Topic: Eat Well

Grocery Store Virtual Tour

Lesson Overview

This lesson helps young people understand the way that grocery stores are designed, how products may be deceptively marketed, and ways to find the most healthful options in grocery store aisles. The youth will compare two similar products and then pick the healthier version. They will make informed choices by looking at the ingredients list.

Definitions

Before facilitating this lesson, you may want to review the following definitions. These can be shared with young people during your discussions.

Shelf life: This is how long a product can sit on the shelf or counter, or in the refrigerator, before spoiling, rotting or molding.

Processed food: This is food that has been changed from its original form. For example, a potato made into a potato chip. These foods usually have several ingredients. Processed foods have been packaged into a bag, box or other container. They are shipped from a factory and will have a shelf life of weeks or even years.

One-ingredient food: This is a food that has been grown, picked and washed before selling, and usually does not have an expiration date stamped on it. This type of food will not last for more than a few days before spoiling. Fruit, vegetables, milk, eggs and meat are examples of one-ingredient foods. Some one-ingredient foods can be packaged and may have a longer shelf life if stored properly, such as flour.

Perimeter: The edges of the store as you walk around; does not include the center aisles.

 

Activity: Parts of a Grocery Store

Have a picture of a grocery store layout or arrange the products that young people brought from home around a designated area to show food locations. For example, fruit, veggies, meat and dairy around the perimeter and chips, cookies and cereal in the center.

Show the youth the Sample Grocery Store Layout and point out the sections.

Perimeter of the grocery store

Point out that in this grocery store, most of the one-ingredient foods are located around the perimeter of the store. The boxed, bagged and packaged items (processed foods) are located in the center aisles.

While shopping, you will want to get the majority of your food from the perimeter of the store. The foods around the perimeter are better for your body because they have not been changed from their original form.

Caution: Grocery stores are starting to put processed foods around the perimeter, too. Sometimes you may find sugary cereals on the perimeter. You will also find one-ingredient foods boxed in the center aisles, like flours, oatmeal, and frozen fruit and veggies.

The produce section

Talk about the difference between conventionally grown produce and organically grown produce.

  • Conventionally grown produce is grown with synthetic fertilizers, insecticides and herbicides (weed killer) to protect the crops from mold, bugs and disease.
  • Organically grown produce is grown with natural fertilizers such as manure and seaweed, insect predators (like ladybugs and bats) and barriers to prevent pests. The farmers weed by hand or mulch in order to prevent weeds.

The chemicals used to grow conventional fruits and vegetables can’t be washed completely off or peeled away. For example, you peel a banana before eating it but the chemicals are not just on the outside. They can get into the soil used to grow the banana and can be found in the fruit. Peeling your banana will not keep you from eating small amounts of these chemicals.

Note: Always remember to wash your hands and your produce well before eating, even if it is organic.

The center aisles

Explain that although the center aisles are more likely to have processed foods, you can still make healthful choices here. There are several different types of processed foods on the shelves. Just walk into the chip aisle! It is floor-to-ceiling choices! For any of these items, picking the healthiest product will be most beneficial, but how do you know which product to pick?

  • Have the young people look at the grocery store picture or study the layout of the products.
  • Have the young people go through the grocery store and pick up four products that they would like.
  • Hold up the bag of regular Lay’s® potato chips and the bag of SunChips®. Ask the following questions:
    • By a show of hands: Do you think you can choose the healthier product by looking at the front of the package?
    • Read the front of the packages and then ask: Which chip is healthier? Why?
    • Do you think you can choose the healthier product by looking at the nutrition label?
    • Read calories, sodium, and fat content and then ask: Which chip is healthier? Why?

You can definitely get some important information from both of these locations, but you get more accurate and specific details from the ingredient list.

Activity: Virtual Shopping Trip

1. Ask the young people to “go shopping” in your virtual grocery store (see internet option below). Have each young person or group of young people choose at least two items (you may adjust this number based on how many food items are available in your virtual grocery store). As a larger group, have the young people separate the products they “bought” on the floor into two piles using the following criteria:

Pile A (Put the bag of Lay’s® potato chips in this pile.)

  • The product has five ingredients or less.
  • Sugar is not in the first five ingredients.
  • You can pronounce all the ingredients and know what they all are.

Pile B (Put the bag of SunChips® in this pile.)

  • The product has six ingredients or more.
  • Sugar, or any form of sugar, is in the ingredients.
  • You can’t pronounce some of the ingredients, or you can pronounce them, but don’t know what some of them are.

2. Take a look at the products in your piles. The products in Pile A have the criteria above, let’s see why they may be healthier than the products in Pile B. Talk about why the products in pile B are in this pile.

3. Have the young people pick an ingredient (one they can or can’t pronounce BUT don’t know what the ingredient is) and research the specific ingredient to find out what the ingredient is. An example to look up would be ‘Red 40,’ or any other food coloring.

Internet shopping option: If internet-enabled devices are available to the youth, they can do a digital version of this activity using an online grocery store such as Coborns Delivers or Fresh Direct. Nutrition labels are available for most items in the item detail view. Young people can take a screenshot of the item they’d like to “purchase” and share it with the instructor. The instructor can sort the images of products on the interactive whiteboard or any mobile app that allows you to import and sort images.

