Grade 5: Planning a Menu
ACTIVITY 1
Objectives: 1. Recognize a balanced meal 2. Plan a menu for a balanced meal 3. Understand how peers, the school, and the community influence healthy food choices
Bench Marks: PE.5.L.2.12: Plan a menu for a balanced meal. HE.5.C.1.1: Describe the relationship between healthy behaviors and personal health. HE.5.C.2.2: Predict how friends/peers may influence various health practices of children. HE.5.C.2.3: Predict how the school and community influence various health practices of children. HE.5.B.3.1: Describe circumstances that can help or hinder healthy decision making. HE.5.B.3.5: Select a healthy option when making a decision for yourself and/or others.
Materials Needed Paper for students to write menu ideas on Pictures of healthy foods to help prompt the students while making their menus Pencils
Activity 1 Introduction (15 Minutes): 1. Review the MyPlate model and the five food groups. a. Describe each food group and what it provides. Grains- Energy Meat/Beans-Protein to build muscles Fruit and Vegetables- Vitamins/Minerals/Fiber which are all protective to our body Dairy- Calcium to build strong bones b. Discuss the importance of eating from all of the food groups. Eating from a variety of food groups provides the body with all of the nutrients it needs. c. Discuss foods found in each group (refresh from Grade 2 lesson). This is important to discuss as the students will be making a menu for activity 1. 2. Describe the relationship between healthy eating and personal health. a. Eating a healthy balanced diet provides the body with all of the nutrients it needs. This keeps the body strong and prevents many illnesses and diseases. 3. Discuss how friends/peers, school, and the community influence healthy eating. a. Do friends influence choices in the lunch line? Does this help or hinder healthy decision making?
Page | 1 b. What healthy choices are available in the community? (e.g., are there farmers markets close by?) c. Does the school lunch that is served influence healthy eating? Activity 1 (20-30 minutes): Planning a menu. 1. Separate the class into 5 groups. 2. Have each group work together to create one assigned meal. a. Use breakfast, morning snack, lunch, afternoon snack, and dinner. b. Each group can do one meal of the day to combine together for a full day menu or each group can make their own full day menu. 3. Give the students time to discuss and plan their menu. a. Remind the students to include at least 3 food choices and 1 drink choice. b. Remind the students to use all food groups if possible. 4. Have the students write their menus on the board. 5. Discuss what the best meal options would be for the one-day balanced menu. a. What makes the meal option healthy and balanced? b. Discuss any alternatives.
ACTIVITY 2
Objectives: 1. Recognize a balanced meal 2. Plan a menu for a balanced meal 3. Set a health goal related to nutrition or physical activity 4. Understand how balanced meals can differ among cultures
Bench Marks: PE.5.L.2.12: Plan a menu for a balanced meal. PE.5.L.1.2: Demonstrate involvement in physical activities both during and after the school day. HE.5.C.2.2: Predict how friends/peers may influence various health practices of children. HE.5.C.2.3: Predict how the school and community influence various health practices of children. HE.5.C.2.4: Give examples of school and public health policies that influence health promotion and disease prevention. HE.5.C.2.7: Discuss how various cultures can influence various health beliefs. HE.5.B.3.1: Describe circumstances that can help or hinder healthy decision making. HE.5.B.3.5: Select a healthy option when making a decision for yourself and/or others. HE.5.B.3.6: Analyze the outcomes of a health related decision. HE.5.B.4.1: Specify a personal health goal and track progress towards achievement.
Page | 2 Materials Needed: Create physical fitness wheels with examples of 4-5 physical activities and a spinner (e.g., students should be able to spin wheels and perform the physical activity that the arrow lands on.) o There should be one wheel for each group o Examples of physical activities that may be on the wheel include: 10 jumping jacks, 10 hops, 5 second toe touches MyPlate models for each group A variety of food pictures (These will be added to the myplate models. There should be enough food pictures for each group to create a balanced meal. The food pictures should be placed in a central location so that one student from each group can easily retrieve them to add to their MyPlate models.)
Activity 2 Introduction (10-15 Minutes): 1. Discuss the school menu. c. Is the menu balanced? Discuss healthy options that are available in the cafeteria. d. Have students who bring lunch from home think about what they eat/ate. Is the lunch balanced? If not, what can they change/add to make it a balanced meal? e. Encourage students come up with a goal to have a healthy, balanced lunch. For example, if a student doesn’t eat fruit at lunch, he/she can buy an apple in place of a cookie from the cafeteria. If a student feels that his/her lunch is already a balance meal, have him/her think of another meal that he/she can make improvements to. The student can also come up with a physical activity goal. Encourage the students to follow the goal for one or more days. Have the students encourage their friends/peers and family to do the same. 2. Briefly discuss the Healthy Hunger Free Kids Act 2010. (See website under references) a. Discuss why this caused student lunches to change. i. If students are unhappy about the lunch change, discuss reasons for the change. 1. Portion distortion (More information from lesson 4). 2. Student lunch was not changed in 15 years. b. Discuss any other relevant health policies for children and nutrition. 3. Discuss how balanced meals may be different from person to person. a. Who influences the food you eat? (e.g., family, community, culture) b. Possible issues? (e.g., vegetarianism and veganism can be balanced meals but should be carefully planned diets) 4. Discuss healthy food choice influences (i.e. Family, peers, media). a. What is the media’s influence on healthy food choices? (e.g., commercials, billboards, internet) b. How do family and peers influence healthy food choices?
Page | 3 Activity 2 (30 minutes): Race to build a healthy plate. 1. Arrange the students in small groups. 2. Each group will get one MyPlate model. 3. Each group will get one physical fitness wheel. 4. One student from each group will begin by spinning the physical fitness wheel. The whole group will do the physical activity that the arrow lands on. 5. Once the physical activity is complete, the student who spun the wheel will retrieve one food picture and place it on the appropriate section of the MyPlate. 6. The next group member will spin the wheel and repeat steps 3-5 until all group members have had a turn. Each group’s MyPlate model should have at least one food picture for every food group. 7. Once all of the teams have created a balanced meal, the students can discuss their meals as a class.
Resources
1. Healthy Hunger Free Kids Act 2010 http://www.gpo.gov/fdsys/pkg/PLAW-111publ296/pdf/PLAW- 111publ296.pdf 2. National school lunch program and background information http://www.fns.usda.gov/cnd/Lunch/AboutLunch/ProgramHistory.htm 3. Balance Meal Information Http://www.eatright.org/Public/content.aspx?id=6745 4. Making the Grade at Lunchtime http://www.eatright.org/Public/content.aspx?id=6748 5. Smart Fruit and Vegetables Snacks http://www.eatright.org/Public/content.aspx?id=6749 6. Eat right to play hard http://www.eatright.org/Public/content.aspx?id=6755 7. Nutrition Games http://www.eatright.org/NNM/content.aspx?id=5334 8. Balance Meal Information Http://www.eatright.org/Public/content.aspx?id=6745
Created by: Julie Rankin and Brittany Pond Dietetic Interns Division of Food, Nutrition and Wellness Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services www.FreshFromFlorida.com
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