Food Pyramid/Nutrition
Literature Focus Unit
Megan Power
Literature Selection
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Cloudy With a Chance of Meatballs by Judi Barrett
This Book Is Not Good For You by Pseudonymous Bosch
The Candy Shop War by Brandon Mull
A Wacky Guide to Food Fun by Alan Snow
Amelia Bedelia Talks Turkey by Herman Parish
A Chocolate Moose For Dinner by Fred Gwinne
Mary Had a Little Jam by Bruce Lansky
Good to Eat: Riddle of Food and Culture by Marvin Harris
Native North American Food and Recipes by Bobbie Kalman
Food by Fiona MacDonald
It’s Disgusting and We Ate It! True Food Facts From Around the World and Throughout History by
James Solheim
The Story of Noodles by Ying Chang Compestine
Something’s Happening on Calabash Street by Judith Enderle and Jacob Gordon
What Pete Ate from A to Z
Eats Shoots and Leaves
Weekly Reader (www.weeklyreader.com)
Thematic Study
• Students will take part in a thematic unit on the food pyramid and
nutritional information while dissecting each content area. This unit
will integrate language arts, science, mathematics, social studies,
music, art, and physical education.
• Students will apply nutritional information to food labels, and
vocabulary based on areas of nutrition.
• Students will apply their understanding of the nutrition to their own
daily eating habits.
Auto Nutrition
Write/produce
Nutrition
literature
a commercial
Fat point
Language
Arts
Science
Water, Water
Everywhere
Record a daily
food journal for
three days
Write a poem,
with a partner
Nutrition
Shipwreck
Social
Studies
Decorate
Poem
Produce
Commercial
Music/Arts
Make Peanut
Butter
Field Trip to Dan’s
Supermarket
Weekly Reader/
Class Discussion
Sugar Graph
Decorate
Bulletin
Physical
Education
Math
Food Label
conversions
Board
Shipwreck
Servings on
Food Journal
Building Food
Pyramid
Learn songs
Language Arts: Reading
• Students will read various literature (fiction, non-fiction, poems)
based on nutrition individually, guided reading, reader’s theater, and
partner reading.
• Students will present poems to the class.
• Students will read Weekly Reader that focuses on food products
made throughout the country.
Language Arts: Writing
• Students will keep a daily food journal for three days.
• Students will make several journal entries based on lessons.
• Students will write a poem with a partner based on their favorite
food.
• Students will be divided into five groups and write/produce a
commercial for an area of nutrition: carbohydrates, proteins, fats,
vitamins, and minerals.
Language Arts: Listening
• Teacher will read aloud Cloudy With a Chance of Meatballs by Judi
Barrett
• Teacher will read aloud a variety of poems based on food.
• Students will listen to the poems being read aloud.
• Students will listen to a manager at Dan’s Supermarket describe a
variety of food products.
• Students will listen to lecture of important facts of nutrition.
Language Arts: Talking
• Students will present poems to the class.
• Students will be divided into five groups and write/produce a
commercial for an area of nutrition: carbohydrates, proteins, fats,
vitamins, and minerals.
• Students will read various literature based on nutrition individually,
guided reading, reader’s theater, and partner reading.
Language Arts: Viewing
• Students will view all of the commercials based on nutrition.
• Students will read various literature based on nutrition individually,
guided reading, reader’s theater, and partner reading.
• Teacher will show students an example of a daily food journal.
• Teacher will demonstrate how to keep a daily food journal and how
important accuracy is when tracking food intake.
Language Arts:
Visually Representing
• Students will be divided into five groups and write/produce a
commercial for an area of nutrition: carbohydrates, proteins, fats,
vitamins, and minerals.
• Students will decorate poem to coincide with topic.
• Students will decorate the class bulletin board to feature important
nutritional information.
• The teacher will keep a 3-D food pyramid and poster of the food
pyramid in the room.
• Students will write vocabulary words/definitions on paper grocery
bags. Every art project from the unit will go into the grocery bag to
take home at the end of the unit.
• 3-fold Vocabulary: Students will practice vocabulary words using a
three part piece of paper: word, definition in student’s own words,
and a picture.
