Operation Progress Nutrition Education

Background: Malnutrition is known as the largest epidemic in human history. It has been described as
the silent epidemic in the United States. Even with the increase of healthy trends and food assistance
programs, youth from inner city neighborhoods continuously struggle with all types of malnutrition:
undernutrition, micronutrient deficiencies, and obesity. Educating children on the basic of nutrition and
the roles of nutrients in the body can affect their overall view of foods and promote positive lifestyle
decisions.
Program Description:
This 10-week program allows children to learn the basics of healthy eating, understand how food impacts
their lives, and how to make healthy decisions. Engaging lessons teach all five food groups, their main
nutrients and roles in the body, the importance of eating balanced meals, how to read a food label, and
new, innovative ways to get active.
Goal: The goal of this program are to teach students nutrition basics that will allow them to make real life
connections towards choosing between healthy and unhealthy foods.
Grades: 3rd and 4th

Learning Objectives:
1. Students learn 6 classes of nutrients
2. Students learn the importance of water over any other beverage
3. Students learn how advertisers trick them into buying harmful snacks and beverages
4. Students learn how to distinguish processed foods from living natural foods
5. Students learn that starting off with a healthy breakfast full of vitamins and minerals is essential to their
learning experience in school
6. Students learn how to read nutrition labels
7. Students understand the difference between portion size and serving size

10- Week Lessons

#1 Water and other beverage choices

#2 Six nutrients and food groups
#3 The digestive system
#4 Sugar Seekers
#5 Reading food labels/serving sizes/portion
sizes
#6 Why is Breakfast important?
#7 Searching for Antioxidants
#8 Keeping food safe to eat
#9 Tuning into good nutrition/Mind Mapping
#10 Presentation of learned material to parents

Materials/ Resources
Lesson 1: Water and other beverages
-2- liter bottle of soda/soft drink
-6 measuring spoons (1/4 teaspoon)
- White sugar
- 6 - 8 oz. cups (can be paper cups) and 4- 16 oz. cups
- 6 - 2 cup liquid measuring cups
- Pencils/Pens/Markers

Lesson 2: Six Nutrients and Food groups

- Cut-out food activity cards
- 20-30 large pieces of construction paper (any type of large piece of paper)
- 6-7 glue sticks (each group can share)
-Pencils/Pens/Markers

Lesson 3: The digestive system

-20-30 Fiji or Gala Apples
-Big Box unsalted saltine crackers
-Ice Water
-Tape measurer
-String/Yarn
-Glue Stick

Lesson 4: Sugar Seekers

-Nutrition facts labels from various whole-grain cereals, such as Total, Wheaties, Shredded Wheat, Raisin
Bran, Nutri-Grain, Grape Nuts, Multigrain Cheerios, oatmeal, and Wheatena
-Nutrition facts labels from sweetened and unsweetened varieties of the same type of cereal, such as
Wheaties and Frosted Wheaties, Cheerios and Honey-Nut Cheerios, or Shredded Wheat, and Frosted
Mini-Wheats

Lesson 5: Reading food labels/serving sizes/portion sizes

- 6-7 cereal bowls
-6-7 boxes of cereal with nutrition labels covered or removed
- 6-7 measuring cups
- 6-7 poster board
-Nutrition facts labels from five or more cereal boxes
-Nutrition facts labels from five or more snack boxes
-Nutrition facts labels from five or more packaged a-la-carte snack items available in the cafeteria

Lesson 6: Why is Breakfast important?

No materials necessary

Lesson 7: Searching for Antioxidants

Colorful berries
- Colorful veggies
(Taste test of colorful fruits and vegetables)
Instructor will provide fruits and vegetables
- Plastic knives/forks
-Napkins

Lesson 8: Keeping food safe to eat

-Calculators (Basic)- about 3 of them, students can share

Lesson 9: Tuning into good nutrition/Mind Mapping

Color Pencils/Markers
- 20- 30 sheets of Construction Paper (for presentation on Week 10)
- Glue Sticks if necessary
- Scissors

Lesson 10:
Healthy Snack bags (provided by instructor)

Assessment: Class activities, presentations, mind mapping activities

Lesson 1: Water and other beverages

Nutrition Message: Hydrate with water

Goal: The goal of this lesson is for students to learn the best thirst quencher and source of hydration is
water. It is to also help students learn the other beverages that contribute to their bodys loss of water
which ultimately leads to dehydration.

