Practical food technology lessons can often feel rushed and organising starter activities can be tricky. TES partner Jan Harper shares a number of quick starter ideas to get pupils thinking before they pick up any pots and pans.

Class competition. Ask pupils to define the qualities a “chef of the week” should have. They can assess each other and vote on a class chef of the week once their dishes are served.

Guess the gadget. Display sections of kitchen utensils on PowerPoint slides (perhaps the ones that pupils will be using in the lesson) and ask them to guess what each one is.

Sickly feeling. Get pupils to discuss their experiences of feeling unwell after eating. What was the cause? How could it be resolved? What health and safety issues do they need to consider?

Adapt your recipe. Quick-fire questioning gets pupils to think how they could create a healthier version of their recipe, or adapt it for allergy-sufferers or a different audience. How do you make lasagne fun for kids? Or jelly and ice cream fit for a king?