Lesson Plan
Written by Jessica Pyatt and Sandra Jordan
Title: Article Format to help students make food choices that meet the Dietary Guidelines and
promote good health.
Grade Level/Subject: 9-12 “Food and Nutrition” and “LIFE”
Illinois Learning Standards and/or Skill Standards:
English/Language Arts State Goal: 3.C.5A Communicates information and ideas in narrative,
informative and persuasive writing with clarity and effectiveness in a variety of written forms
using appropriate traditional and/electronic formats; adapt content, vocabulary, voice and
tone to the audience, purpose and situation
Workplace Skill Standards: Solving Problems and Thinking Critically (English Arts) Identify
the problem; 5.A.2a, 5.A.3a Clarify purpose and goals; 5.B.3b, 5.B.5a Identify solutions to a
problem and their impact; 5.A.3b, 5.B.5a Employ reasoning skills; 1.C.4c, 1.C.5c, 1.C.5f,
2.B.4a, Evaluate options, Set priorities; 1.B.5c Select and implement a solution to a problem;
5.A.3b, 5.A.4b, 5.A.5b Evaluate results of implemented option; m5.B.5a
(Physical development and Health) Identify the problem; Clarify purpose and goals; 20.C1,
20.C.2a, 20.C.3a, 20.C.4a, 20.C.5a Identify solutions to a problem and their impact; 22.A.5a,
22.C.3a, 22.C.3b, 20.C.4 Employ reasoning skills 22.C.5, 24.A.3b, Evaluate options, Set
priorities, Select and implement a solution to a problem; 22.A.3b, 22.A.5b Evaluate results of
implemented option; 22.A.5b, 22.B.5, 24.B.5, 24.C.5
Overview: Students will use questioning to activate prior knowledge. While reading,
highlight important information and then compile information to use as support in a nutritious
food choices.
Objectives:
1.
2.
3.
4.
Read article and gather useful information.
Students will collect snack food nutrition labels.
Analyze the nutritional label of your favorite snack foods.
Analyzing the nutritional label students will be able to compare nutrition
labeling information to make healthier food decisions.
5. Analyze the nutritional value of healthier alternative snack foods.
6. Define label definitions/terms: “low in”, “reduced, less, or fewer”, “good
source of”, “organic and natural”, “high source of fiber”, “juice”, sell date, use
by date, open dating.
7. Practice label literacy.
Academic principles: Students will use the “Before, During and After” reading strategy to
distinguish useful information from articles. Then use this information to formulate an
opinion and support it within a persuasive essay.
CTE Application: This lesson introduces the importance of reading nutrition labels and basic
reading skills for articles found on the internet. Work skills include: understanding the
importance of label reading to help make appropriate food choices in promoting a lifetime of
good health.
Reading Strategy Details
Before, During, After: Before reading the article the students are asked to respond to a
number of questions to activate prior knowledge. As the students read each paragraph they
will pick out important information, after compiling the information the students will relate
the information to the questions answered previously.
Activities & Procedures
1.
2.
3.
Pre-Activities:
Tally Questions- Ask the class yes and no questions. Keep a tally of the number of
students who answered yes and the number that answer no so that they can be
readdressed after reading.
During Activities: Play, "Name That Food". Place the "INGREDIENT LABELS"
transparency on the overhead projector. Ask students to identify the food after
reading the list of ingredients. Then put up the transparency with the fat
percentages, can the students then identify the label with the food item and fat
content?
After Activities: LABEL DECEPTION: transparencies of the ingredient food labels of
various brands of the same food product. Compare the price and ingredients. Note
the use of water and how much of the total product it comprises. How does this
affect the price per serving?
Assessment: Successful completion of Reading Labels worksheet
Students determine how knowledge, skills, attitudes, and behaviors contribute to healthy
relationships with self and others.
Outcomes:
The student will understand the importance of label reading to help make appropriate food
choices in promoting a lifetime of good health.
They will be able to read and interpret definitions, terms and dates and identify the new
format and the requirements for all nutrition labels for the benefit of the consumer.
Closing & summarization
Students will be able to read and use information from a food label.
Students will evaluate various types of food using the new food labels.
