California Career and Technical Education Standards

• HTR.FS.3.1 Know the personal qualifications, interests, aptitudes, knowledge, and skills ne...
• HTR.FS.3.2 Understand the scope of career opportunities and know the requirements for educa...
• HTR.FS.9.1 Understand the characteristics and benefits of teamwork, leadership, and citizen...

California Academic Content Standards (Reinforced)

• ELA.9-10.R.CAGT.2.5 Extend ideas presented in primary or secondary sources through original analysis...3

• Who is Bobby Flay? - Hooks / Set

  Who is your favorite "cooking personality" on television?  Why?

  Do you know who Bobby Flay is? What is he known for?

  Take a guess on how Bobby Flay became a chef

  • Bobby Flay Article [ Go to Site ]
• Read Article "Finding Success" - Check Understanding

  Have students read the article about Bobby Flay "Finding Success"

  As they read, have them answer the following questions:

  1) Why did Flay drop out of high school? What did he plan to do?  (he didn't like school / he planned to hang out with his friends)

  2) When did his "hanging out" come to an end? (when his dad told him to get a job and he didn't, so his dad put him to work in a restaurant he owned)

  3) What was the "unexpected" thing that happened to Flay when he was working at the restaurant? (he started looking forward to going to work)  Why do you think this was an important part of his future? (answers could be along the lines of: loving what you do makes you work harder for it, looking forward to your job might mean that you are in the right place, etc)

  4) What did Flay have to do before he could go to culinary school? (pass a high school equivalency test)  Why do you think this is a requirement?

  5) Several times Flay mentions learning and achieving as motivational factors that got him excited about culinary school.  Why do you think these are motivational?

  6) When did Flay "know" he was a chef? (when he went to the restaurant where he worked on the day it was closed "just to cook")

  7) Give 3 examples of how Flay's passion for cooking shows in the article. (he couldn't wait to get back to work, he went in to practice on his days off, he wanted to learn more all the time, he was having fun, he thinks about it all the time - what he can do to be better, he wants to share it with others)
• What is YOUR passion? - Assessment

  This assessment can be sent home as an assignment for the students to synthesize what they have learned from reading about Bobby Flay, and apply it to their own lives.

  Using the following questions to guide you in writing a 1 page response about your passions and goals for the future.

  1) What are you passionate about?

  2) What are your goals for the future? 

  3) How do you plan to use your training from this class in a career in culinary arts? (Owning or working in a restaurant, having a show on TV or the internet, writing a cookbook, working as a food editor?

  4) Are the choices you are making today helping you towards achieving future goals, or are they keeping you from potential success? Explain.

  (Teacher note: this could also be an in-class response, or could even be drawn out in to a 2 page essay, depending on your course.  If your course is not pathway driven and not all of the students in the class are interested in culinary arts as a career, make #3 more generic and have students answer it relevant to the pathway they are interested in.)