4. Here are some questions to answer about the ingredient:

  • What is it?
  • Why is it in the product? For example: thickener, coloring, etc.
  • What other product is the ingredient used in? Any non-food item?
  • Is the ingredient banned in other countries? Why?

Here are some additional questions to answer about the products.

Question: Is the product advertised on TV? Why do you think this is significant?

Answer: Products that are advertised on TV, radio and Internet are usually produced by big companies who spend a lot of money on marketing and research to get you to buy their products. Think about cereal! While watching cartoons or any other kids show, cereal commercials market to kids. The commercials are very exciting and make you want to buy their products. The commercial almost makes it ‘cool’ to eat the product.

Question: What do you think about the food commercials you see on TV? Which ones are your favorites and why? Do you make your decisions on what to ask your parent to buy at the grocery store by what you hear or see on the commercial? Have the youth give some examples.

Possible answers and discussion topics:

  • These processed products are mass produced; usually contain modified food stuff, things that are not naturally found in one-ingredient foods. An example is major chemicals, like food coloring, and makes the company very wealthy. The products usually don’t cost much because the commercials help sell the products which keeps the prices low.
  • Processed foods usually have ingredients that make the food more flavorful and addicting. This can make processed foods more appealing than fruits, vegetables or other healthful choices.

Question: What products are not advertised? Why do you think this is significant?

Answer: One example is apples. They are not advertised on TV, radio or the Internet. Farmers do not have money to make commercials to advertise their products.

Conclusion

Remind young people to think about what they’ve learned the next time they visit a grocery store with their families. Ask them to look for products with the following criteria:

  • The product has five ingredients or less.
  • Sugar is not in the first five ingredients.
  • You can pronounce all the ingredients and know what they all are.

Challenge the youth to find the most healthful options, even in the potato chip aisle! Visit our virtual care package for more virtual health and wellness resources.

Continuing the Conversation

Hand out the Healthy Families Newsletter in English or Spanish, so that families can practice shopping for healthful foods together.

Related Health Powered Kids Blog(s)

Additional Instructor Resources:

Get the Facts: Know Your Food Label

Lesson Overview

This lesson helps young people understand how using the Nutrition Facts label helps them make healthy food choices. They will practice reading food labels, looking for calories, ingredients, and daily value percent’s.

Introduction

Understanding and using the Nutrition Facts label is an important step in helping young people fight obesity and prevent health problems later in life. By reading labels, young people will become more aware of what’s in the foods they eat. They will also get the information they need to make healthful food choices and establish good eating habits for life.

Show the youth the FDA’s “The Food Label & You” video. (Teacher to select entire video or any of the individual segments to show.)

Activity: Reading Nutrition Labels

Pass out two to three nutrition facts labels to each young person or group.

Ask the youth to take a few minutes to do the following:

Locate the Nutrition Facts label for your food item(s).

  • Find the Serving Size and Servings Per Container. Remember: all of the nutrition information on the label is based on one serving of the food. A package of food often has more than one serving!

  • Find the calories. They are the “fuel” our bodies need for our daily activities.

  • The calories listed are for one serving. Tell the youth that many people don’t even realize how many servings they are eating.  Remind young people that for the most part calories are good.

  • Find the Total Fat grams (g) for one serving. Under Total Fat, find the grams (g) of Saturated Fat. The grams (g) of Saturated Fat are part of the Total Fat grams (g). To keep our hearts healthy, it is important that we are aware of how much Total Fat (especially fats that are not good for our hearts such as Saturated Fats and Trans Fats) we are eating. We want to eat less of these nutrients.

  • Find the % of daily value. The percent of daily value shows how the amount of a nutrient fits into a 2,000 calorie diet.  Individual calorie needs will vary based on age, sex, size and activity level. The 5/20 rule says that if a food has 5% of daily value then it is low in that nutrient. If it has 20% of daily value then it is high in that nutrient. This can be good or bad depending if it is a nutrient that you want to have more of, such as calcium, iron, or less of, such as cholesterol or fat.

  • Ingredients: This shows the order of ingredients found in the food product from the most to least. This is where you will find if a food product is made from whole grains, has added sugars, and/or other ingredients that may have a positive or negative impact on your overall health.

Call on young people or groups and have them share their findings with the others.

Conclusion

Continuing the Conversation

Hand out the Healthy Families Newsletter in English or Spanish so that families can practice reading food labels and discuss good eating habits at home.

Additional Instructor Resources

Gardening – Growing Goodness!

Lesson Overview

This lesson helps young people understand where healthy food comes from. The youth will discuss what kind of plants produce their favorite fruits and vegetables. Then they will try out gardening themselves by planting some bean seeds and watching the plants grow.

