Teaching Concepts of Health Education I

Alex Gregor

Dr. Fopeano

Teaching Concepts of Health Education I

December 1, 2010

Rowan High School Lesson Plan

Health Education: Nutrition

Section A: (Overview)

Background: Grade: 11-12

Number of Students: 26

Length: 75-85 minutes

Rational: All high school students need to understand information about the ingredients and nutritional values of the food items that they are eating. They are responsible for what they put into their bodies, and need to understand the nutritional impact of their food choices.

Resources and Materials:

•  Three grocery bags

•  Twizzler’s candy

•  Snicker’s bar

•  Bag of M&M’s

•  Cat food

•  Dry-erase markers

•  Whiteboard

•  Computer

•  Projector

Reference/ Source:

•  Meeks, Linda, Philip Heit, Randy Page. Comprehensive School Health Education. “Name That Food.” New York: McGraw-Hill, 2009.

•  http://www.sparkpeople.com/resource/calories_burned.asp

Anticipated Difficulties:

•  Problem: Students may easily guess the food items in the activity in the Anticipatory Set.

•  Solution: To prevent the students from guessing correctly, the teacher could have alternate food items, in the case that one or two are correctly guessed from the start.

•  Problem: Students may not be able to eat the M&M’s in the Closing activity.

•  Solution: The teacher will have alternate food items to consume, with a similar caloric value.

•  Problem: Students may not be able to view the Powerpoint presentation optimally.

•  Solution: Those students will be allowed to be relocated to the front of the room, in order to take notes.

•  Problem: Students may not be willing to participate in class discussion.

•  Solution: The teacher will call on students at random if few students are willing to volunteer and participate.

Section B: (Objectives/ Standards)

Standards:

STANDARD 2.1 (Wellness): All students will acquire health promotion concepts and skills to support a healthy, active lifestyle.

B. Nutrition

3. Analyze the unique contributions of each nutrient class (fats, carbohydrates, protein, water, vitamins, and minerals) to one’s health.

Student Lesson Outcomes:

Psychomotor: By the end of the nutrition lesson, students should be able to

Performance:
Preform jumping jacks, based on how many calories they want to burn off. / Evaluation:
Students will be evaluated by the teacher.

Cognitive: By the end of the nutrition lesson, students should be able to

Performance:
Understand the importance of food labels, ingredients, and nutritional value. / Evaluation:
Students will be evaluated by he teacher based on a short ten question quiz.

Affective: By the end of the nutrition lesson, students should be able to

Performance:
Express surprise at the food label ingredients and nutrients. / Evaluation:
Based on an informal response from the students.

Section C: (Learning Experience)

Introduction: This lesson is designed to teach students about the importance of reading food labels, and how to understand the various nutrients on the food labels.

•  Anticipatory Set: 15 minutes

•  Before the students enter the room, three grocery bags will be set up in the front of the class, labeled with a one, two, and three. In bag one, a package of Twizzler’s candy will be inside. Bag two will hold a Snicker’s bar, and bag three will have a can of cat food. The bags will be sealed shut with a piece of tape.

•  As the students walk in and are seated, the “Name That Food” Powerpoint prepared for this lesson will go up on the projection screen. The Powerpoint will have all the ingredients listed in each of the three foods in the grocery bags. Address the class and tell them that they will now play “Name That Food.” The scenario is that all the students are on a deserted island, and can only choose one food item, based on the ingredients, to bring with them. They will be allowed three to five minutes to decide on which food item they want to bring.

•  Ask them what food item they think is in each bag and why. Write the numbers one, two, and three on the board, and record how many students would choose each bag to bring to the island next to the number on the board.

•  As the bags are in view of the students, have three volunteers come to the front of the classroom. Ask the class what they think is in the first bag. Then allow the first volunteer to open it, and display the Twizzler’s to the class. Ask the class what is in the second bag. Then, allow the second volunteer to open it, and display the Snicker’s bar to the class. Ask the class what is in the third bag. Then, allow the third volunteer to open the third bag, and display the cat food to the class. Many students will be surprised at the food items. Instruct the volunteers to sit back in their seats.

•  After the volunteers sit down, ask the class some of the following questions:

•  Why were so many of you surprised at the food products?

•  What was the basis for your food selections?

•  Were the ingredient labels misleading at all?

•  Are food labels important to read? Why or why not?

Content:

a.  Students will take notes based on a Powerpoint that details some of the important nutrient information commonly found on food labels.

b.  Students will participate in an in-class activity that applies the information from the Powerpoint to everyday life.

c.  Students will discuss the results of the activity with a small group, then present the information to the class.

d.  Students will be responsible for a food log project that will be assigned on this date, due in one week.

e.  Finally, students will participate in a class activity, to demonstrate how many calories it takes to burn off the specific food items from the introduction activity.

Procedures: 45 minutes

1.  The activity specified above will take place during the first ten to fifteen minutes of class.

2.  After a short discussion about the introduction activity, the class will take out notebooks and writing implements and prepare to take notes on the Powerpoint presentation.

3.  The teacher will begin to lecture on the nutrient definitions and descriptions, as outlined in the Powerpoint. (See attached Powerpoint for specific information regarding the subject matter being taught.)

