Double or More

Goal: Adjust a recipe for a large group

Preparation

Decide on a recipe and how many times to increase it.

List the ingredients on a large sheet of paper. Leave room to write in the amounts for the increased recipe, but don’t fill them in.

1. Figure out how many of each

This recipe makes enough playdough for one person. To make enough for eight, we’ll need eight times the amount of each ingredient.

Assign each pair one or two ingredients to increase.

Young children find their answers by measuring out amounts.

Older children find the answer in their heads and explain how they did it. They check by measuring.

Children come up and fill in the larger recipe with the increased amounts.

2. Make the recipe!

Mix the ingredients and enjoy the results.

Variations

Eat Around the World (Grades K, 1, 2)

Children find out about a traditional food and make enough for everyone.

Bubbles Galore (Grades K, 1, 2)

Observe and experiment with bubbles by making your own bubble soap. This recipe is from http://familycrafts.about.com.

Making Half (Grades 3, 4)

Find a recipe that serves six or more. Challenge children to adjust the ingredients to make half, or just enough for two people.

 

Books and Other Resources

Everbody Cooks Rice (Grades K, 1, 2)
Dooley, Norah. Minneapolis, MN: Carolrhoda Books, 1991.

Honest Pretzels (Grades 3, 4)
Katzen, Mollie. Berkeley, CA: Tricycle Press, 1999.

 

Spotlight

From repeated addition to multiplication

Multiplication is a “short cut” for adding over and over again. As children gain experience with combining amounts and finding the total, they see that multiplication provides a faster result:

Connections

Proportional thinking

You’ve heard people say, “You’re blowing it out of proportion.” Things get out of proportion when one part gets much bigger than the others. In this activity, children keep the recipe in proportion, as they increase each ingredient by the same multiple. Proportional relationships play a role in many everyday contexts, such as mixing plant food, cooking (as long as you increase or decrease proportionally, the recipe generally still tastes the same), and keeping track of calories (tripling the calories if you eat three cupcakes; burning 20 calories for every minute on the treadmill).

Return to the activity

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