Introduction

  1. Ask the young people where our food comes from. Give the youth a couple of minutes to share with another person where they think certain fruits and vegetables grow.  Discuss their thoughts as a group. You may want to mention the following points:
    • All food has to “grow” somewhere, whether it’s an animal for meat, grains for processing into flour and other products, or artificial flavorings made in a lab to mimic whole food flavors found in nature. Artificial flavorings and colors are used in some candies and flavored drink mixes.
    • It’s good to eat foods as close to their natural state as possible. Fruits and vegetables are the easiest type of food to find in a natural state. That means that not much has been done to them before they get to us. Foods that come in boxes and can be stored on shelves for months, for example, have been processed and have had things added to them to preserve them long before they get to us, in particular lots of them may have added sugar.
    • The sugar that is in fruits is different from the sugar in candy. The sugar in fruit is a natural sugar that is not made from many different chemicals like those found in candy, cookies, cereal and other sweetened treats, that’s known as processed sugar. Foods direct from the earth, no matter how sweet, are the healthiest foods for people to eat. So just where do our fruits and vegetables come from? Fruits and vegetables grow in many different ways. They can grow on trees like apples do, or they can grow underground from a root like a carrot. They also grow on vines and bushes.
  2. Download the interactive whiteboard activity from the What You Need section above. The goal of the activity is to match up the fruit or vegetable with the growing location whether it’s underground, above ground on the surface, or on a tree.
  3. Were they able to match certain fruits and vegetables to the type of plant they grow on such as underground, on a vine or in a tree?

Activity: Plant a Garden

  1. Talk about: Why are gardens healthy? Growing a garden can be beneficial in more ways than just getting healthy food. Gardening can help people relax. It can also be a time for family bonding if you work together in the garden. Gardening can even be a type of physical activity. Furthermore, seeds are cheap to buy, so why not grow your own food and save some money?

  2. Plant a mini garden. Have the young people plant their own green beans. You can split the youth into groups of four so they can plant one as a group, or you can hand out clear plastic cups to all young people to plant their own. However you wish to do this, you will need to handout a clear plastic cup (16 ounces) to everyone who will be planting seeds. Follow these steps for a successful gardening project:

    • Each young person or group will need to write their names on the cup so they know whose is whose.

    • Next use a thumbtack to poke a few holes in the bottom of the cup to let the extra water drain.

    • Once this is done, each cup will need to be loosely packed half way with potting soil. Make sure the soil is moist/damp.

    • Then place 5 to 6 seeds near the side of the cup so the youth are able to see them grow through the clear cup.

    • Cover the seeds with more moist soil to the top of the cup, and lightly pack it.

    • Place plastic wrap over the cups to help keep in the moisture, and place near a window for sunlight.

    • Once you see the beans starting to sprout, remove the plastic wrap and water as needed.

    • Continue to keep the cup in the sun.

    • The cups may need to be put into some sort of tray so the water doesn’t leak.

Activity: Veggie Scramble

If time allows, hand out the Veggie Scramble worksheet. Allow the youth time to complete the word puzzles, then share the correct answers from the Veggie Scramble Answer Key.  This worksheet may also be sent home as an enrichment activity.

Conclusion

You can keep the cups in the classroom and note their progress. This provides great informal, ongoing opportunities to talk about nutrition and health. Or you can have the young people bring plants home and care for them there. In that case you can, if you like, ask for periodic reports on how they are growing. Either way, once their plant has grown big enough, young people can transfer their seedlings into a big garden or larger pot at home!

Continuing the Conversation

Hand out the Healthy Families Newsletter in English or Spanish, which also includes these tips, so that families can continue discussing fresh, healthy foods at home.

Related Health Powered Kids Blog(s)

Additional Instructor Resources

What Kind of Sugar is in Your Food? Handout – (Russian) – (Somali) – (Spanish)

Food Allergy Awareness

Lesson Overview

This lesson helps raise awareness and promote safety about food allergies. The youth will practice packing an imaginary picnic lunch, paying attention to their friends’ dietary restrictions. They will think of treats that everyone can enjoy at special events.

Instructor Notes

This lesson is about raising awareness and promoting safety about food allergies. If there is a child in your group with food allergies, we suggest you talk to the parent and the child before the lesson to review what will be covered and make sure they are comfortable with it. We encourage you to invite the parent to attend the lesson and be involved.

Before facilitating this lesson, you may want to review the following information about food allergies. These facts can be shared with young people during your discussions.

  • Any food can cause an allergic reaction but most are caused by eight foods:
    • peanuts
    • tree nuts (such as walnuts, pistachios, pecans, almonds and cashews)
    • milk (all dairy)
    • eggs
    • wheat
    • soy
    • fish (such as salmon, tuna)
    • shellfish (shrimp, crab, lobster).
  • Anyone could develop a food allergy or sensitivity to any food at any time.  Even if you have eaten the food several times before.
  • Symptoms of an allergic reaction may range from minor, such as itching and hives, to anaphylaxis, a whole-body reaction that can include stomach pain or cramping, trouble breathing, confusion, cough, trouble swallowing, fainting, nausea, vomiting and more.
  • If a person is having a food allergy reaction, they need help right away. Depending on the symptoms, they may need an antihistamine (such as Benadryl®), epinephrine (given through an auto-injector such as an EpiPen®, EpiPen Jr® or TwinJect®), or both.
  • 911 needs to be called any time a dose of epinephrine is used or when you are worried about someone’s safety.
  • Kids with food allergies often have anxiety about food. They may feel left out at meals or parties, or get teased or bullied because they are different, yet it’s actually fairly common to have a food allergy.  One in 13 kids under the age of six has a food allergy.
  • Some people are so sensitive that even the smell of the food can trigger a reaction. When this is the case in the school setting, make the classroom a safe zone where no one can bring the known allergen. (For example, a “Peanut Free Zone”.)

