Summer Homeschool Doughnut Unit Study
Have some fun in your summer homeschool by celebrating National Doughnut Day on June 7! Check out this Homeschool Living for some great doughnut activities, recipes, and resources to incorporate into your own doughnut unit study.
The National Doughnut
Congress declared the first National Doughnut Day on the second Friday in June in 1938 to commemorate and celebrate the “Donut Lassies,” Salvation Army volunteers who established field bases near the front lines in France during World War I to support and encourage the US troops there. The Salvation Army also created the first doughnut day event in Chicago in 1938 as a fundraiser to help those in need during the Great Depression. Check out this century-old recipe and try your hand at making the simple treats that became a symbol of comfort and support to the American soldiers both during and after the war.
It’s fascinating that such a relatively simple treat became such a ubiquitous and popular American treat. Follow the humble doughnut from its multi-cultural origins in ancient civilizations, to the Dutch “oily cakes” brought to America in the 17th century, to the culinary delights they are today. The Smithsonian Institute even owns one of Krispy Kreme’s original Ring King Jr.s, which was once America’s most advanced automatic doughnut machine, along with four paper sacks labeled with the proper ingredients of Krispy Kreme doughnuts (though the secret recipe is locked securely in a safe in Winston-Salem)!
Sweet Doughnut Fun
Add one—or more!—of these seven fun doughnut activities from Mama Teaches to your doughnut unit study. Make your own apple ring “doughnuts” for a healthier snack, print free coloring pages for quiet-time activities for your littles, make a salt dough doughnut craft, and more.
If you read Laura Ingalls Wilder’s Little House books as a kid, some of the most memorable scenes were probably the descriptions of Mrs. Wilder’s near-constant efforts in the kitchen to feed the large family in Farmer Boy (or is that just me?) One of my favorites was Almanzo’s recollection of his mother making doughnuts—the “old-fashioned” kind that flipped themselves over, because she didn’t have time to stand there and flip over the “new-fangled” ring-style doughnuts by hand. Try making your own old-fashioned twisted doughnuts with this recipe from Literary Lunch. Making a new recipe is a great activity for summer homeschool, as the activity provides a fun, low-pressure way to practice math and science skills.
Check out these twenty-one cute and funny doughnut-themed books for a range of ages to add to your summer homeschool reading.
Megan Mora Fuentes
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