4.  Throughout the Powerpoint, the teacher will ask questions based on the specific Powerpoint slide. Some sample questions include:

a.  Is there any specific requirement for the amount of calories a person should consume?

i.  Yes, and it varies depending on a number of factors.

b.  What are some of these factors?

i.  These include: age, height, weight, sex, and activity level. (I will then give the students a formula with which they can calculate an estimate of their caloric needs.)

c.  Does the body need more or less calories as a person grows older? Why?

i.  Usually, a person needs less calories. As a person ages, their metabolism slows down and they do need as much energy.

d.  What’s wrong with sodium? Does it makes food taste better?

i.  Yes it does, but it is best used in moderation. It is found in so much food today, it does not need to be added to anything.

e.  Who is at risk for consuming too much sodium?

i.  Anyone, especially those who have a family history of hypertension or cardiovascular disease.

f.  Why is it harmful?

i.  It is found in processed food in large quantities, and many people consume more than they should without even knowing it.

g.  Does anyone take multivitamins?

i.  At least one quarter of the class should be taking multivitamins, whether their parents make them, or they choose to take them on their own.

h.  Are they useful to maintain a healthy lifestyle? Why or why not?

i.  No they are not. Good sources of vitamins should be fruits and vegetables that are already included in a person’s diet, not multivitamin tablets.

5.  After the Powerpoint presentation is complete, the teacher will lead the students into a discussion to conclude the lesson. Some questions are as follows:

a.  What is the most important aspect of a healthy diet?

b.  Is there a possibility of having too much of one nutrient?

c.  Which is the most important nutrient? Why? (This will lead into the closing activity.)

Closure/Culminating Experience: 20 minutes

•  After the discussion is complete, the teacher will divide the students into groups of four.

•  Each group will receive a food label, selected at random from the teacher, a handout, and two M&M’s candy. Student will not eat their M&M’s until told to do so.

•  Once everyone has their M&M’s, the teacher will instruct the class to each eat both of their M&M’s. If anyone has food allergies or cannot eat chocolate, they will not be required to do this.

•  The teacher will then ask the class how many calories they think are in those two M&M’s. The correct answer is 8.6 calories. Selecting a volunteer, the teacher will ask a student to perform jumping jacks until the student believes they have burnt off the calories in two M&M’s.

•  The student should only perform jumping jacks for several seconds. The teacher will then reveal to the class that it takes one minute of vigorous jumping jacks to burn off the calories in those two M&M’s. The teacher will also state that it would take two minutes of regular walking pace to burn of those two M&M’s.

•  The teacher will then ask the class to perform jumping jacks for one minute.

•  After the class is done performing jumping jacks, the teacher will explain to the students that many of the food items people eat are deceiving. Since it is hard to derive from the food label how many calories are in one individual M&M, many people will eat a large quantity, never really knowing how much they are consuming.

•  The teacher will then ask the class to sit into their groups again.

•  Each group will complete the handout based on the food label they were given. They will need to work as a group, and may need to refer to their notes to complete the handout. They will detail an overview of the food item that they received a label for, and decide whether or not it is a healthy food choice to make. Also, they will calculate how many minutes of jumping jacks and minutes of walking at a leisurely pace it would take to burn off the calories in their food item.

•  After ten to fifteen minutes, each group will give a short two to three minute presentation about the food item. The teacher will take volunteers first, then pick groups at random if no one wants volunteers.

•  Following the presentation, the teacher will assign to the students a week-long food log project.

•  Assignment:

•  The food log will require that every student chart his or her daily intake of food, down to approximate serving sizes and portions, as well as any physical exercise, for one week. They will then compile their data and formulate a paper, describing their eating habits, as per an additional hand out, which will be given out the next class.

Section D: (Assessment Methods/ Evaluation)

Student Assessment:

•  STANDARD 2.1 (Wellness): All students will acquire health promotion concepts and skills to support a healthy, active lifestyle.

B. Nutrition

3. Analyze the unique contributions of each nutrient class (fats, carbohydrates, protein, water, vitamins, and minerals) to one’s health.

•  Assessment: The students will be given a fifteen question quiz, based off of the nutrients that were on the Powerpoint presentation from this lecture. It will be given the next class period

•  Assessment: The students will be informally evaluated by the teacher, throughout the class period, on concepts and information the lecture and Powerpoint presentation contained.

•  Teacher Assessment:

•  Were the students able to understand the importance of reading and analyzing food labels?

•  Did the students understand all of the nutrients and their basic functions and apply this information to make heathy choices?

•  Was any confusion or uncertaintly cleared up by the teacher?

•  Was the teacher clear on the information he presented, and of what he or she expected of the students?

•  Was the activity fun and enjoyable for the students?

•  Evaluation:

•  For the activity in the Anticipatory Set, I could use food items that are more common to a high school student’s diet. This includes sodas, potato chips, energy drinks, pizzas, and other common snack foods.

•  For students with vision difficulties and/or cognitive impairments, I could print out the list of ingredients as well as the Powerpoint presentation, so they can understand the lesson.

•  During the M&M activity, I could give the students other food items, such as one potato chip.

•  I could give the students a list of activities and how many calories are burned per hour for each activity.

•  I could allow students with physical disabilities to participate in different activities that will burn calories.

•  Instead of making the students type the food log assignment as a paper, I could have them make posters and charts of their food log to display throughout the classroom.