Introduction

  1. Ask young people what they know about food allergies. Share some of the facts listed above including the most common food allergens (nuts, wheat gluten, eggs and fish) and that people can develop food allergies at any point in their lives.
  2. Before doing the lesson activities, have a brief discussion about what it might feel like to have a food allergy. What do you think it would feel like if you couldn’t eat something that everyone else is eating?

Activity: Be the Chef!

Be the Chef! Create a safe and fun picnic for all.

Let’s pack the picnic.  Explain that everyone is going to pack a lunch for an imaginary picnic with your friends. Some of the friends have food allergies. Tell the youth that the most commons foods your guests will be allergic to are the following: peanuts, tree nuts (such as walnuts, pistachios, pecans, almonds and cashews), milk, eggs, wheat, soy, fish (such as salmon, tuna), or shellfish (shrimp, crab, lobster).

To pack a safe and fun picnic for all the friends, they will want to select items for their picnic basket that are the safest for friends with food allergies.

List of foods for picnic basket:

Green light: Carrot sticks, Apples, Red pepper slices, Oranges, Bananas, Pears, Grapes, Strawberries, Pickles

Yellow light: Cookies, Hard candies, Chocolate, Crackers, Bean dip, Rice cakes, Guacamole, Beef jerky

Red light: Peanut butter sandwiches, Hard boiled eggs, Cheese sticks, Bagels with cream cheese, Chocolate chip-walnut cookies

Instructor note – Items in the yellow light category will have ingredient lists on the label and need to be read carefully to see if they are safe. They may have been made in a factory where other allergens are handled and therefore they shouldn’t be considered completely safe.

Afterwards, talk about the activity. Ask how easy or hard it was. How did they feel about the choices? How did they feel about packing something they knew would be safe for their friends? Share with them that even if they don’t have allergies themselves, their message to their friends who do can be: I care about you; I don’t want you to get sick.

Activity: Allergy-free Holidays and Special Events

Young people like to celebrate holidays and special events.  If a holiday, birthday or a special event is coming up on the school calendar, review these tips with the youth and then brainstorm ways your group could include the ideas to create a successful, allergy-free fun event.

  1. Hold the chocolate.  Add some chocolate-free, peanut-free treats to your bowl. Nearly all chocolate treats on the market are made on equipment shared with peanuts and tree nuts (and are unsafe for those with milk allergy). Take a look at the chocolate-free options – such as Dum Dums® suckers, DOTS® and Smarties®. (Remember to always read labels and check with parents before giving any food to children with food allergies.)
  2. Mix it up! Change the focus to non-food treats, such as holiday-themed pencils, notepads, stickers, goofy erasers or fun rings.
  3. Wash your hands! If young people with food allergies come in contact with food from sticky fingerprints, it can make them sick, too. Washing hands after you eat is a great way to prevent unsafe foods from getting on shared tables, desks, school supplies, and toys or games.
  4. If your parents bake something to bring in to share, ask them to supply the recipe along with any packaged ingredients they used to make the recipe.

Conclusion

Remind the youth that many young people have food allergies, so thinking of those friends or family members when you give out special treats shows that you care about them and don’t want them to be sick.

Continuing the Conversation

Hand out the Healthy Families Newsletter in English or Spanish, so that families can continue discussing ways care for friends and family members with food allergies.

Related Health Powered Kids Blog(s)

What you need to know about food allergies

Food Allergy Awareness for the School Year

Additional Instructor Resources

Food Allergies and How to Manage Them

Check out Anaphylaxis101.com for additional resources for teachers, parents and young people.

Visit FoodAllergy.org for more resources and consider posting this child-friendly poster in the classroom.

Fast Food Alert

Lesson Overview

Finding a healthful, well-balanced meal in most fast food restaurants can be a challenge, but there are always choices you can make that are better than others. In this lesson, young people will explore common fast food choices and the corresponding nutritional information. They will list healthier choices to make when eating at fast food restaurants.

Introduction

Today’s families are busy and on the go with work and activities. Kids are eating away from home more than ever. To introduce the topic of fast food, ask the youth:

  1. How often do you usually go to a fast food restaurant? Once or twice a week? More than that?
  2. Why do we go to fast food restaurants? (Quick, easy, tastes good)
  3. Ask young people to list some of their favorite fast food restaurants? List their answers on the chalkboard or whiteboard.

Activity: Your Fast Food Menu

Each young person will need a blank piece of paper and pencil.

