Incredible India: The Spice Trail

I recently worked on spices with my students. I hate classes that deal only with grammar, vocabulary, composition etc. I feel cultural exchange is very important in modern classrooms. French students have a zest for discovering new cultures. The thing I love most about living in France is that you will have an audience for anything you want to share. India is of course a victim of many stereotypes but at the same time she invokes curiosity, dreams and mystery. I'm constantly trying new methods to introduce new vocabulary through interesting cultural sessions. In this lesson, I brought about 15 of my spice jars to class and I wanted the students to learn names of spices and their various uses. The goal: 

1. To understand the history of spices within India, identify the spice routes, etc
2. The benefits of these spices 
3. How to introduce spices in your diet 

In the beginning of the lesson, each one had to take a jar of spices. They had to identify the spice that was presented on the slide through the sense of smell. They enjoyed the lesson especially since they each received a piece of halwa for correct answers :) They were amazed not only by the number of spices India has but also by the amounts we use in our food! I hope this post can help others understand the rich history of India and try to understand the importance of spices for our health!