While the rest of the school explored the world of dinosaurs, Year 1 took a brief detour — diving into the sights, smells, and tastes of Bangladesh through a special classroom café experience.

To round off their half-term Geography topic on Bangladesh, Mrs Ryder transformed the Year 1 classroom into a vibrant Bangladeshi café. Pupils were invited to sample three traditional dishes:
🍛 Red Lentil, Chickpea and Mung Bean Sprout Usal Curry
🍠 Pumpkin and Potato Malai Kari
🍪 Sweet Kalijira Biscuits

A particularly special element of the experience was that the children had grown the mung bean sprouts themselves in the Year 1 garden — a wonderful opportunity to see the journey from garden to table and to connect their learning in a meaningful and tangible way.

The pupils approached the tasting session with open minds and eager palates, rating each dish as “super spicy”, “yummy”, “so-so”, or “not-for-me.” With lots of enthusiastic responses — and even some requests for second helpings — the session was a huge success.

Mrs Ryder also introduced the children to the wide range of spices used in traditional Bangladeshi cooking, encouraging them to smell, describe, and discuss the ingredients and flavours. They reflected on the experience by writing restaurant-style reviews, combining their Geography, literacy, and sensory learning in a fun and memorable way.

While the café may have deviated from the dinosaur theme of the week, it perfectly embodied the spirit of Cross Curricular Week — using creative and hands-on learning to engage pupils in new ways and bring the wider world into the classroom.

A big thank you to Mrs Ryder for such a flavourful and inspiring end to the term!