Science Activities
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Auto Nutrition: Class discussion on the comparison of parts of a car to the body and
nutrition.
Water, Water Everywhere: Importance of water/dehydration.
– Each student pair gets 2 halves of a potato and 2 separate cups of water: one
water and one salt-water solution. The pairs then put the potatoes in the water
and wait for a couple minutes. The pairs then watch to see the solution potato
shrivel to model dehydration.
Fat Point: Discuss arteries, plaque, heart attack, and stroke.
– The teacher has a funnel, candle, 2 cups colored water, and a stop watch. A
student pours the ½ c. water into the funnel with the water being timed while
going through. The teacher lights the candle and pours a small amount of wax
into the funnel. The steps are repeated until the funnel (artery) is completely
closed off.
Math Activities
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Students, in pairs, will graph the grams of sugar in six different food items with sugar cubes on a
poster board. 1 gram=4 sugar cubes
– Students will go around the room and answer questions on a worksheet.
• Food item: highest in sugar, lowest in sugar, items comparable.
Students will translate their daily food journals into servings of carbohydrates, proteins, fruits,
vegetables, and fats.
Students will make homemade peanut butter using correct measurements. (If no allergies)
Students will determine the amount of carbohydrate, protein, and fat calories from food labels
placed around the room.
– 1 gram carbohydrate= 4 calories
– 1 gram of protein= 4 calories
– 1 gram of fat= 9 calories
Social Studies Activities
• Field Trip to Dan’s Supermarket to learn about products made in
North Dakota.
• Read Weekly Reader that focuses on food products made
throughout the country.
• Class Discussion of products made in North Dakota.
• Ship Wreck Class Discussion:
Music and Art Activities
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Students decorate class bulletin board to inform other students of healthy choices.
Students decorate favorite food poem.
Students will learn a song as a mnemonic device to remember the areas of nutrition.
Students will produce a commercial on a specific area of nutrition.
Students will learn the song “Peanut Butter Jelly Time”
Students will make food pyramid paper mache
Students will sketch fruit bowls, measuring shadow and value.
Physical Education Activities
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The students will construct a food pyramid based on their daily intake records with
colored building blocks. The pyramid may or may not stand depending on intake.
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Shipwreck: Tubes will be placed in corner/side of room. The students will be given a
scenario of 2 people shipwrecked and may only bring 75lbs. of food. They must take
turns going to the middle of the room and bring back an illustration of a particular food
with its corresponding weight.
– The students will be given a sheet with a list of the food to choose from before
going to retrieve any items.
– The teacher will then go around and ask why the students chose particular items.
Technology
• Students will watch a video about nutrition and its importance.
– My Pyramid: Choosing Nutritious Food and Healthy Activities
• Students will divide into teams and play jeopardy based on nutrition
– What’s To Eat? Food Pyramid Game Show from New Dimension Media
• Students will make commercials based on five areas of nutrition with
a video recorder.
• Students will watch all five commercials on a Television.
• The teacher will use an Active Board to demonstrate various writing
activities.
• Students will listen to an audio CD for music.
– “Peanut Butter Jelly Time”
Language Arts Strategies
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Activating background knowledge: Students will think about what they
already know about the food pyramid and nutrition.
Brainstorming: Students will about many different foods for writing activities
and interactive activities.
Connecting: Students will relate the production of foods from around the
world and foods produced in North Dakota.
Predicting and Monitoring: Students will monitor their daily food intake and
predict what will happen if too many fats are in a diet.
Playing with Language: Students will create a poem and journals by using
language in different ways.
Visualizing: Students will create a food pyramid based on their own servings
from their daily food journals. They must make a prediction through
visualization about their personal pyramid before construction.
Language Arts Skills
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Print: Students will recognize words on a bulletin board and transparencies.
Comprehension: Students will recognize the importance of a healthy diet
though a variety of activities and will compare and contrast areas of
nutrition. Students will recognize literary genres of fiction, non-fiction, and
poetry.
Language: Students will apply various skills in their writing activities and
commercials.
Reference: Students will make graphs and read articles.