Materials Needed
Article “Nutritional Info helps Teens Make Better Choices”
http://www.hhdev.psu.edu/shm/news/articles/10_06_nutrinfo.html
Overhead Projector
Before During and After Sheet and Article on Transparency
Pen/Pencil
READING LABELS information sheet and worksheet
Nutrition food labels with out fat content
Nutrition food labels with fat content
Nutrition label worksheets
Resources
Internet
Article:
Nutritional Info helps Teens Make Better Choices”
http://www.hhdev.psu.edu/shm/news/articles/10_06_nutrinfo.html
The New Food Label – FDA
http://www.fda.gov/opacom/backgrounders/foodlabel/newlabel.html
Name ________________________________ Date ____________________ Score__________
READING LABELS
Reading food labels will help you become a better consumer. Some of the information on
food labels is mandatory (required by law) and some is voluntary (written as a courtesy to the
consumer).
Mandatory information includes
 The name of the product
 The style of the product (type of liquid, size of pieces, etc.)
 The net weight of the contents (this does not include the weight of the container)
 The name, address, and zip code of the company
 Any special information that affects people with health problems
 Presence of artificial color, flavor, or preservatives
 A list of ingredients in order of weight in the package: the ingredient of the heaviest
amount is listed first.
 Nutrition information, including the number of calories and the number of calories
from fat
Voluntary information includes
 The brand name
 A picture of the food
 The number of servings per package
 Recipes and serving suggestions
 Freshness dates
Using a food label, draw a circle around each kind of the above information you are able to
find on the label.
Using another food label or package provided by the teacher, answer the following questions.
1. What is the name of the product? ____________________________________________
2. The net weight of this product is _____________________________________________
3. What company produces this product? ________________________________________
4. What is its address? _______________________________________________________
5. What are the first three ingredients listed? _____________________________________
6. Where is the U.P.C. code on the label? ________________________________________
7. What is the expiration date or code on your product? ____________________________
8. How much of this product makes one serving? _________________________________
9. Nutritional information (per serving)
Calories ______________________
Protein _______________________
Total carbohydrates _____________
Total fat (grams) _______________
Saturated fat (grams) ____________
Cholesterol (grams) _____________
Sodium (mg) __________________
10. Look at the Percent of Daily Values. Are most of the nutrients less than 2%?
Yes ______ No ______
11. From reading the nutritional information, would you consider this convenience
food to be nutritious? Yes______ No _______ Explain your answer
______________________
____________________________________________________________________
____
12. Three items of voluntary information on this label are
___________________________,
___________________________ and _________________________________.
13. Why do you think the government makes laws regulating food labels?
_______________________________________________________________________
Use the labels or packages of two similar products. Label one product as A and one as
B. Answer the following questions.
Product A name
________________________________________________________________
Product B name
________________________________________________________________
1. How many calories are in a serving of product A?
__________________________________
How many calories are in a serving of product B?
__________________________________
2. What is the serving size of product A ?
__________________________________________
What is the serving size of product B ?
__________________________________________
3. How many of the calories in product A come from fat?
______________________________
How many of the calories in product B come from fat?
______________________________
4. List the vitamins product A contains.
____________________________________________
List the vitamins product B contains.
____________________________________________
5. How much sodium per serving does product A contain?
_____________________________
How much sodium per serving does product B contain?
_____________________________
6. How much protein per serving does product A contain?
_____________________________
How much protein per serving does product B contain?
_____________________________
7. How much fat per serving does product A contain?
_________________________________
How much fat per serving does product B contain?
_________________________________
8. How much cholesterol per serving does product A contain?
__________________________
How much cholesterol per serving does product B contain?
__________________________
9. What is the total number of carbohydrates in product A?
_____________________________
What is the total number of carbohydrates in product B?
_____________________________
10. List any minerals in product A?
_________________________________________________
List any minerals in product B?
_________________________________________________
11. Which of the two products is the most nutritious?
_____________________________________________________________________
12. Why?
_____________________________________________________________________
News and Press Releases
Nutritional Info Helps Teens Make Better Choices
University Park, Pa -- Mystery meat not withstanding, high school cafeterias can provide
nutritional, balanced and healthful meals, but students have to choose correctly. Now,
researchers at Penn State have found that point-of- selection nutrition information cards
can spur students to pick the right foods.