  • Have the youth fold their paper lengthwise into thirds. (A fun way to tell them is to fold it the “hot dog” way for lengthwise.)
  • In the first column (left side) ask young person to write down each food and drink item they order from one of their favorite fast food restaurants. Tell them to make sure to include the size they get, such as small, medium or large.
  • In the second (middle) column, have them write down which of the five food groups each food or drink item belongs to (vegetables, fruits, grains, protein, dairy). Review the five food groups with the youth as needed. Show MyPlate graphic or use our Interactive Whiteboard activity (see What You Need) to talk about MyPlate. If their food doesn’t fit into one of the food groups have them write “extra” instead. Remind them that some foods fit into more than one category. A cheeseburger would be protein/grain/dairy and “extra” for added fat.

Activity: Fast Food Nutrition Information

How can we find nutrition information about the meals you typically choose?

  • You can find the nutrition facts on the individual website link including the amount of sugar, salt, calories and nutrients in each food and drink.
  • We’ve provided links here to nutrition information from the fast food places kids are most likely to name, but if the young people name others, you are likely to find nutritional information on each restaurant’s websites.
  • Help the youth find their favorite choices in the links below, and take a look at the nutritional information that’s provided. It will be helpful to write down calories, sodium (salt), sugar, fat and vitamins. Be sure to watch portion sizes as you compare!

Fast food nutrition information
Pull up different fast food restaurant nutrition information on a projector. Here is a list of restaurants:

McDonalds® Nutrition Information
Wendys® Nutrition Information
Burger King® Nutrition Information
Arby’s Nutrition® Information
Dairy Queen® Nutrition Information
Subway® Nutrition Information

Ask the following questions:

    1. What size French fries do you usually order? Notice the difference between the calories, fat and salt (sodium) between the large size and small size fries.
    2. What size burger do you usually order? Compare the nutrition information of the biggest burgers to the smallest ones.
    3. How about drinks? If you choose pop, the same idea is true—smallest is best.
    4. Ask if there are better food options available at fast food restaurants. What have they tried or heard about?
    5. What could you have instead of French fries that would be a better choice?
      • McDonalds® – apple dippers (peeled apple slices with low fat caramel dip), Yoplait Go-Gurt, or Fruit ‘n Yogurt Parfait.
      • Wendy’s® – apple slices
      • Burger King® – natural applesauce
      • Arby’s® – applesauce
      • Dairy Queen® – applesauce or banana
      • Subway®- baked chips or apple slices
    6. What are some other ways we can make better choices when eating out at fast food restaurants?  Allow young people to offer ideas. Here are some example:
      • Try salads with low-fat dressing, use less dressing or try it without dressing.
      • Use mustard instead of mayonnaise on sandwiches, ask for half the normal mayo/special sauce or go without mayo/special sauces. (lowers calories, fats)
      • Always choose the smallest size of whatever you are ordering, especially if it is a menu item higher in calories, fat, salt and/or sugar.
      • Choose grilled instead of breaded and fried. (lowers fat and calorie content)
      • Choose water or low-fat milk to drink. Juice can be ok sometimes if the portion size is a single serving of four to six ounces and made from 100% juice. (lowers calories and added sugars and fats)
      • Choose fruits/vegetable options when available as sides to increase intake of fruits and vegetables to make it a more healthful meal.

Conclusion

After completing the exercises above, have the youth take out their folded sheets again. Using the nutrition information they have learned, in column number three (right side), have the young people list other options for food and drink choices to make their meal better and include more of the five food groups.

Continuing the Conversation

Hand out the Healthy Families Newsletter in English or Spanish so that families can continue discussing health food choices at home

Related Health Powered Kids Blog

You have options: choosing healthy foods on the run

Additional Instructor Resources: 

Create Your Own Healthful Snack

Lesson Overview

This lesson helps young people think of healthful snacks they can eat. In this two-day activity, youth will use their creativity to invent a healthful snack and market it to their peers.

Instructor Notes

Before facilitating this lesson, you may want to review the following information about snacks. These facts can be shared with young people during your discussions.

  • Kids often view snacks as a bag of chips, cookies or candy. In doing so, they are missing an opportunity to get much needed nutrients through planning ahead for a healthful snack choice.
  • Snacks should be part of a healthy diet that helps kids to refuel between meals and satisfy their hunger.
  • Their snack choices are often influenced by catchy names and marketing strategies geared toward kids.

Introduction

Display a variety of food packaging for the youth to review. Ask the kids to name some of their favorite snacks. Analyze the snacks they mention, as well as the ones on display, and decide as a group if they are healthful. Do they include the five food groups found on MyPlate? Are they high in sugar, fat or salt?

myplate_thumb

 

Activity: Day 1

Tell the youth that they will be inventing their own made-up healthful snack. They will have the opportunity to use their creativity to invent a made-up healthful snack on paper. This will include naming their product, what it looks like and its packaging (including a nutrition facts label). They will decide the pricing and marketing/advertising strategy for their snack. They will then give a brief presentation/commercial promoting their product idea to their classmates.

Provide the youth background knowledge on inventing a healthful snack item. Remind them to consider factors that would make the item healthful or unhealthful. Encourage young people to think about MyPlate as they create their snacks. Does it have ingredients that are part of the five food groups (vegetables, fruits, grains, dairy, and protein)? Is it low in fat and added sugars and/or too much salt?

Feel free to share the following made-up snack ideas to help jump start their imaginations.

