The finishing line of a marathon is emotional. Is it because of the feeling of achievement? Or being at the end of a (painful) journey? Or something else?
We have described each Sprint as a marathon. Now, we entered the last week—Week six. The finishing line on Friday: The Chemistry & Cooking Exhibition.
In the spirit of Eagle’s cooking, imagine this week as a multi-course dinner:
Amuse-bouche
Cocoa farm trip, Sports Day and Ms. Caryn’s Surprise
Appetizers
Elementary School (ES) Eagles’ Preparation
Entrée
Middle School (MS) Eagles’ Gaming Up
Main Course 1
ES Exhibition; cooking & presentation
Main Course 2
MS Exhibition; flash presentation & a twisted high stake cooking
Dessert
Eagle Times, Reflection, Celebrations and a Special Chef’s Hero Sharing
Amuse-bouche: Cocoa farm trip, Sports Day and Ms. Caryn’s Surprise
The week started with a variety of fun activities. We had an excursion to Lee’s Cocoa Farm on Saturday. Followed by Sports Day and unraveling of the Elementary School’s Surprise on Tuesday. Like an amuse-bouche, it offers a glimpse of chef’s approach to the art of cuisine life in Acton Academy.
We will let the picture do most of the talking for these three plates.
Cocoa Farm Trip
The Eagles had a hot & fun day at Lee’s Cocoa Farm. They immersed themselves in the process of bringing cocoa trees to chocolate.
Malaysia Homeschooling Network Sports Day
Eagles participated wholeheartedly in the Sports Day organized by Auntie See Ming & Uncle Sim.
It was a day of sportsmanship, fun, and medals!
Ms. Caryn’s Surprise
There was a surprise that was revealed last Friday. These were the clues:
It’s colorful
It’s something about Ms Caryn
It’s from your heart
It’s something where you got to use your memories
It’s something from love
It’s something about gratitude
It’s something beautiful
It got the Eagle’s guessing!
“I know the answer. Ms. Caryn must be hiding in the school!”
“Yah. Just now I heard the sound “umm..”. It sounds like Ms. Caryn. It must be Ms. Caryn!”
The reality was that Ms. Caryn, our ES studio guide, is away. She was attending a wedding in Bali. But the Eagles thought otherwise! The surprise was revealed at 2.15pm—a 15-minute session to make Thank You cards for Ms. Caryn!
Turned Monday, the Eagles gave the same series of clues to Ms. Caryn. They were excited, so much so that they remembered every clue by hear.
“Ms. Caryn, can you guess what is the surprise?”
Then, on Tuesday afternoon, the Eagles revealed their cards to her. They had her read every single piece of their artwork.
Now let’s talk real work :))
Appetizers: Elementary School Eagles’ Preparation
The Cooking and Chemistry Exhibition was going to be tough. This would be the first joint Exhibition between the two Elementary School and Middle School studios. Two rounds of cooking, two rounds of presentation, two rounds of judging, one round of shopping; plus a gamification twist. All of it in a two-and-a-half hour time slot.
So, with this information, what could an Eagle do? Practice, practice, and practice!
During the day, the ES Eagles rehearsed and gave feedback on their presentation. During the evenings, many practiced their recipes in their home kitchen. Their parents became their guinea pigs, chief encourager, and kitchen host. The Eagles’ motivation is positive, natural and intense—competition, charming the audience, and just doing the best work. This beats any Chemistry examinations.
However, the ES Eagles were chaotic. Many played at every chance they could. Rehearsals were not taken seriously. One Eagle even pulled out from the exhibition.
Fail to plan, plan to fail.
Could the ES Eagles even have an exhibition? The Eagles redeemed as they approached the last day of preparation. Some Eagles burned the midnight oil while others decided to put an end to all the immediate gratifications.
“Ms. Caryn, look at my new poster. I had to stay up late to get this done. I shouldn’t be so distracted throughout the week.”—one 8-year old Eagle said.
By Friday morning, the Eagles fully appreciated the seriousness of this exhibition. They pulled themselves together to a final morning rehearsal. One which was intentional, full effort and something “exhibition worthy”. A total change from the last few days.
