The Middle School Portal 2: Math and Science Pathways (MSP2) project is starting an online book club. Our first selection is The Omnivore’s Dilemma: A Natural History of Four Meals. In it, Michael Pollan writes about how our food is grown - what it is, in fact, that we are eating. Pollan looks at industrial farming, then organic farming as big business and then on a small farm, and then what it is like to hunt and gather food for ourselves. Each of the four sections culminates in a meal - a cheeseburger and fries from McDonald’s; roast chicken, vegetables and a salad from Whole Foods; and grilled chicken, corn and a chocolate soufflé (made with fresh eggs) from a sustainable farm; and, finally, mushrooms and pork, foraged from the wild.

Please join our MSP2 book club group as we discuss each of the four meals and discuss ways in which these topics/ideas/concepts can be integrated into the middle school math and science classroom. We can get the discussion started and share resources in the group and then meet October 28, 2009 at 7pm EST to have an online conversation.