Studying Scotland
Food Culture >Food Choices and the Consumer > Early level > Focus on Health and Wellbeing
Overview
This learning and teaching idea aims to explore food culture in Scotland and the ways we can keep ourselves healthy
by making the correct food choices. Using health and wellbeing as its lead curriculum area, this context for learning has
a strong science focus covering what our bodies and other living things need to be healthy.
These learning experiences have been prepared for learners working within early level and aims to teach skills in
analysing information and evaluating it to make informed choices. This strong responsibility of all link (literacy across
learning) encourages learners to be discerning of what they read/ hear/ watch e.g. food packaging
The following learning opportunities are exemplified:
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Using learner’s senses to touch, taste and smell foods from different food groups
Investigate food packaging (traffic light labelling)
What foods grow well in Scotland and why?
Health and Wellbeing experiences
and outcomes explored
Responsibility of all areas, which could
be addressed in this learner journey:
I enjoy eating a diversity of foods in a range of
social situations.
Literacy across learning
HWB 0-29a
Together we enjoy handling, tasting, talking and
learning about different foods, discovering ways in
which eating and drinking may help us to grow
and keep healthy.
LIT 0-14a
I explore and discover where food comes from as
I choose, prepare and taste different foods.
HWB 0-35a
www.educationscotland.gov.uk/studyingscotland
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Sciences (See exemplification)
Other opportunities may exist in:
I use signs, books or other texts to find useful or
interesting information and I use this to plan,
make choices or learn new things.
HWB 0-30a
Interdisciplinary opportunities
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Technologies through the design of new
packaging.
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RME through engagement with food
festivals and food customs.
Studying Scotland
Food Culture >Food Choices and the Consumer > Early level > Focus on Health and Wellbeing
This interdisciplinary approach shows some possible learning opportunities when the experiences and outcomes listed below are connected. These
ideas are starting points and could be used to support planning, depending on your context. In this example we have highlighted a lead curriculum
area, however, other curriculum areas can be included where relevant, based on needs and interests.
HEALTH AND WELLBEING
LITERACY ACROSS LEARNING
(FOOD AND THE CONSUMER)
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*Touch, taste and smell different foods and
describe them. Introduce different food groups.
Grow foods outdoor areas e.g. allotments, pots,
in the local community. Consider what plants
and animals need to grow.
Preparation and cook different foods
Learn about foods that can be grown in
Scotland – Consider where other foods we eat
might come from e.g. Bananas are grown in hot
countries, potatoes prefer moderate
temperatures
Take a trip to the supermarket and/ or a local
shop and discuss the different foods in each
shop.
Make healthy food choices (at snack time, at
home, in the supermarket/ local shop.)
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Related Experiences and Outcomes
connected within this context for learning
HWB 0-29a, 0-30a, 0-35a
SCN 0-12, 0-03a
LIT 0-14a
SCIENCES
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www.educationscotland.gov.uk/studyingscotland
Discuss the foods learners eat at home
and encourage new description
vocabulary.
Put the foods into different food groups
using the eatwell place.
Look at a variety of food packaging and
answer the question.
*Read the traffic light food labels on
foods and discuss what they mean.
Consider what is a good choice of food
using food labelling and packaging. E.g.
red means that there is a lot of that food
group etc.
Exploring food using my five senses
*Learning about why certain foods grow well in Scotland
Introduce that some food is grown,
Plant food and look after them.
Establish what plants need to grow and how to look after them effectively.
Being aware of diurnal and seasonal rhythms of food consumption. Use Season rhymes to learn
the seasons of the year.
Being aware of seasonal rhythms of food growth in Scotland
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Studying Scotland
Food Culture >Food Choices and the Consumer > Early level > Focus on Health and Wellbeing
Overview of learning in lead curriculum area
Possible prior experiences
Learners will have gone shopping
and eaten the food they have
bought.
Some learners may have helped
plant foods e.g. potatoes
Most learners will know that
food is advertised on the
television
Some learners will know that
there is information about
healthy choices on food
packaging
Skills
Possible learning
opportunities in lead
curricular area
Remembering food groups
Literacy Skills – explaining
which foods they prefer/ like/
dislike
Visit is local shop/
supermarket
Taste different foods from a
variety of food groups.
Grow vegetables and herbs in
the school green space/ local
allotments/ pots
Prepare and taste home
grown foods
Some learners may know that
the information on food
packaging is traffic light
coloured
Discuss food labelling and
decide which colours are
good colours on packaging
e.g. red means high, green
means low.
Learners may not know about
food groups and balanced
diets.
Consider how eating from
different food groups
contributes to being healthy.
www.educationscotland.gov.uk/studyingscotland
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Possible sources of
evidence
Do - Annotated photographs of
visit to local shop/
supermarket.
