Co-op Lesson Plan, Week Nine
- Kathleen Ordinario
- 2 days ago
- 6 min read
I can hardly believe we made it to week nine! Our final week of Christmas Around the World felt a little bittersweet, knowing this would be our last time gathering together in our cozy classroom. For our final destination, we traveled to Switzerland, a country known for snow-covered mountains, chocolate, cheese and watches! We began, as always, with our world map. I told the kids this was our last “trip,” and together we found Switzerland tucked right into the heart of Europe. I could feel how far we had come as a group. The children were more confident now, quicker to raise their hands, eager to share what they remembered from past weeks.
One of the traditions we talked about was Advent calendar windows, a beloved Swiss custom. In some towns, families walk through their village each evening of Advent as one window is revealed at a time. Each window is decorated with a Christmas seen. The people paint elaborate snowy mountains or build a whole Nativity from cardboard and place it in their windows for people to see. Imagin walking through a cold Switzerland village waiting for the next window to light up!
We also learned that Switzerland is where the Red Cross was founded, a detail that brought depth and meaning to our lesson. I shared how the Red Cross began as a response to suffering and a desire to care for others, no matter who they were or where they came from.
Co-Op Lesson Plan
I have fourteen students, and our lesson is one hour long. I also have two helper teachers. As all you moms out there know, keeping the attention of fourteen 5–7-year-olds is a big challenge in itself. So, I deiced to break the lesson up into three parts, geography, Christmas traditions, and craft time. Each child would also take home the Christmas treats I made for them. Here is the co-op lesson plan I made, I hope you find it helpful!
I start every lesson with a name circle. Each student says his or her name and we repeat their name as a group. Hopefully we all know each other's names by the end of the semester!
Geography:
Look at the map of the world and ask, "how many contents do we have?" Sing the content song. Link to my world map
Give hints about the country we will be learning about. Challenge one of the students to find the country on the map.
Christmas Traditions:
Pick out three to four Christmas traditions unique to Switzerland.
Read from the curriculum and ask question comparing to our own Christmas traditions to those in Switzerland.
Show videos if appropriate. I showed six videos for Switzerland: Advent Window 7, Advent Window 17, Advent Window 18, The Birth of the Red Cross, The Founder of the Red Cross.
Craft:
Christmas theme craft, provided by the Gather 'Round curriculum or something that I came up with. (I came up with my own craft for this lesson)
Make your own gingerbread house
Supplies for the craft: Christmas Gingerbread House DIY Kit
Curriculum:
Recipes Around the World (I did not use the recipe book. Instead, I used a few recipes I found that would work better to make this cake travel friendly.)
Of course, there was the food. For our very last class, I decided to go big. I made a chocolate Yule log cake, rich and decadent, inspired by classic European Christmas desserts. It was an ambitious cake. Rolling, frosting, ganache the whole thing! I won’t lie I was a little nervous about making it. I had never made a rolled cake before. But this class deserved something special. Each child took home a slice, and watching their faces light up made every bit of effort worth it.
Recipe for Yule Log Cake:
Makes one Yule Log cake, serves 10-12
For the cake:
4 eggs, separated and at room temperature
150g (¾ cup) granulated sugar, divided
60g (¼ cup) coconut oil
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
¼ teaspoon salt
60g (½ cup) all-purpose flour
25g (¼ cup) unsweetened cocoa powder
½ teaspoon baking powder
Powder sugar, for dusting
For the Chocolate Italian Butter Cream:
1 egg, room temp.
1 egg yolk, room temp.
75g (6 tablespoons) sugar
21ml (1 1/2 tablespoons) water
119g (1 1/4 sticks) butter, room temp.
4oz chocolate chips, melted and cooled
1/4 tablespoon salt
1 tablespoon vanilla
1 teaspoon instant coffee
For the Chocolate Ganache
240g (1 cup) heave cream, hot
8oz chocolate chips
1 teaspoon vanilla
Method for the Cake:
Preheat the oven to 350F. Line a 12×17-inch rimmed baking sheet, with parchment paper.
In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment, beat the egg whites with ¼ cup sugar on high speed until stiff peaks form, about 5 minutes.
In another large mixing bowl, combine the egg yolks, remaining ½ cup sugar, coconut oil, vanilla, and salt. Beat on high speed until light and fluffy, about 2 minutes. Sift the flour, cocoa powder, and baking powder into the egg yolk mixture and beat on low speed just until combined.
Fold the egg whites into the egg yolk mixture in 3 parts, until no white streaks remain. Pour the batter into the prepared baking pan and smooth into an even layer.
Bake for 12 to 15 minutes or until the cake springs back when gently pressed.
While the cake is baking, lay out a clean smooth kitchen towel on the counter and dust generously with powder sugar.
When the cake comes out of the oven, run a knife around the edges to loosen the cake from the pan. Immediately flip the cake out onto the dusted kitchen towel. Carefully peel off the parchment paper and discard. Starting at one short end, roll up the cake with the towel into a tight log. Keep the cake rolled up until ready to fill.
Method for the Italian Chocolate Butter Cream:
Place the eggs and salt in the bowl of a standing mixer fitted with the whisk attachment and beat on medium speed until frothy, foamy, ribbony.
While that's happening, in a small saucepan over medium heat, bring sugar and water to a boil. Continue boiling until syrup reaches 238F on a candy thermometer (soft-ball stage).
With mixer running, add sugar syrup to the eggs in a stream, beating on high speed until no longer steaming, about 3 minutes.
Before adding the butter, I like to feel the bottom of the bowl to make sure that it's cool enough before adding the butter. If it's still warm, keep mixing until it's cool to the touch. Add butter one tablespoon at a time, beating until spreadable, 3 to 5 minutes.
Add vanilla, instant coffee, and chocolate and beat until smooth. If it curdles, keep beating until smooth.
Method for Chocolate Ganache:
Mix the hot cream, vanilla and chocolate chips together until shiny and smooth.
Assemble the Yule Log:
Carefully unroll the cake from the towel and fill it with the Italian chocolate butter cream. Roll the cake back up, it's ok if a bit of the filling comes out. Dust the cake with more powder sugar, wrap it in the towel, and place it in the fridge to setup for 1-2 hours.
Spoon on the ganache over the cake to completely cover it. Place the Yule log back in the fridge for at least 2 hours or overnight. Slice and enjoy!
As we wrapped up our lesson, I asked our familiar questions one last time: “What country did we learn about?” “Can you find it on the map?” Fourteen voices all answered confident and proud. Switzerland. Right there. Handing out the final treat, cleaning up the last bits of craft supplies, I felt a wave of gratitude. This class stretched me in ways I didn’t expect. It challenged me, humbled me, and filled my weeks with laughter and joy. Teaching these children and watching them grow has been one of the sweetest seasons of my year.
Thank you for following along on this journey. Christmas Around the World may be over for now, but the memories will linger on long after the decorations come down.
I'm teaching again during the Spring semester and this time I'm doing Fruits of the Spirit! Add yourself to my email list so you never miss what's next!
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