Focus:
What is everyone’s favorite food? (Make a chart on the white board, placing student’s favorite foods under the category of the food pyramid in which it belongs) Explain which category the student’s favorite foods fall under, which category we should have the most of (grains) and which the least of (fats and oils)?
Statement of Objectives:
To learn about the food guide pyramid and what foods are best for our bodies!
Teacher Input:
Can anyone name all the categories of the food guide pyramid? (Grains, vegetables, fruits, milk/dairy, meats & beans, and fats/sugars) Tell your neighbor what your favorite food is and which category it fell under? Now how much of all the other categories, as well as the one your favorite food falls under, do you think you should be eating each day?
Grains- 6 ounces
Vegetables- 2 ½ ounces
Fruits- 1½ cups
Milk/dairy- 3 cups
Meats & beans- 5 ounces
Fats/sugars- know your limits
Oils (although not a good group, they are needed in small amounts for good health)
We eat these foods because they provide our bodies with the nutrients we need to do things. To run, walk, talk, think, smile, and GROW big and strong! All the categories of the food guide pyramid are like a puzzle, and if our body doesn’t have all the pieces, it isn’t complete!
Guided Practice:
Can we discuss as a class, what are some healthy choices that we could eat from each of these categories.
Examples: Grains (pasta, bread, rice), Vegetables (lettuce, spinach, broccoli, cucumbers, peppers), Fruits (bananas, strawberries, oranges, apples), Milk/dairy (milk, yogurt, cheese) Meats & beans (chicken, fish, lean beef, soybeans, dried beans).
One important thing to know when deciding what you are going to eat for your each food guide pyramid portion size. We need six ounces of grains per day, and five ounces of meat/bean. What does this mean? Well three ounces can be described as the same width and size of a deck of cards (show example of a deck of cards). So remember that when eating.
Now, lets fill in this chart all together (the same food calendar worksheet passed out to class already) to help us think about what kinds of foods we would all eat throughout our meals to ensure we are eating all of the correct foods and serving amounts that the food guide pyramid tells us to.
Who would like to raise their hand first to tell me what is a food we could eat with breakfast that would help us reach our goal of meeting the food guide pyramid daily servings?
Independent Practice:
With three of your neighbors, take a few minutes to play “Pyramid Go Fish!” The dealer of your group shuffles the cards, then gives each player four cards, and puts the remaining cards in a stack in middle of everyone. Each player takes a turn asking another player if he/she has the pair to one of the four cards that they currently have in their hands. If two of the same cards are obtained, then the pair is laid down and counted as one point. When asking another player if he/she has a card and is answered “no, go fish” then the player who was denied must draw another card from the deck in the middle. If answered “Yes”, then the player is given the card, lays down his/her pair, and gets to ask again if a fellow player has a card he/she needs. Whoever ends up with the most pairs wins.
Closure:
Raise your hand to tell me a food that may not be your favorite, but you like a lot, that falls into the food guide pyramids’ categories. How much of this food do you usually eat when you have it?
What are some fats/sugars that would be better to choose, rather than candy, ice cream and items like that?
Make sure to go home tonight and talk to your family about what should be on your plate in order to have a well-balanced, healthy dinner tonight!