Objectives:
1. Students will understand beverages with natural and added sugars can contribute to loss of water
2. Students will learn to choose whole fruits over fruit juices
3. Students will learn tips on how to properly infuse their water with fruits
4. Students will learn how to read nutrition labels when choosing a beverage
5. Students will learn the importance of water and how it aids minerals in the body
6. Students will learn the key minerals (Vitamin A &C, Calcium) for their particular age-group

Age/Grade: 3rd-4th grade

Vocabulary: Vitamin A &C, Calcium, whole fruit

Safety: No safety precautions

Materials:
-2- liter bottle of soda/soft drink
-4 measuring spoons (1/4 teaspoon)
- White sugar
- 4- 8 oz. cups (can be paper cups) and 4- 16 oz. cups
- 4- 2 cup liquid measuring cups

Handouts: Beverage Choices Which do you drink?; Whats in my Drink?; Soft Drink Facts; Soda
Interview (take home)

Activity#1
-For a variety of soft drinks, look at the labels and find out how many grams of sugar are in one serving.
Display the amount of sugar on paper plates beside the labels.

Note: one gram of sugar is equal to teaspoon or 1 teaspoon equals 4 grams of sugar.
Use the teaspoon to measure the grams of sugar in each type of beverage. Compare the amount of sugar
in one serving to the amount of sugar in one helping.

Questions to ask students:

1. Pour out an amount from a two-liter bottle that he/she would typically drink
-Explain that this amount is called a helping or portion. Look at the label to determine what a serving size
is.
2. Ask another student to measure out a serving using a measuring cup.
-Direct students to calculate how many grams of sugar are in the helping.
3. Ask two more students to measure out the amount of sugar in the helping and the serving

Display amount of sugar on paper plates

Activity #2
-Look at Handout Beverage Choices: Which do you drink?
-Now look at the Nutrition labels of each drink and choose which is the healthiest and why?

-In this activity, instructor will explain the importance of reading labels and what to look for. When
reading labels, students are to look for sugars and other carbohydrates, Vitamins and Minerals (i.e.
Vitamin A, D and Calcium) Explain the function of these particular essential nutrients (Vitamin A, D and
Calcium)

Visuals: Show effects of children who do not get enough calcium and other nutrients

Assessments: Can be done from the students completed handouts and participation during in class
activities

Lesson 2: Six Nutrients and Food Groups

Nutrition Message: Our plates should always be painted with color

Goal: The goal is for students to learn a healthy diet requires a colorful plate because colors signify foods
are protective from chronic diseases

Objectives:
1. Students learn about the importance of My Plate
2. Students understand the importance of painting their plates with color and eating healthy portion sizes
3. Students understand the 6 nutrients; the most important one being water

Age/Grade: 3rd-4th grade

Vocabulary: Carbohydrates, Proteins, Vitamins, Fats (lipids), Minerals, Vitamins

Safety: No safety precautions

Materials:
- Cut-out food activity cards
- 20-30 large pieces construction paper (any type of large piece of paper)
- 4-5 glue sticks (each group can share)
-Pencils/Pens/Markers

Handouts: My Plate

Activity:
-Children are divided into groups of 4. Each group is given cut-out food items. Each student is given 1
construction paper.

-Children will draw a table with 5 columns: Fruit, Vegetable, Grains, Protein and Dairy. They need to glue
the food item to its particular category. After this assignment is completed, students will learn the six
classes of nutrients.

Activity:
Children label the nutrients with specific food groups

Assessment: Handouts and completion of in class assignments

Lesson 3: The Digestive Process

Nutrition Message: We are what we digest!

Goal: The goal is for students to be able to make connections between the food they consume and how it
is digested to provide them with energy
Objectives:
1. Student will understand macronutrients (carbohydrates, protein, fats) provide energy (vitamins and
minerals do not)
2. Students will understand why is it very important to choose foods that are in their natural state
3. Students will understand living foods promote healthy digestion and therefore, life!
4. Students will understand the most important features of a healthy digestive system

Age/Grade: 3rd-4th grade

Vocabulary: Enzymes, Mucous, Stomach Acid (HCL), esophagus, small intestine, large intestine (colon
and rectum)

Safety: No safety precautions

Materials:
- -20-30 Fiji or Gala Apples
-Big Box unsalted saltine crackers
-Ice Water
-Tape measurer
-String/Yarn
-Glue Stick

Handouts: Digestive Diagram; Saliva and chewing handout

Activity#1
Give each student a small piece of cracker and tell the students to take a small bite.
Ask them not to chew or swallow the cracker, just hold it in their mouths. Ask the
following questions:
What happened to the cracker when it was in your mouth?
Why did it start to get softer?
What did you taste?
Wait a few minutes, then ask: Has the taste has changed? Did it become
sweet?
Did the cracker get soft in your mouth even if you were not chewing?

