Hungry for Change?
An investigative look into today's food
industry
You'll never look at dinner the same way again.
Essential Question: What is the relationship between how our food is
produced and human health, worker's rights, animal welfare, and genetic
modification?
PROJECT DESCRIPTION: In this seminar, students will create a magazine to inform the
public about where their food comes from and to ask them to critically consider their
personal food choices.
ENGLISH CONTENT: Introduction to Socratic Seminar, excerpts from Fast Food Nation, Omnivore's
Dilemma, and In Defense of Food, Research Paper Process and Strategies
SCIENCE CONTENT: Food Nutrition, Food-borne disease, Environmental Impact, Genetic
Modifications
OBJECTIVES: 1. To write an extensive research paper on a contemporary food issue
2. To write a 1-2 page magazine article on a contemporary food issue
3. To read excerpts from various sources to understand the food industry and
human health
4. To investigate solutions for social food change
5. To become personally responsible for what we eat
6. To produce a team eco-literacy magazine that educates the public
Food Issues to be studied-Article topics to be written
*Buying Organic, Local Foods (CSA's, local farms and farmer's markets, Organic
foods, and eating well)
*Diabetes and Obesity (Sugar-Laden Foods, Diabetes, Obesity, Fast Food)
*Factory Farming (Industrial Food Magnates-Tyson, Monsanto), Animal Welfare, Good
Farms/Bad Farms across the U.S., Where's the Beef from?)
*Pesticides (Different types of Pesticides, Links to Cancers, Links to Autism, Links to
Neurological Diseases)
*Environmental Impact (Pollution, Global Warming, Energy Consumption)
The Global Food Crisis (World Hunger, Hunger in the U.S., Waste in the U.S.,
OXFAM)
Kevin's Law: Food-Borne Illness (Salmonella, E.Coli, CDC Stats on FBI, History and
current standing of Kevin's Law)
The Need for Nutritional Labels on Restaurant Food (Which Restaurants have
nutritional labels, Which Restaurants do Not, What is the meaning of a Label,
Letter to Congress asking them to introduce a bill)
Genetic Engineering (Monsanto (2) patents, DNA)
Farm Worker Production (Wages, Treatment, History of Farmworkers, Local
Farmworkers)
Cloning (Meat and Milk, Congress History, Pro for Cloning, Con against Cloning)
Project Requirements
Students' projects include the following:
The FINAL drafts of these documents are due on DECEMBER 8, 2010
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
INDIVIDUALS: 2 page magazine article on 1 component of your food issue
INDIVIDUALS: 2 “hook” images to complement your article
INDIVIDUALS: MLA Citing for your article and images
INDIVIDUALS: 1 research paper on your Food Issue: DUE on NOVEMBER 17, 2010.
(Sources must be diversified: 1 book, 1 magazine, 1 newspaper article, and 1
Web site. These should be from the library.
INDIVIDUALS: Participation in Socratic Seminar
GROUP: WHAT YOU CAN DO COVER: A COVER-ART design that includes 4 Calls for
Action)
GROUP: 1 organic or local recipe and home-made item for Exhibition.
CHALLENGE OPTIONS:
1. Find an authentic audience for our magazine like a grocery store or a retail
store. Think about the following when considering an audience.
Reach: How many people would this idea affect?
Depth: How deeply are people impacted? How urgent is the need?
Attainability: Can this idea be implemented this semester?
Efficiency: How simple and cost-effective is your idea?
Longevity: How long will the idea's impact last?
