Students in seventh grade humanities recently presented their World Zone Café Menus to serve up cultural food knowledge and their research of the Columbian Exchange. 

Students worked in small groups to create a cohesive menu including appetizers, entrees, and desserts. Students' food choices were limited by ingredients, as students used their knowledge of how foods were shared before and during the Columbian Exchange.

Each group needed to have two foods with ingredients only from the Old World (Afro-Eurasia), two foods with ingredients only from the New World (North and Central America and islands of the Caribbean), and two foods that included ingredients from both Old and New Worlds.

The students reported that researching ingredients was a challenge, and some groups came up with creative menu items, including a B.L.T. (bacon, llama, and tomato) and pudding made with hazelnut milk. Menus were presented in class, and students had time to reflect on their role in their group. Overall, it was a success, and students enjoyed this creative assessment.