  • “Merry Cherry Salsa” – Salsa made from a variety of fruits instead of vegetables.
  • “Popping Corn” – Popcorn coated with something healthful and not butter.
  • “Apriana Bars” – Bar made with apricots and bananas.
  • “Blick” – Fruit smoothie drink named after Blake and Nick, “You’ll never get sick with Blick,” was their slogan.

Provide each young person or group with white poster board, blank nutrition facts label, scissors, colored paper, colored markers and/or pencils for drawing.

When their created snack item is complete it should include the following:

  • Attractive packaging
  • Ingredient list
  • Nutrition Facts label
  • Price
  • Marketing slogan and/or advertising campaign

Activity: Day 2

Have the young people present their healthful food product to the class.

Ask the following questions:

  • What is the name of your product?
  • How would you describe it – taste, texture?
  • Which of the food group(s) did you use?
  • Why do you consider it to be a healthful snack?
  • Describe the packaging you created for the product.
  • What are highlights from the Nutrition Facts label?
  • How much does your product cost?
  • What is your marketing pitch or slogan for the product?

Optional: Post creative healthful snack displays in the classroom or school cafeteria.

Conclusion

As a group, reflect back to the creative snacks that the youth invented. Remind young people that they can be creative with their snacks each day to make healthful eating more fun!

Continuing the Conversation

Hand out the Healthy Families Newsletter in English or Spanish, so that families can continue discussing healthful snack ideas at home.

Related Health Powered Kids Blog(s)

Healthy snacking: Moving beyond milk and cookies

Snacking made easy!

Looking for a quick and healthy after-school snack?

Additional Instructor Resources

Are You a Smart Snacker? – (Russian) – (Somali) – (Spanish)
There Are Sneaky Sugars! – (Russian) – (Somali) – (Spanish)
What Kind of Sugar is in Your Food? – (Russian) – (Somali) – (Spanish)
ChooseMyPlate.gov
Make Your Calories Count

Breakfast Power

Lesson Overview

This lesson helps young people understand the importance of eating a healthful breakfast every day. The youth will plan and research a breakfast meal and create a poster or digital presentation including nutrient information.

Instructor Notes

Before facilitating this lesson, you may want to review the following information about breakfast habits for young people. These facts can be shared with the youth during your discussions.

  • Studies show that kids who eat breakfast tend to eat healthier overall and are more likely to participate in physical activities which helps in maintaining a healthy body weight.
  • Kids will often skip breakfast, which makes them feel tired, restless, and irritable.
  • Breakfast gives the body the refueling it needs for the day ahead after going without food for 8 to 12 hours during sleep.
  • What they eat in the morning is important too. Choosing breakfast foods that are rich in whole grains, fiber, and protein while low in added sugar may enhance their attention span, concentration, and memory — which they need to learn in school.

Introduction

  1. Ask the youth, what does the word “breakfast” mean?
    Break = to separate or divide.
    Fast = a period of time without food.
    Breakfast means to break the fast.
  2. How many hours does your body normally fast from suppertime to breakfast? How about from breakfast to lunch?
  3. Why is “breaking” your fast by eating in the morning so important?  Young people can share ideas and brainstorm why it is important. Possible answers include: less tired, less likely to overeat later in day, more likely to choose healthful foods, think more clearly, perform better at school and extra-curricular activities.
  4. Explain to the youth that our bodies were not designed to go from suppertime to lunch the next day without eating so our brain and body go into what is referred to as a “starvation mode”. This is where your brain and body starts to conserve energy as a natural mechanism to protect your from starvation, which may leave you feeling more tired, irritable, less able to concentrate, and overall sluggish.

Activity: Calculate Your Basal Metabolic Rate

  1. Show the formulas for estimating Basal Metabolic Rate, which is the baseline number of calories our body’s burn in a day when we are being sedentary. Exercise and other activity will increase this, but it gives a starting point. Point out that each person is different. Here are the formulas:
    Male Calculation:
    [Basal Metabolic Rate] = (Body Weight (kg) x 10) + (Height in centimeters (cm) x 6.25) – (Age x 5) + 5
    Female Calculation:
    [Basal Metabolic Rate] = (Body Weight (kg) x 10) + (Height in centimeters (cm) x 6.25) – (Age x 5) – 161
  2. ***Body weight in kilogram (kg) = Weight in pounds divided by 2.2 (Example: 130 lbs ÷ 2.2 = 59 kg body weight.
  3. ***Height in centimeters (cm) = Height in inches x 2.54 (Example 5’5 ft tall = 65 inches x 2.54 = 165 cm tall.
  4. Ask young people to calculate their personal Basal Metabolic Rate, using calculators if necessary and available. They can keep their height and weight private during this activity.
  5. Once they have done this, explain that the BMR gives a general idea of how many calories they need to consume each day in order to effectively fuel their bodies. However, if we go too long without eating (for most people between 8 and 12 hours) our BMR drops because our body begins to go into “starvation mode.” That means it burns fewer calories in order to protect itself. This can be bad for weight control, as the body naturally fights back, doing everything it can to make you stop losing any weight. The body and brain may respond by making you hungrier so that your will eat more and at the same time hold onto more of the calories you consume to protect you from losing weight. It also will likely have many other effects on you such as lower energy levels, poorer concentration, poor memory, and feelings of irritability.
  6. The bottom line of all this is that breakfast is a very important meal, perhaps the most important of the day.