2. Design a lay-out for our Coffee Shop for Exhibition.
3. Help Produce our Exhibition
4. In your research paper, present the opposite side of what you believe.
Calendar
WEEK
WEEK
WEEK
WEEK
WEEK
WEEK
WEEK
WEEK
WEEK
WEEK
WEEK
WEEK
WEEK
1 (SEP 8) SUPERSIZE ME, FOOD PYRAMID
2 (SEP 15) SUPERSIZE ME DEBRIEF, SOCRATIC SEMINAR ON ORGANIC FARMING
3 (SEP 20, 22) FOOD INC, OMNIVORE’S DILEMMA
4 (SEP 27,29) FOOD INC, OMNIVORE’S DILEMMA
5 (OCT 4, 6) DIABETES AND OBESITY
6 (OCT 11,13) PESTICIDES AND SOCIAL/ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT
7 (OCT 25, 28) FOOD BORNE DISEASES
8 (NOV 1,3)ACCESS TO NUTRITION
9 (NOV 8-10) RESEARCH PAPER DUE
10 (NOV 15, 17) FORMAT AND EDIT MAGAZINE ARTICLE
11 (NOV 29, DEC 1)FORMAT AND EDIT MAGAZINE ARTICLE
12 (DEC 6, 8)MAGAZINE ARTICLE TEMPLATE DUE
13 (DEC 13, 15)FOOD AND CULTURE
How to write a magazine article
Writing a magazine, or feature, article differs from newspaper articles in that
most magazines allow more space to develop a story (the article is longer) and
more time to research it. Writing for a news magazine most resembles newspaper
articles. In any case, it is still important in this form of journalism to answer
the five questions:
Who?
What (or what happened)?
When?
Where?
Why?
How?
The rest of a magazine article elaborates on these questions, often in some
detail. A feature article in particular will go in depth on a subject, giving
readers background and perspective on "the story behind a story" or "the person
behind a story."
Magazine articles include photos and graphic art more often than newspaper
articles. Sometimes a magazine article is an extended interview with a famous
person, an important person, or an interesting person.
The Structure Of A Magazine Article
Like any good piece of writing, the introduction should be informative and enticing
enough so that readers want to continue. You can use a variety of techniques for a
“hook,” such as an anecdote, eyewitness account or startling statistic. As you
write, try to answer the following question: How does the topic affect the
audience? The body of the magazine article should blend hard facts with the human
interest.
Resources
http://www.pbs.org/now/topic_search/index.html
(SEARCH ENVIRONMENT AND ENERGY)
http://www.foodincmovie.com/about-the-issues.php
http://www.foodincmovie.com/reading-list.php
Center for Ecoliteracy (2008). Big ideas: Linking Food, Culture, Health, and the
Environment. Berkeley: Learning in the Real World. www.ecoliteracy.org.
Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) of the United Nations (2008). The State
of Food and Agriculture, 2008—Biofuels: Prospects, Risks and Opportunities.
www.fao.org/publications/sofa/index_en.html
Garcia, Deborah Koons (2004). The Future of Food. Lily Films.
Monsanto Company website. www.monsanto.com.
What You Can Do about It. Weber, Karl, editor. New York:
Public Affairs.
Pollan, Michael (2008). In Defense of Food: An Eater’s Manifesto. New York:
Penguin.
Pollan, Michael (2006). The Omnivore’s Dilemma: A Natural History of Four Meals.
New York: Penguin.
Polyface Farms website. www.polyfacefarms.com.
Center for Science in the Public Interest, www.cspinet.org.
Cool Foods Campaign, www.coolfoodscampaign.org.
EatWellGuide.org.
Food and Water Watch, www.foodandwaterwatch.org.
Heifer International, www.Heifer.org.
The Humane Society of the United States, www.hsus.org.
Meatless Monday, www.meatlessmonday.com.
National Farm to School Network, www.farmtoschool.org.
Organic Consumers Association, www.organicconsumers.org.
Oxfam International, www.oxfam.org.
Pesticide Action Network of North America, www.panna.org.
Slow Food USA, www.slowfoodusa.org.
The United Farm Workers of America, www.ufw.org.
Pringle, Richard (2005). Food, Inc.: Mendel to Monsanto—The Promises and Perils
of the Biotech Harvest. Simon and Schuster.
Richardson, Jill (2009). Recipe for America: Why our Food System is Broken and
What We Can Do To Fix it. Brooklyn, NY: Ig Publishing.
Roberts, Paul (2009, March/April). Spoiled: Organic and Local Is so 2008. Mother
Jones. www.motherjones.com/environment/2009/02/spoiled-organic-and-localso-2008.
Schlosser, Eric (2001). Fast Food Nation: The Dark Side of the All-American Meal.
New York: Houghton Mifflin.
Singer, Peter, and Mason, Jim (2006). The Way We Eat: Why our Food Choices
Matter. Emmaus, PA: Rodale.
Smithfield Foods Company website. www.smithfieldfoods.com.
Stonyfield Farm Organic Yogurt website. www.stonyfield.com.
Sustainable Table. Eat well guide. www.sustainabletable.org.
Tasch, Woody (2008). Inquiries into the Nature of Slow Money: Investing as if
Food, Farms, and Fertility mattered. White River Junction, VT: Chelsea Green.