Learning to eat healthy starts at home, but that doesn't mean teachers can't share in the process. Calories, reading labels and more complex matters might be OK for teens, but younger children can learn healthy eating by starting with more basic concepts. Focus on helping students understand what makes a food healthy, how to make smart food choices and why it's important to eat healthy.
Step 1
Set up pictures of healthy foods and the food pyramid around the classroom. Or create a large, empty pyramid and have kids draw pictures of what they think would be healthy foods to fit into each category. You can then discuss these choices with the class and end up by pinning or tapping the pictures onto the pyramid as a reminder of what to eat.
Step 2
Address portion sizes. One major problem with eating is that few people understand what a portion is really like. Once the food pyramid is up, discuss what constitutes a serving of each food group. Use visual cues to show sizes, rather than asking kids to guess or imagine. For example, bring a computer mouse to show that is the equivalent to a small potato or a single serving of carbohydrates. A deck of cards represents the size of a meat serving. Bring different items and have students guess which one is the right portion size.
Step 3
Set up a class in the computer room or bring a laptop for one of the classes. Go to websites like Nourish Interactive and Nutrition Explorations. These websites offer games, puzzles and challenges. Have the kids compete in groups to see who can guess more correct answers.
Step 4
Ask students to keep a food diary for a week. Ask them to write in red what they think are bad choices and in green what they think are healthy choices. At the end of the week, discuss these options and how they can be improved.
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