My Favorite Melon

Materials

watermelon

cantaloupe

honeydew

poster board or other large paper

sticky notes

Instructions

l Set up food and blender in cooking center. Put bags of frozen fruit into bowls
because they may leak as they thaw.
What to Do
1. Give each child a bowl with a large spoonful of cream cheese. Discuss the
color of the cream cheese. Ask the children to sample a bit of the cheese and
to describe the taste.
2. Have the children help put a half cup of berries into blender with two
tablespoons of water or juice. Blend fruit (adult only) until it makes a puree
(adjust the amount of liquid as needed). Discuss the color of the puree. Ask
the children if the color changed in the blender.
3. Help the children pour a bit of puree into their cream cheese. Have the
children stir the puree into the cream cheese. Ask the children to describe
what is happening with the color of their cream cheese. Have them taste the
cheese and discuss what it tastes like with the fruit puree.
4. Experiment with more and less puree to see the darker and lighter colors.
5. Serve with bagels, crackers, or bread for snack. Let the children spread the
mixture themselves.
Assessment
To assess the children's learning, consider the following:
l Ask the children to describe what happened when they added the puree to
the white cream cheese.