipes, learning about the cost of ingredients, and creatively preparing a variety of dishes. Can that count as a high school course? Absolutely!

How does it work?

If your student shares this same interest then you can easily count this as a Culinary Arts elective. Typically, a high school elective is 60-90 hours for a half credit. The time that my son spends researching recipes, shopping, and preparing meals adds up quickly. This may be done during the typical “school day” or it might occur in the evenings or weekends. The time of day in which he completes his assignments is one of the many benefits of homeschooling.  

How do I write the course description?

Here is what I will use when it is time to list this course on my son’s transcript and provide a course description.

Course: Culinary Arts

• Description: (Student) researched recipes, made weekly meal plans, shopped for ingredients, performed kitchen safety and sanitation, and prepared meals. Throughout the course, (student) learned kitchen equipment identification and usage, recipe and measuring terminology, knife safety and handling, dry heat vs. moist heat methods, baking science, cultural food traditions, execution and presentation of a meal.   

• Method of Evaluation: (Student) was graded on preparation, recipe journal, and projects and presentations.   

• Grading Scale:  4.0

• Credits Earned: 0.5

There are many other interest-led electives that you can include on your student’s high school transcript. Does your student love robotics, music, gardening, painting, debate, or sports? These are just a few ideas to help you get started on your student’s interest-led electives.