Instructor: Explain digestion process and the role of the digestive system

Activity #2
Teeth- 1st mechanical step of digestive process
Pass out the Chewing Your Chow handout and provide each student with half of an
apple. The handout asks students about the chewing process and which teeth they used
when eating the apple.

As a class, do the activities and instruct students to record their responses.

Activity #3
Saliva- Distribute and direct students to complete The Saliva Solution handout.
Students will answer questions about how the saltine cracker is broken down from
starch to sugar with saliva. Discuss answers with students.

Activity #4
Swallowing- Swallowing: Give each student a cup of ice-cold water. Instruct them to drink and feel the cold water
travel down the esophagus. Place the orange at the top of the pantyhose and use your hands to move it through to
demonstrate how food moves through the esophagus.

Activity #5
Using the Digestive Diagram teacher resource as a reference, direct students to work
in teams to draw and label parts of the digestive system into their life-sized silhouettes.
The digestive tract is more than twenty-five feet long in a child who is four feet tall.
Using a tape measure, instruct students to measure two twenty-five foot lengths of
string. Direct them to fit and glue the digestive tract into their drawings.

Assessment: Handouts, completion of in class assignments and response to verbal questions asked during
class
Lesson 4: Sugar Seekers

Nutrition Message: Less sugar MORE fiber!

Goal: The goal is for students to see most chronic diseases are a result of excess sugar due to its effects
on the digestive system

Objective:
-learn that many of their favorite brands of cereal have added sugar.
-learn how to read the nutrition facts label on food packages.
-learn about carbohydrates/sugars and fiber.
-learn that when the amount of sugar is higher in a food, the amount of fiber is usually lower.

Age/Grade: 3rd-4th

Vocabulary: Simple sugars; complex carbohydrates; diabetes; heart disease

Safety: No safety precautions

Materials:
-Nutrition facts labels from various whole-grain cereals, such as Total, Wheaties, Shredded Wheat, Raisin
Bran, Nutri-Grain, Grape Nuts, Multigrain Cheerios, oatmeal, and Wheatena
-Nutrition facts labels from sweetened and unsweetened varieties of the same type of cereal, such as
Wheaties and Frosted Wheaties, Cheerios and Honey-Nut Cheerios, or Shredded Wheat, and Frosted
Mini-Wheats (any type of box cereals)

Handouts: Names of sugars in foods; Eating healthier and feeling better using the Nutrition Facts
Label; Food labels: Nutrient content claims,

Activity:
-Using the handout Names for Sugar in Foods, students determine the sugar content of a single serving
of one cereal and identify the ingredients that signify the presence of sugar in the cereal.
-Using several boxes, students complete the table on the Find the Sugar handout and answer the first
two questions.
-Using the Eating healthier and feeling better using the Nutrition Facts Label, Food labels: Nutrient
content claims,; Find the sugar; Fiber in cereal;
Overall, this lesson focuses on ingredients, carbohydrates/sugars, and fiber.

Discussion ideas for instructor:

The nutrition facts label lists calories and nutrients (fats, carbohydrates, protein, vitamins, and minerals).
They can be used to compare between foods.
An ingredient is something that goes into a mixture or, in this case, something that goes into a food. The
list of ingredients on a food product names all of the things put into a mixture to make the final food. The
first ingredient on the label is the ingredient of which there is the most by weight in the product.
Fiber is a plant material that adds structure and form to the plant. In your intestines, fiber absorbs water,
adds bulk, and speeds up digestion.
Carbohydrates give the body energy. On the nutrition facts label, carbohydrates include the total amount
of natural and added sugars, while sugars are the amount of added sugar.
-Students need to complete questions three through seven on the Find the Sugar and Fiber in Cereal
handouts. To ensure that whole-grain cereals are included, supplement the cereals brought by students
with the nutrition facts labels from various whole-grain cereals, such as (any other cereal brand)

Assessment: Class participation, handouts, in class activities

Lesson 5: Reading food labels/ Serving size vs. Portion size

Nutrition Message: You are what you eat

Goal: The goal is to eliminate the confusion between serving size and portion size. It is to also help
students to be aware of whats in their foods.

Objectives:
-learn the difference between a portion and a serving.
-learn which snacks are healthy choices.

