Sushi Makin' Day

Yesterday at co-op, the 6th & 7th grade literature class that I am helping with made sushi rolls. The teacher likes to do an activity with each book we read, and we just finished reading The Master Puppeteer which is set in Japan. It was a lot of work but so much fun. You have to start with sushi rice, which is very very sticky. You spread it on a piece of nori - which is dried seaweed - the greenish-black stuff in the pictures.
We made urumaki rolls which are the kind with the rice on the outside. The rolls that have the seaweed on the outside are maki rolls.
The teacher provided all kinds of stuff - avocado, cream cheese, crab meat, shrimp, carrots, cucumber, sesame seeds - so they could fill it with whatever they wanted. It was interesting to see how much more interested and eager the girls were to try the new things than the boys.
I enjoyed the day so much, and I love working with this teacher. I can't help but think how lucky these kids are to get so much hands on learning, and opportunities to try new things. Even the ones who didn't like it will never forget it.
I got to curb the sushi craving beast within me! That was the best part of all.