Analysis of information on
adverts/ food packaging
Write - Progress log of foods
growing in garden/ allotment
etc.
Evaluation of information on
adverts/ food packaging
Say - Recorded discussion/
transcripts of discussion re
food packaging and adverts
Creating different recipes and
food packaging.
Make - Designed food
packaging
Studying Scotland
Food Culture >Food Choices and the Consumer > Early level > Focus on Health and Wellbeing
Learning experience 1: Touch, taste and smell food from different groups describe them.
Possible Starting Points
Resources
Arrange foods from different food groups on a table and ask learners to try
them.
Eat well plate
http://www.nhs.uk/Livewell/Goodfood/Pages/eatwell-plate.aspx
Use a tick and a cross sheet with photographs of the foods – learners can
tick and cross the foods they liked.
Food and farming posters from (Royal Highland Education Trust (RHET)
http://www.rhet.org.uk/Resources/boards
Label the foods and ask the learners to guess whether these foods come
from Scotland or somewhere else in the world. Ask them to explain why
they have chosen the answer they did.
Learning
Skills
Remembering the different food groups on the eat well plate
There are lots of different foods available to us in Scotland.
There are different food groups that we must eat to remain healthy.
We should eat a variety of different foods to make sure that we have
a balanced diet.
Some foods need certain conditions to grow. This means that some
of our food may not be from Scotland, but instead brought to
Scotland from different countries.
www.educationscotland.gov.uk/studyingscotland
Creating a healthy plate of food from Scotland
Possible evidence
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Recordings of learners talking about the different foods available in
Scotland.
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An’ eat well plate’ with some Scottish produce visible, tick and cross
sheets showing preferences.
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Studying Scotland
Food Culture >Food Choices and the Consumer > Early level > Focus on Health and Wellbeing
Learning experience 2: Reading traffic light food labels and discussing what they mean
Possible starting points
Resources for Learning
Using food in the establishment discuss what we need to grow to be healthy.
What will help our bones and teeth become strong etc.
Information for educators from BBC food labelling:
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/health-20050420
Matching games could be used to establish what is ‘healthy’ and ‘unhealthy.’
A variety of food packaging
Using nursery snack time look at the food labels of certain foods and describe the
traffic light part of the label.
A popular advert for food (chocolate cereals, spreads etc.) to discuss
whether they are shown in a healthy or unhealthy way
Discuss what the labels mean and how they should be read. E.g. red means that
this product has a high amount of salt or sugar and that a high amount of salt and
sugar is not healthy.
Skills
Analysing Information
Follow a recipe using ingredients
Evaluating the validity of the packaging/ advert.
Learning
Possible evidence
Some foods are healthier than others.
Eating a balanced diet helps us grow and become strong.
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Annotated photographs of learners following ingredients
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Collect transcripts or recordings of learners talking about nutritional
information.
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Transfer of good choices during break and lunch times
Food packaging must display ingredients on their packaging.
Some packaging uses traffic lights to display nutritional information – soon all food
packaging with use this method.
Pictures on food packaging can sometimes convince us to buy a product.
We should be making our choices based on the nutrition information.
www.educationscotland.gov.uk/studyingscotland
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Studying Scotland
Food Culture >Food Choices and the Consumer > Early level > Focus on Health and Wellbeing
Learning experience 3: Why do certain foods grow well in Scotland?
Possible starting points
Resources for Learning
Begin to grow plants, which grow well in Scotland. E.g. Potatoes, carrots,
sprouts, turnips, rhubarb, strawberries, raspberries and blackcurrants.
Discuss what is required for them to grow.
Growing your own food
http://resource.ecoschoolsscotland.org/food-environment.asp?r=3&c=343
Taste some foods from different countries e.g. bananas, tomatoes etc.
These fruits need hotter temperatures. Think of places you could grow
tomatoes e.g. greenhouses etc.
Skills
Managing each other whilst planting and growing
Introduce what polytunnels are and what they are used for.
Working together whilst planting and growing
Begin to grow some foods in polytunnels. Discuss why polytunnels are
useful for growing food in Scotland.
Health and Wellbeing skills - being responsible, safe and understanding
the health implications of growing your own food
Learning
Possible evidence
Some foods grow well in Scotland because of the soil, climate and seasons.
Some foods grow better in hotter countries.
Some people use polytunnels to grow their food to help raise the
temperature of the surroundings.
www.educationscotland.gov.uk/studyingscotland
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Do - Annotated photographs of learners planting and growing
food.
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Make - A pictorial journal with the progress the plants are
making.
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Say - Children discussing the planting and growing process.