More Milk, Please!

Young people will learn why drinking milk is good for them, how much milk they need to drink and why, and other types of ways they can get milk if they are not able to or choose not to drink milk.

Ages

3-8 Years Old

Duration

30 Minutes

What You Need

Three 8-ounce glasses, ½ gallon of milk
Optional:
- 8 ounce disposable cups, one for each young person, and low-fat 1% milk (8 ounces for each young person or 8 ounce milk cartons, one for each young person).
- A milk substitute, such as soy milk, if needed.
- Digital Camera
Milk Maze – One copy per young person

Resources

Healthy Families Newsletter

English (pdf)

Spanish (pdf)

To find out how this health safety lesson fits Physical Education and Health Education standards click here.

Lesson Overview

This lesson helps young people visualize how much milk they should drink each day by pouring 8 ounces into each of three glasses. The youth will complete a milk-themed maze activity. Optionally, the young people can photograph themselves with milk mustaches to remind them to drink milk each day.

Introduction

Talk with the youth about why drinking milk is good for them.
Drinking milk will:
- give your body important nutrients like calcium and vitamin D to help your bones grow strong
- give your body protein to help build strong muscles.
Ask the youth, what could happen if your body doesn’t get enough calcium?
Answer: Your bones can get weak and could easily break.
If you’re allergic to cow’s milk, you can try fortified “milk” made from soy, rice, coconut or almonds. If that doesn’t sound too good, you can also:
- drink calcium-enriched orange juice
- eat vegetables rich in calcium, such as cooked broccoli and spinach.
How much milk should you have each day?
Answer: For most kids your age, three 8-ounce glasses of milk each day is enough to give your body all the calcium and protein it needs.

Activity

To show how much milk a young person should drink each day, pour 8 ounces of milk into three glasses.
Ask for feedback from the youth: Are they surprised with the amount? Did they think they needed to drink more or less?
Give each young person a glass or carton of milk and ask them to try and make a milk mustache. (Offer a milk substitute such as soy milk for young people who cannot have cow’s milk.)
Optional: Take a group photo of the young people with their milk mustaches to hang in your classroom as a reminder to drink milk every day.
Have the youth complete the milk maze.

Conclusion

Remind the young people that drinking milk is good for their bones, muscles, and overall health. Ask them to count how many 8 ounce glasses of milk they have to drink today. Will they get to 3 glasses? Count again tomorrow and remember to get enough milk every day!

Continuing the Conversation

Hand out the Healthy Families Newsletter in English or Spanish, so that families can continue to talk about drinking milk getting enough calcium at home.

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