Entrée: Middle School Eagles’ Gaming Up
For the Middle School Eagles, we turned up the heat. Their weeks’ building to the exhibition had been set as a high stake game challenge. We will explain the intricacies of this game later, but we can assure you one thing—it is crazy hot. Think habanero and cili padi fired together!
So, what was the effect of this fire of gamification?
The Eagles prepared intensely. Few stayed overnight at their teammate’s home to maximize their chances. Nothing less than 100% effort in the quest of the perfect dish and a successful exhibition.
Main Course 1: ES Exhibition; cooking & presentation
The first joint exhibition kicked off with our most important supporters arriving—Eagle’s parents. Knowing how food ticks emotions, one Eagle offered cheese sticks as a welcoming snack. The excitement of food, glorious food was brewing in the air.
“Welcome to Cooking & Chemistry Exhibition. We will be cooking a storm!”
After introductions, the ES Eagles started their cookout while the MS Eagles had the Flash Presentation.
ES Eagles prepared dishes, based on their chosen recipes. They had been plotting and improvising these for more than a week.
- Team 1: Butter beer, Carbonara papardelle, Salad boat with rosella agar-agar
- Team 2: Orange soda, Pineapple fried rice, Marshmallow fudge
- Team 3: Cheesy pizza bread, Fruit sushi
Every Acton Academy exhibition is an Eagle-led event. This was no different. Eagles worked hard to ensure that they could confidently execute their recipes. But the kitchen proved to be a tricky ground for few parents.
“Parents, please step back and let the Eagles have fun :))!”
Ms. Caryn reminded why we have these exhibitions in the first place. It’s about the Eagles, demonstrating their learning to the community and the public. It is not the result that matters. Instead, what matters is the process. The process of bringing their learnings in action, the process of showcasing their work to a stranger, and most importantly the process of possible failures.
Next, it was presentation time! Not the presentation of the dishes, but the presentation of the ES Eagles’ learnings in Chemistry. They shared facts and stories of atoms, molecules, liquid, solids and even periodic tables. Most importantly, they illustrated these concepts using their own words and actions!
“Imagine we are molecules. If we are in solid form, we hug each other tight. And when we are in liquid form, we hold hands together. For gas, we are dancing around, bouncing at each other!”
“Actually the experts got it wrong. The taste receptors are everywhere in our tongue.”
Armed with the knowledge of basic food chemistry, the guests entered the judging round. The ES Eagles creation were displayed in the table. Aroma. Color. Excitement. Made lovingly by a bunch of 6–9 years old.
6 weeks ago, many ES Eagles were first-time chefs. Could you believe that they actually made all these from scratch?!
Daniel, a trained chef intelligently investigated the food. He provided Eagles encouragement and feedback. As the other judges sampled the food, the Eagles shared stories of how they chose these recipes and cook them.
“Watching a professional like Daniel, judge and give expert advice to our kids was like watching our kids being a participant in Master Chef.”—a parent.
Team 1 won the round. The combination of an awesome piece of starter (salad bowl), balanced flavors from the pappardelle, and the quirkiness of a Harry Potter inspired butter beer stole the limelight.
The other teams also received raved reviews. Guests were impressed, especially what these young Eagles pulled off. Honestly, dear readers… when did you start cooking?
The best part was when the Eagles get to finally taste their own creations. Everything was gobbled up quickly.
Actually, the ES Eagles had it easy. Let see what’s serving from the MS Eagles.
Main Course 2: MS Exhibition; flash presentation & high-stakes cooking
As the ES Eagles adjourned outside for a cookout, the MS Eagles punched their Flash Presentation.
What is a Flash Presentation? Imagine a flambé—burst of flames, high intensity, and flamboyant! Let me give you the details. Multiple rounds of presentation. 30 seconds each round; one Chemistry & Cooking topic; judged by two MIT graduates with no mercy. Yes, no kidding on the 30 seconds. Neither on the MIT graduates.
