This document will provide teachers of grades 4-6 with activities that will help students understand information provided on food labels. The document is divided into three sections, each aimed at one of the three grades. Each section contains five or six activities that end in a performance assessment task. Each grade has a specific focus – nutrition and healthy eating for grade 4, language arts and nutrition in grade 5, and visual arts and nutrition in grade 6.
This review is only for the grade 6 portion of the resource.
Lesson 1 – Individually or in small groups, students take a look at cereal boxes to identify the common elements of the packaging. Students then draft several designs for their own cereal box.
Lesson 2 – Students discuss the impact of colour and the messages colour convey. They then choose one of their drafts from Lesson 1 to use for their final project.
Lesson 3 – Students discuss the impact of different lettering styles on labels and choose a lettering style for their final project.
Lesson 4 – Students will analyze their eating habits and choices, focusing on cereal. In partners, they then create and use a survey to analyze others food choices. Students compile and present their findings to the class.
Lesson 5 – Individually, students finish their final cereal box design and complete a self evaluation as part of the performance task.
The following tool will allow you to explore the relevant curriculum matches for this resource. To start, select a province listed below.
Principle | Rating | Explanation |
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Consideration of Alternative Perspectives | Good | The introduction outlines purposes for resource. |
Consideration of Alternative Perspectives:
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Multiple Dimensions of Problems & Solutions | Poor/Not considered | Although many of these dimensions could be easily integrated by the teacher, they are not the explicit purpose of the unit, |
Multiple Dimensions of Problems & Solutions: Effectively addresses the environmental, economic and social dimensions of the issue(s) being explored.
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Respects Complexity | Satisfactory | The problems are more complex than the activities allow. |
Respects Complexity: The complexity of the problems/issues being discussed is respected. | ||
Acting on Learning | Poor/Not considered | No action skills are used in the unit. |
Acting on Learning: Learning moves from understanding issues to working towards positive change — in personal lifestyle, in school, in the community, or for the planet
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Values Education | Poor/Not considered | Some investigation is done into why students would choose particular food products based on colour, name, font, etc. of food packaging but much more in-depth exploration could be done. |
Values Education: Students are explicitly provided with opportunities to identify, clarify and express their own beliefs/values. | ||
Empathy & Respect for Humans | Poor/Not considered | There is no involvement with or discussions around any of these issues. |
Empathy & Respect for Humans: Empathy and respect are fostered for diverse groups of humans (including different genders, ethnic groups, sexual preferences, etc.). | ||
Personal Affinity with Earth | Poor/Not considered | |
Personal Affinity with Earth: Encourages a personal affinity with -the natural world.
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Locally-Focused Learning | Satisfactory | The unit offers the option of asking students to bring product labels from their own homes. More effort could be made to connect this lesson to the students' lives. |
Locally-Focused Learning: Includes learning experiences that take advantage of issues/elements within the local community.
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Past, Present & Future | Poor/Not considered | No statistics or information is given on how labeling has affected or continues to affect the population. There is a vision for the future: once students know how to read information on labels, they will make healthier food choices. |
Past, Present & Future: Promotes an understanding of the past, a sense of the present, and a positive vision for the future. |
Principle | Rating | Explanation |
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Open-Ended Instruction | Very Good | |
Open-Ended Instruction
: Lessons are structured so that multiple/complex answers are possible; students are not steered toward one 'right' answer. | ||
Integrated Learning | Very Good | The resource purposefully integrates a different subject area focus for each grade with the healthy living topic. A variety of subject areas are developed and practiced within each grade’s unit, i.e. Nutrition and Healthy Eating in grade 4, Language Arts and Nutrition in grade 5, and Visual Arts and Nutrition in grade 6. |
Integrated Learning: Learning brings together content and skills from more than one subject area
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Inquiry Learning | Poor/Not considered | |
Inquiry Learning: Learning is directed by questions, problems, or challenges that students work to address.
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Differentiated Instruction | Very Good | Learning styles that are addressed include: visual, auditory, written, artistic, individual and group activities. ESL and learning assistance students could easily be integrated into the delivery of this unit. |
Differentiated Instruction: Activities address a range of student learning styles, abilities and readiness.
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Experiential Learning | Poor/Not considered | |
Experiential Learning: Authentic learning experiences are provided
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Cooperative Learning | Very Good | Extensions are provided with each lesson. |
Cooperative Learning: Group and cooperative learning strategies are a priority.
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Assessment & Evaluation | Satisfactory | Extensive assessment, including self-assessment and reflection, is given for the final project but very little is provided for specific lessons. |
Assessment & Evaluation: Tools are provided that help students and teachers to capture formative and summative information about students' learning and performance. These tools may include reflection questions, checklists, rubrics, etc. | ||
Peer Teaching | Poor/Not considered | Students share their knowledge in group discussions and group work but their final products are not explicitly shared with the class, although they could be. Each student is learning the same materials. |
Peer Teaching: Provides opportunities for students to actively present their knowledge and skills to peers and/or act as teachers and mentors.
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Case Studies | Poor/Not considered | The unit does study specific cereal boxes, possibly from students’ homes. However, no "cases" or references are provided. |
Case Studies: Relevant case studies are included. Case studies are thorough descriptions of real events from real situations that students use to explore concepts in an authentic context. | ||
Locus of Control | Satisfactory | A few opportunities for choice are provided in the extensions and the medium can be flexible but none of this is provided specifically within the unit expectations or assessment suggestions. |
Locus of Control: Meaningful opportunities are provided for students to choose elements of program content, the medium in which they wish to work, and/or to go deeper into a chosen issue. |