Earlier this month at our Special Education site in Guatemala, we had our first official cooking class with the students! You may be wondering– what’s so exciting about a cooking class? Well, we believe that teaching these skills can have a long-term impact on the community and on the lives of the students. The heart behind having a cooking class at our Special Education site is to teach our students skills that can help them build confidence. And we believe that if we teach the students how to make different treats, there’s a chance that they can use it as a way to bring home income for their families!

The class is led by an instructor from Intecap, a company based in Antigua that the leadership of the site sought out. By the end of the program, each student will receive a diploma that they can proudly put on display in their homes.

Our first cooking class was a hit! Not only was it our first, but we also had four girls from Denver and all the volunteers joining us too. The students came dressed in black pants and shoes and a white shirt, most also brought a hair net and an apron. Each one was super excited about the afternoon. The instructor had the students measure out the various ingredients for the plantain pancakes. The students even helped slice the plantains. Before mixing everything together we had bowls of ingredients prepared. It looked like a cooking show! Us adult helpers supervised and assisted when needed, but overall the students were fairly independent. Once everything was mixed together, small groups of four or six students and helpers entered the kitchen to fry the treats. The students took to flipping the pancakes in the skillet with glee.

At the end of the day, when everything was cleaned-up, we set up chairs in an oval like shape and partook in our work. But we cannot forget that presentation is key! Plates were served with a couple of pancakes topped with drizzled sweet cream, powder sugar sprinkled, and cinnamon dashed. The treats were paired with a refreshing glass of horchata. No one had a negative word to say as the pancakes all of a sudden vanished off their plates. Class number one was a huge success!

Thank you for your continued partnership with Students International and for helping make things like this be possible!