FACS or Fiction Workshop

Dusty and I had the privilege of participating in the regional FACS teachers' meeting in Geneseo, Illinois on Tuesday, April 5.  This very active group of FACS educators enthusiastically participated in all of the activities I'd planned for them.  They were a total delight to work with and we thoroughly enjoyed the day.  Thanks so much for inviting us to be a part of your event, ladies!

The teachers spent the morning participating in six different small group activities related to the theme of incorporating fiction into the FACS classroom.  The activities included food prepartion, sewing and repurposing projects.  Each activity related to one of the teen novels below.

Chocolate Chip Cookie Murder, Candy for Christmas

Close to Famous

Vintage Veronica

Hattie Big Sky

Lynn Visible 
A Thread of Truth



Another group decorated chocolate cupcakes (Thanks so much for baking them, Deb!) in a manner similar to those mentioned in the novel Close to Famous.  They were beautiful and yummy!



The other groups stitched quilt blocks and redesigned a t-shirt.



This group made fudge in the microwave similar to the recipe in Candy for Christmas.  Cooking in a library requires a certain amount of adaptability.  Minus a microwave-safe bowl, this group used a coffee can as a mixing bowl.  Good job, ladies!

My goal in asking the teachers to complete these simple projects was to demonstrate the connection between the skills taught in the FACS curriculum and selected works of teen fiction.  I hope that the teachers left this workshop inspired to investigate the benefits of making literacy a part of their FACS programs. 

Thanks so much for allowing us to share our "novel approach" to FACS!  Feel free to contact us if you have questions about FACS literacy or any of the other topics we discussed. 

Ramona