Activity: Breakfast Recommendations for Young People

  1. Ask the youth for some reasons why young people don’t eat breakfast. Possible answers include: want to sleep more, not enough time, nothing to eat at home, not hungry that early in the morning, takes too long to prepare, don’t like typical breakfast foods.
  2. Ask the youth for some solutions. Possible answers include:
    • Go to bed 15 to 30 minutes earlier.
    • Get up 15 minutes earlier or set out clothes and shower the night before.
    • Eat school breakfast.
    • Pack breakfast or a snack to eat on way to school.
    • Plan three easy quick breakfasts ahead of time.
    • Eat leftovers from last night’s dinner.
  3. Ask, what makes a healthful breakfast?  A healthful breakfast is one that has many nutrients, includes foods from different food groups (fruits, vegetables, grains, dairy, and protein).  It should be low in added sugars and fats, high in vitamins and fiber.
  4. Introduce the poster activity and have the youth plan and research a breakfast meal and then create a poster or PowerPoint including nutrient information. Grade his or her recommendations by breakfast completeness (at least three of the five food groups included), taste, appearance, and time it takes to prepare.
  5. Assign a day to have young people present their breakfast idea to the group.

Conclusion

Breakfast is a critical piece of the Health Powered Kids puzzle. Without breakfast our bodies don’t get the jumpstart they need to operate at their fullest potential throughout the day. Encourage young people to share with their families the ideas they gained through this activity, and to work on making breakfast a routine part of their day.

Continuing the Conversation
Hand out the Healthy Families Newsletter in English or Spanish, which also includes these tips, so that families continue discussing the importance of breakfast at home.

Related Health Powered Kids Blog

Rise and dine! The importance of a healthy breakfast

Additional Instructor Resources

ChooseMyPlate.gov
Article: Breakfast habits, nutritional status, body weight, and academic performance in children and adolescents
There Are Sneaky Sugars! – (Russian) – (Somali) – (Spanish)

Body Composition

Lesson Overview

Bodies get a lot of attention in our society, some of it not very positive, much of it focused on appearance more than actual health. This lesson helps young people understand different components that make up the structure of the human body. Youth will learn how eating and exercise habits influence how much muscle and fat each person has inside their body.

Instructor Notes

Before facilitating this lesson, you may want to review the following information about body composition. These facts can also be shared with young people during your discussions.

  • Body weight is the combination of muscle, fat, organs, fluid, tendons, ligaments, and bones.
  • The human body is made up of about 600 to 700 muscles.
  • Voluntary muscles attached to the skeleton allow the body to move, while involuntary muscles allow the movement of internal organs.
  • Voluntary muscles are the muscles that you can move by thinking about it. You can flex your bicep muscle by lifting up your arm and “showing how strong you are.” They are called voluntary because you can make the decision to do it, just like you can volunteer to wash dishes after dinner. Involuntary muscles are those muscles that work automatically; you do not have to think about digesting your food, or flexing your own heart to pump blood around your body.
  • Ligaments are tissues connecting bones to other bones to form joints.
  • Tendons connect muscle to bone.
  • Bone is hardened connective tissue that supports the body, protects organs, and aids movement of the body. Bones store minerals, these minerals are phosphorus, magnesium, fluoride and calcium, and are involved in cell formation. The body is made up of 206 bones.
  • The heart is an organ. It is also a muscle that pumps blood through the body.
  • The lungs are organs that exchange oxygen from the air with carbon dioxide from the blood.
  • Fat is unused energy.
  • The intestines absorb nutrition from food to be used by the body. They allow the nutrients to enter the blood.
  • The stomach releases enzymes that break down food into nutrients that can be used by the body.

Introduction

Show the youth the two containers (don’t show the inside). One box is filled with a heavy item the other a lighter item.

Ask: Can you tell what is inside? Both boxes are full.

Let the young people handle the boxes, feeling the differences in weight.

Ask: Do you think both boxes have the same materials inside? Why?

Explain that you can’t tell what is inside the packages by looking at the outside. Our body is just like these packages. We see the outside, but do not know what is inside. Each body is different. All of our bodies have: muscle, fat, organs, fluid, tendons, ligaments, and bones. All these combined make up our total weight.

Activity: Body Components

Looking at how the body is put together will help young people understand that everybody is different. Each person has a unique body and unique needs. Introduce 5 components of the human body.

If you have access to a projector and the proper software, use the the interactive whiteboard files to guide young people through learning about the parts of the body. In unavailable, discuss the following facts with the youth.

  • Your body is made up of five separate components, each of which has an important role:
    • Bones give you height and support your body. How many bones do you have in your body?  206
    • Muscles give you movement and strength. How many muscles do you have in your body? 600 to 700
    • Internal organs support life. Can you name some of your organs? Skin, stomach, intestines, liver, spleen, pancreas, heart, brain, lungs, gall bladder, kidneys, and bladder.
    • Skin keeps you together and your organs inside your body.
    • Fat keeps you warm, protected, and provides stored energy.
  • All of these components change with age and level of activity.
  • Two people could look alike on the outside and weigh the same, but be very different on the inside. Our eating and exercise habits, along with age and genetics, determine how much muscle and fat each person has inside their body. Eating healthy and being active helps our bodies in the following ways:
    • strengthens our muscles
    • keeps our heart, lungs, and bones strong
    • helps build the right amount of protection and stored energy
    • and helps our organs work properly.

