Chapter 12 Scenario: Learning About Healthy Foods

Objective and scenario

To develop and evaluate a lesson plan about nutritious foods.

You are planning a week-long nutrition unit for the 3- and 4-year-olds in your preschool classroom. You have chosen the MyPlate model as a framework to help the children learn about foods associated with each of the food groups. On one of the days you will have five different fruits for the children to sample. On another day the children will help to prepare a vegetable soup that will be served for their lunch. Several children in your classroom are English-language learners so you plan to also build color and label recognition activities into the nutrition lessons.

Focus assignment

1. Identify a lesson theme and a corresponding learning activity that you will use for each day of the week. In addition, explain how you will incorporate learning experiences that will reinforce the color and labeling of food items.

2. Be sure to read the REFLECTION section below to guide your thinking. Write your reflection response after you have completed your lesson plan.

Self-evaluation

1. For each item in your lesson plan:
 a. Explain how this item addresses the issues in the scenario.

2. Describe and justify how your lesson plan would improve teaching and learning in the scenario.