TRADITIONAL FOODS TRY-IT
To earn this Try-It do
four of the following activities including activity number one
Foods are
important to every culture. Everyone enjoys a good meal with family and
friends. Learn more about traditional foods and activities with this Try-It.
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“Picking” Information
Some
berries and plants are poisonous but many are tasty and healthy. Find out
which berries and plants or greens are edible. Ask an elder or another member
of the community that knows a lot about gathering foods
to go outside and to help you
learn the difference between poisonous and edible berries, plants, and greens.
Make sure you can tell the difference between poisonous and edible foods by
using your eyes and not your tummy!!
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A Berry Special Bracelet
Read a book about a traditional food in your culture, a good example for
Alaskan Girl Scouts is Berry Magic by Teri Sloat and Betty Huffmon. Now
pick colors that match the colors of berries you pick and make a bracelet
using pony beads. In
Alaska you can make a pretty bracelet with a blue bead to represent blue
berries, an orange bead for salmon berries, a red bead for cranberries and a
pink bead for rose hips.
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Food is
Special
Do
you and your family have a special meal or food that is specific to your
culture or heritage? That type of food
is called a traditional food. Ask your family and friends questions about why
this food is a traditional food and why it is important to them. Bring the
information that you gather back to your next troop meeting and teach and
learn about your traditional foods.
- A
Circle is Round…
In Inupiaq culture, when women and girls finish picking berries they
will sit down in a circle to eat a snack or lunch. By sitting in a circle
they can all see if any danger is coming toward the group. Plan a trip with
your troop or family to go berry picking. When you are done with your picking
sit down for a snack or lunch and remember to sit in a circle. Keep your eyes
open for animals, interesting views and other exciting sights. Then find
someone in your community that cannot go out berry picking and give them your
berries. Remember a Girl Scout is considerate and caring!
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Party-Time!
Most cultures have special meals they like to share with each other.
Can you think of a special meal or feast in your culture? In Alaska we like
to have potlucks and invite our friends, family and elders. Organize a potluck
with your troop; have everyone bring a traditional food dish and make a pretty
label for your dish. Include what the dish is, what culture it is from and
why it is a traditional food. Have fun and don’t eat too much!
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Map It
Adults
and girls use maps for all sorts of reasons: some maps are for roads, some for
places like the woods or tundra. Think of all the places that you and your
family go to gather traditional foods. Some examples are berry patches, fishing
holes and gardens. Draw a map of your favorite traditional food-gathering
place. Remember to put an easy to recognize place on the map too, like your
house or fish camp.
For
additional resources and information contact the Farthest North Girl Scout
Council
1-800-478-4782
(907) 456- 4782
Farthest
North Girl Scout Council
431 Old Steese Highway
Suite 100
Fairbanks, AK 99701
TRADITIONAL FOODS BADGE
To earn this badge
choose six of the following activities
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Techie Girls
Technology is all
around us! We use computers, telephones and cars daily. Think of ways that
you could use technology to gather traditional foods. Write down the methods
that you come up with and share them with your family and community. How does
technology make gathering food easier? Could it make it harder?
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What’s in a Name?
Do you fish for
Oncorhynchus Dermatinus, or ee-ka-loo-rouk (Chum Salmon) in the summer or
pick Asiqq (berries) in the fall? Write down all the traditional foods you
gather or eat, then find out the scientific name, common name, and any names
in other languages in your region. Also, find out how else the foods that you
gather can be used; can you use certain berries as dye or parts of salmon as
food for your dogs?
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Map it Fun!
Maps can be used for
many purposes. Using a G.P.S. (Global Positioning system) unit, map places in
your community focusing on traditional food gathering places and the
traditional name of that place. Remember to use your resources wisely: find
out if your family, school or community center has a G.P.S. unit that you can
use, also make sure you know how to use the G.P.S. correctly. You may also
want to ask an elder or other community member that knows a lot about food
gathering locations to help you.
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Dollars and Salmon
Families in Alaska eat food that they have gathered all year round. Talk to
your parents/guardians
and estimate how much traditional food you or your family eats in a week.
Then go to the grocery store and find out how much it would cost to buy
similar foods in a grocery store. Remember, that gathering traditional foods
may have hidden costs, such as the cost of gas for your four-wheeler.
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Traditional Song & Dance
Most cultures have traditional songs and dances. Learn a dance or song about
traditional foods. If you are having a hard time finding a dance or song to
learn, make one up. Once you have learned a dance or song pass that knowledge
on to the rest of your troop or a group of younger girls. It’s time to
perform!
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Beyond Apples and Bananas
Having a balanced diet is important for your health and well-being. Some menus
are very well balanced
with food that is healthy and tasty, but some menus are not balanced and have
too much junk food. Plan a menu using only traditional foods. Make sure that
your menu is balanced, nutritional and tasty. Then with adult supervision
cook your meal and serve it to your family or friends.
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Operation Potluck
Hold a potluck with traditional foods. Make it a community service project.
Who in your community would appreciate being invited to a potluck? Do you
have elders in your community that really like akutaq (Eskimo ice cream) but
can’t go pick berries?
Have each member of your troop make a traditional
food dish. Create labels for each dish. On the label include the traditional
name, and common name of the food. Explain why the food is a traditional food
and how you prepared the dish.
My Healthy and Tasty Menu
by Allison I. |
|
Dried fish with seal oil and
greens or salad |
|
Herring Eggs plain |
|
Juice Cranberry |
|
Whole wheat toast with butter |
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Play With Your Food
Many foods can be used
in multiple ways. For example onion leaves and octopus ink can be made into
fabric dyes. Research ways to make traditional foods into a product that can
be used to make an art project. Apply the knowledge you gained through your
research and actually make a dye or other art supply out of a traditionally
gathered product. Take the art supply you have created and make a beautiful
piece of artwork.
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Food Around the World
Each culture has special foods. Is there another culture or country that you
have always wanted to know more about? Here’s you chance! Pick another country
or culture.
Find out what food this culture eats and why it is a traditional food for that
culture. Now pick out a food that you have not tried before and try preparing
it in a traditional method. Keep in mind some important questions that you
should ask yourself before, during and after making your meal. Where can I
find a recipe? What do I need to do to prepare this food safely? How will I
get the ingredients that I need? Did I enjoy this food? Is it something that I
would like to make again?
10.
“Pick Your Own” Picnic
Challenge your troop or family to have a “pick your own” picnic. During the
summer or fall go to a location that
you know is rich in berries, edible plants and greens or animals. Spend time
picking or catching your
food. Prepare
it and have a tasty picnic.
11.
Preserve
Me, Preserve You!
Most of the food that
you buy in a grocery store is preserved in some way. Sometimes food is canned
or put in a jar and other times it is dried or cooked. Preserving food is an
important skill to have when working with foods gathered out of the natural
environment. Contact a local food preservation expert such as a cooperative
extension agent or elder and ask them to help you learn how to preserve your
traditional foods. Make sure to follow all safety procedures
outlined by GSUSA in Safety-Wise and any additional
safety procedures outlined by your food preservation expert.
For
additional resources and information contact the Farthest North Girl Scout
Council
1-800-478-4782
(907) 456- 4782
Farthest North Girl Scout
Council
431 Old Steese Highway Suite 100
Fairbanks, AK 99701