If we eat unhealthily and are not active, our muscles and bones become weak, our heart and lungs have to work harder to do their jobs, and sometimes we store extra fat our bodies do not need.

Ask: What happens to your body when you get older (grow taller, gain weight, muscles become stronger)? What are some activities we can do to keep our bodies healthy as we get older? What are some foods we should eat to keep our bodies healthy as we get older? What kinds of food and activities could make you unhealthy and be bad for your body?

Conclusion

Point out that our human beings are amazing and complex! Encourage young people to try to make choices every day that help their bodies be healthy, strong and fit.

Continuing the Conversation

Hand out the Healthy Families Newsletter in English or Spanish so that families can continue discussing body composition at home.

Additional Instructor Resources

All Fats Are Not Created Equal!

Lesson Introduction & Overview

Fat is an important nutrient, but you only need small amounts each day. It gives you energy and helps your body grow. Here are some of the important jobs fats do:

• Give you energy: During exercise your body uses carbohydrates for fuel for about 20 minutes. After that your body depends on fat to keep going.
• Keeps your skin and hair healthy.
• Helps you absorb vitamins A, D, E and K.
• Fills your fat cells and helps keep you warm.
• Helps your brain grow and adapt as you learn new information and have new experiences.
• Helps regulate blood sugar so your energy level stays even instead of bouncing all over the place.
• Keeps you feeling satisfied so you don’t overeat.

Not all fats are “good” fats:

Trans fats are made when vegetable oils are processed (or hydrogenated) into shortening and stick margarine. Sources of trans fats include snack foods, baked goods and fried foods made with “partially hydrogenated vegetable oil” or “vegetable shortening.”

Try to limit foods made with these ingredients. Trans fats can raise your cholesterol.

Saturated fats are most often found in foods that are solid at room temperature, like butter, cheese, palm and coconut oil and red meats.

Limit the amount of saturated fat and trans fat you have each day. This will help reduce your risk of heart disease and stroke.

Unsaturated fats, the healthy types of fats, come from both animal and plant products. There are two types:

  • monounsaturated fats come from seeds or nuts such as avocado, olive, peanut and canola oils. Monounsaturated fat, in the right amounts, may reduce total cholesterol and LDL cholesterol (the “bad” cholesterol). They are liquid at room temperature.
  • polyunsaturated fats come from vegetables, seeds or nuts such as corn, safflower, sunflower, soybean, cottonseed and sesame seed oils. Polyunsaturated fats can help lower cholesterol if you use them in place of saturated fats.

This lesson introduces young people to the importance of including fats in their diets and choosing the most healthful types.

Activity

Lead a conversation based on the following questions:

  • What kinds of things have you heard (from your family, friends, media, health care providers, school, etc.) about fats in food?
  • Is the information you’re getting about fats from food labels easy to understand? Why or why not?
  • Is the information you’re getting about fats in food helpful to you when you’re choosing what to eat?
  • What questions do you have about fats in food?

Introduce the types of fats: Trans fats, saturated, monounsaturated and polyunsaturated (use the information above).

Prepare a sampling of snack options with healthy fats, such as: walnuts or other nuts, olives, bread dipped in olive oil, dark chocolate, sunflower or pumpkin seeds, vegetables dipped in hummus made with healthy fats (be sure to check the label).

Invite young people to complete the healthy fats word find while enjoying tasting the different foods.

Lead a reflection discussion:

  • Which foods did you like best?
  • Were there any you didn’t like?
  • Had you eaten any of these foods before?
  • What do you usually eat for snacks?
  • Are there any of these foods you’d like to eat more often?

Conclusion

Close by letting young people know that in addition to healthy fats, their bodies need protein and carbohydrates (such as vegetables and fruits) as well. It’s recommended that fats make up about 25 to 30 percent of a person’s daily calorie intake. Consider following this lesson with the Health Powered Kids lesson on learning to read nutrition labels.

Continuing the Conversation

Hand out the Healthy Families Newsletter in English, Spanish, Somali and Hmong so that families can learn about healthy fats at home.

Sort It!

Description

Place the hula hoops into six separate areas of the gym. If hula hoops are not available, choose four corners and two middle areas of the gym. Label each hula hoop or area of the gym with the five food groups, (fruits, vegetables, grains, dairy, protein, plus one hula hoop for unhealthful food (to supplement the ‘Fast Food Alert’ lesson). Scatter the laminated food cards or photos throughout the gym. The goal is for students to run around the gym and sort the foods into the right food group.

For example, a photo of an orange goes in the fruit category. A photo of a steak goes in the meat category.

*For the Fast Food Alert lesson; have one more hula hoop labeled with unhealthful food and laminate fast food/unhealthful food for this hoop.