The result? A punchy and succinct explanation, illustrated with clarity within that precious 30 seconds. No room for preparation errors. No room for umms or slippages. No room for stage fear. Every single word and movement of the presentations had to be executed with precision, much like handling a flambé!
The points from the judges were converted into credits for ingredient purchases and extra cooking time. Now you realized why the MS Eagles were working so hard?
Time and money were literally at stake.
One Eagle even pulled her way with time-lapse animation:
After 8 rounds of presentations, the points were calculated and converted to both time and shopping money.
The MS Eagles could only cook with the ingredients purchased from the shop. They had to adapt to limited resources.
Rain. When you least want it.
It’s like rain on your wedding day…
We had been blessed with fantastic weather for the last six exhibitions, which we had it indoors. This was the first time we had activity outdoors. Yet, it rained!
Ironic. But it happens. The most important question: “What are you going to do about it?” We adapted. The entire outdoor kitchen setup was transferred quickly to our indoor kitchen, and the MS Eagles just made do with the adjustment. Tighter spaces, wet floors and limited ventilation.
Thank you the community for coming together to help the Eagles continue their exhibition. When the rain started, some ES Eagles were almost done with the dishes. The parents supported in the right way—holding an umbrella silently and letting the Eagles complete their dishes.
There were other hiccups, such as lack of ingredients. One Eagle had to find a new recipe based on milo powder for her chocolate mousse. Frantic improvisation, but that’s what you would expect in high-stake cooking.
The judging round was similar to the ES Eagles. Surprisingly, it was stiff competition—two teams came neck-to-neck and won first prize.
Well, a frantic high-energy day led to hungry stomachs. The elegantly plated sushi, the just-right salmon carbonara, mushroom bruschetta with runny eggs, nasi lemak… the guests and Eagles gobbled up everything in minutes.
The Exhibition, despite the rain, was a success. Six weeks ago, many Eagles started with little or no cooking experience. Some never held a knife before. Some could not differentiate between salt and sugar. Some never cooked a Maggi mee before. Never did we expect Eagles to cook such a storm. Never did we expect Eagles learn chemistry this way.
But they did. Thank you for the rich and meaty main courses, served by our 21 Eagles.
Dessert: Eagle Times, Reflection, Celebrations and a Special Chef’s Hero Sharing
We closed the Exhibition with the last piece of gift—The Eagle Times. Here’s an accumulation of the writings by the Eagles. The ES Eagles published their recipes, while the MS Eagles gave critiques of their selected restaurants around TTDI.
Here’s a PDF copy.
Like all Sprints, we reserved the last hours for reflection and celebrations.
“We gotta take responsibility for our own education. Not let parents intervene and help.”
“We will only learn if we are allowed to fail.”
The maturity of the Eagles shined through in the last moments of the Sprint.
A tiring week. A fruitful week. Something worth celebrating for! Eagles blew off steam with 15 minutes of game time!
Just when you thought the Sprint was going to end. We had the finale: a hero sharing by one of the best chef in Malaysia. Chef Darren Chin, the chef/ owner of DC Restaurant, shared his challenges and the struggles of starting a restaurant, as well as few timeless advice. His journey embodies a true Hero’s Journey.
“Finding a calling is hard work. You got to give your 100% in time and effort to get there.”
But such journey has its twist and turns. He shared the story of a Taiwanese chef who recently decided to close his restaurant (considered the very best in Singapore) and return his Michelin stars.
Discussions of Malaysian and French cuisine, cooking, celebrity chefs, education, and even foreign languages filled the free-flow 40-minutes Q&A session.
Chef Darren, Thank you for taking the time to have a conversation with the MS Eagles.
The finishing line
So, why is the finishing line of a marathon emotional? It is emotional because it is meaningful, especially to a runner who trained hard. There’s meaning from a sense of belonging by pursuing a common goal (together with other runners). There’s meaning from a sense of purpose because the milestones and challenges are clear and intrinsic. There’s meaning because one could tell a story that shaped an identity (of a runner). A story—you have read all the way through—that is memorable and pack with all flavors, including umami!
And that is an Acton Academy KL Sprint for you. The End.
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