"Nutrition information is already used in most school districts to meet the Healthy School
Meals Initiative," says Dr. Martha T. Conklin, professor of hospitality management. "This
same information could be made available at the point of selection with very little
additional cost."
The researchers displayed the nutrition information in the standard U.S. Food and Drug
Administration's style for Nutrition Facts Labels found on all packaged foods.
"We used the Nutrition Facts Label because students might already be familiar with
nutrition information in this format," says Conklin.
Supplying nutrition information seemed to influence food selection as students
increasingly opted for more healthful entrees. While students did not switch from
cheeseburgers and pepperoni pizza to salad, they did choose foods with less fat and
fewer calories, the researchers report in a recent issue of the Journal of Child Nutrition
and Management.
"There was a significant switch from pepperoni pizza to plain cheese pizza," says Conklin.
"The sale of cheeseburgers and bacon cheeseburgers decreased, while sales of
hamburgers and veggie burgers increased."
The researchers, who included Conklin; Dr. David A. Cranage, associate professor of
hospitality management, and Dr. Carolyn U. Lambert, associate professor of food
systems management, conducted their study in four school districts in Pennsylvania. Two
of the districts had two high schools so one school became a control.
For the first six weeks of the fall semester, the cafeterias operated normally. These
cafeterias were in schools that ran the gamut from traditional, straight-line cafeterias to
those with a scramble system and many a la carte offerings. The next six weeks the
second time through the menu cycle the cafeterias posted point-of- selection nutrition
information for each entree. For pasta, sandwich and potato bars, cafeterias posted
nutrient contents of typical choices for comparison.
Labels included serving size; calories; total and saturated fat, cholesterol, sodium, total
carbohydrate, dietary fiber, protein, vitamins A and C, calcium and iron. While the study
showed that the fiber, Vitamin A, C, iron and sodium content did not influence student
choices, calorie and fat levels appeared to be especially persuasive.
The shift in food preferences after the point-of-selection nutrition information appeared
was slight to moderate. In the two control schools where cafeterias did not provide
nutrition information, the same shifts did not occur.
During the second menu cycle, all entrees showed a slight dip in sales, probably due to
boredom. However, there was a significant increase in sales of items lower in fat and
calories in schools providing nutrition information. Point-of-sale nutrition information did
not just influence sales of traditional teenage fare. In one school, chicken entree choices
changed as well, apparently based on fat content.
Chicken dishes containing 20 or more grams of fat, such as chicken nuggets, popcorn
chicken and chicken quesadillas, were less popular after the institution of the nutrition
information signs. Chicken dishes with less than 20 grams of fat seemed to be chosen
based on a second criterion calories. Those dishes with more than 500 calories, such as
chicken stromboli or chicken fajitas, were chosen less often. Those with the same fat
content, but fewer calories, oven-baked chicken or kabobs, were chosen more often. For
very low-fat dishes, sweet and sour chicken or roast chicken salad, calories seemed not
to matter, but consumption of these healthier dishes also increased.
The researchers noted that cafeterias only provided nutrition information for entrees, not
side dishes or desserts. They also believe that more research is necessary to decide if
similar results would occur with high school students across the country and whether
younger students will react the same. There were similar results with high school students
from a variety of ethnic backgrounds who live in rural, suburban and urban areas of the
state, according to the researchers.
"Overweight adolescents are a major public health concern in the U.S.," says Conklin.
"Students who change their eating behaviors to choose more healthful food will have an
increased chance of maintaining an appropriate weight and developing healthy eating
habits that last a lifetime."
The Child Nutrition Foundation's Lincoln Foodservice Grant for Innovations in School
Foodservices supported this research.
EDITORS: Dr. Conklin is at 814-863-4847 or at mtc11@psu.edu . The full article can be
accessed at http:// docs.schoolnutrition.org/newsroom/jcnm/05spring/conklin/index.asp
Contacts:
A'ndrea Elyse Messer (814) 865-9481 aem1@psu.edu
Vicki Fong (814) 865-9481 vfong@psu.edu
http://www.hhdev.psu.edu/shm/news/articles/10_06_nutrinfo.html