Grouping Patterns
• Large Group: Class discussions, field trip, viewing videos
and commercials, singing a song, bulletin board, reader’s theater,
Fat point, Auto nutrition, Weekly Reader.
• Small Group: Shipwreck, nutrition commercials, favorite
food poem, pyramid construction, sugar graphs, and Water, Water
Everywhere.
• Individual: Journal activities, daily food journal, food labels, and
silent reading.
Assessments
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Poem
Daily food journals and translations
Sugar cube graphs
Food label worksheet
Commercials
Reinforcing worksheets
Observation by teacher throughout activities
End of unit assessment
Unit Schedule
Morning
Monday
Tuesday
Wednesday
Thursday
Friday
-Teacher read
aloud: Cloudy With
a Chance of
Meatballs
-Weekly Reader on
production in ND
-Teacher guided
reading
-Fat Point
-Teacher read aloud
-Record
commercials
-Translation of food
journals
-Unit assessment
-Shipwreck-discussion
and activity
-Discussion of
Food Journals
-3 fold vocabulary
-Write commercials in
groups
-Water, Water,
Everywhere
-Auto Nutrition
-Journal activity
-Journal activity
-Partner poems
-Buddy reading
-“Peanut Butter
Jelly Time”
-Make homemade
peanut butter
-Fruit Bowl sketching
-Reader’s Theater
for Partner Poems
-Vocabulary
grocery bags
Afternoon
-Watch Cloudy With a
Chance of Meatballs
-Finish writing
commercials
-Bulletin Board
-Sugar Graphs
-Reading and
Worksheet for nonfiction literature
regarding nutrition.
-Finish recording
commercials
-Food label
conversions
-Building food pyramids
-Field Trip to Dan’s
Supermarket
-Reading time
-Food pyramid
Jeopardy
-View commercials
and vote.
-Work time for
unfinished projects
Lesson Plan
Grade: 5
Subject: Science/ Media
Materials Needed: TV commercials bookmarked on computer, paper, pencil, 5 groups, video camera, television
Standards: 5.7.1 Identify risks or benefits of personal health choices (e.g., tobacco, alcohol, prescription and illegal drugs, fast foods)
5.7.2 Explain ways humans benefit from Earth’s resources (e.g., air, water, soil, food, fuel, building materials)
Objectives: TLW create a commercial identifying the risks and benefits of an element of nutrition.
TLW discuss the ways in which we retrieve different elements of nutrition.
Lesson:
•The class will discuss elements of nutrition in a previous lesson. The teacher will do a relatively quick review of important topics.
•The teacher will show the students a variety of commercials off of the internet. The class will discuss the elements of the commercial to
make it successful.
•The class will be divided into five groups and given a particular area of nutrition: carbohydrates, proteins, fats, vitamins, and minerals
•The students will take time to write a commercial in the group.
•The students will record the commercial.
•The students will watch each commercial and discuss the important points made.
•The students will vote for the best commercial.
Assessment:
Students will write a commercial involving all persons in the group.
Students will create a commercial that will be graded based from a rubric.
Students will give a peer review of the commercials.
Reflection:
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“Peanut Butter Jelly Time”
It's peanut butter jelly time!!!
Peanut butter jelly time!!!
Peanut butter jelly time!!!
bridge:
now Where he at?
Where he at?
Where he at?
Where he at?
Now There he goes
There he goes
There he goes
There he goes
Peanut butter jelly [x4]
chorus:
Do the Peanut butter jelly
Peanut butter jelly
Peanut butter jelly with a baseball bat
Do the Peanut butter jelly
Peanut butter jelly
Peanut butter jelly with a baseball bat
bridge
chorus
now break it down and freeze
take it down to your knees
now lean back and squeeze
now get back up and scream
bridge
chorus
bridge
chorus
now walk walk walk walk
stomp stomp stomp stomp
slide slide slide slide
back it up one more time
now walk walk walk walk
stomp stomp stomp stomp
peanut butter jelly break it down
throw the ball up swing that bat
turn your head back and see where I’st at
throw the ball up swing that bat
turn you head back and see where it’s at
palm beachpeanut butter
dade countyjelly
orlandopeanut butter
tallahasse jelly