Age/Grade: 3rd-4th grade

Safety: No safety precautions

Materials:
- 6-7 cereal bowls
-6-7 boxes of cereal with nutrition labels covered or removed
- 6-7 measuring cups
- 6-7 poster board
-Nutrition facts labels from five or more cereal boxes
-Nutrition facts labels from five or more snack boxes
-Nutrition facts labels from five or more packaged a-la-carte snack items available in the cafeteria

Handouts: Is it a Portion or a Serving?; Is it a Portion or a Serving?; Whats in a Serving Size;

Serving Sizes are in Your Hand; Nutrient dense handout

Activity #1:
Ask for a volunteer who drinks soda. Ask if he/she regularly drinks a twenty-ounce size soda as part of a
snack or meal. Have another student look at the nutrition facts label from a twenty-ounce bottle of soda
and report how many servings are in the bottle. One bottle actually contains two and a half servings; one
serving is equal to eight ounces. So, if you drink the whole twenty ounces, you are drinking two and a
half servings, or enough soda for you, a friend, and then theres still some left over.

Activity #2:
Using the Is it a Portion or a Serving? Trends in Portion Sizes, Is it a Portion or a Serving?
Serving Sizes are in Your Hand, and Whats in a Serving Size?

Discussion ideas: Discuss portions with students using the reflective questions below.
How do you decide how much of a food or drink you are going to eat for a meal or snack?
Do you use a scoop or measuring cup?
Does your plate or bowl serve as your guide for how much you will eat?
What about when you eat out? Do you eat whatever amount the restaurant gives you?
Just how much food does one person need in a day? And what does it look like in terms of portion sizes?

Activity #3:
Use My Plate as an example to show students how to increase their fruit and vegetable portions.
Create snack bags. Show kids how to create a bag of goodies and mixing different tastes (bitter, sweet,
salty, sour) and essential nutrients in one bag

Assessment: In class participation and completion of handouts

 Lesson 6: Why is Breakfast important?

Nutrition Message: We eat the most nutrients in the morning

Goal: The goal is to eliminate the confusion between serving size and portion size. It is to also help
students to be aware of whats in their foods.

Objectives:
- students will understand a healthy breakfast is what makes breakfast the most important meal of the day
- students will understand that an unhealthy breakfast at the beginning of the day reduces academic
performance and promotes low energy levels throughout the day
- students will be able to connect back to the digestion lesson to understand how a healthy breakfast gives
us energy to start the day
- students will understand the types of foods/nutrients that should always be included in a healthy
breakfast

Age/Grade: 3rd-4th grade

Vocabulary: essential nutrients

Safety: No safety precautions

Materials:
- No materials necessary

Handouts: Fruit group Grain Group Protein Group Smart Breakfast Choices Energy Breakfast
ideas

Activity: No activity

Discussion Ideas:

Part 1:
- Ask students about reasons to eat breakfast. Probe for some of the following answers:
- Fuels the body with nutrients.
- You might not make up the nutrients missed at breakfast.
- Provides energy for the mornings activities.
- You have not eaten for eight or more hours.
- Gets you ready to learn.
- You learn better if you eat breakfast.
- Helps keep a healthy body weight.
- Breakfast helps control the urge to nibble or eat too big a lunch.
- Helps you feel good.
- Your stomach might hurt from hunger pangs if you miss breakfast.
- It tastes good.

Part 2:
-A smart breakfast can get your body and brain going for a busy day and keep it going strong until
lunchtime. Distribute and use the Smart Breakfast Choices handout to discuss what makes a smart
breakfast. A smart breakfast includes one item from each of these three food groups:
Grain: Grains get your body and brain going for the day. Try to eat more whole grains.
Protein: Protein is what you need to keep you going until lunch.
Fruit: You can eat fresh, frozen, canned, or dried fruits. Just dont drink too much fruit juice. Juices dont
have any fiber. Two four-ounce servings of juice a day is enough for kids.

Part 3: Go through energy breakfast idea handout and discuss

Assessment: In class participation and completion of handouts

Lesson 7: Searching for Antioxidants

Nutrition Message: Colorful foods protect the body from disease

Goal: The goal is for students to change how they view colorful fruits and vegetables.

Objectives:
- Students will learn the most important vitamins and minerals in their fruits and vegetables
- Students will learn how to eat fruits and vegetables based on the nutrients not the taste

Age/Grade: 3rd-4th grade

Safety: ALL STUDENTS SHOULD WASH THEIR HANDS BEFORE CLASS

Materials:
- Colorful berries
- Colorful veggies
(Taste test of colorful fruits and vegetables)
Instructor will provide fruits and vegetables
- Plastic knives/forks
-Napkins
-Optional: Extra condiments to complement the fruit or veggie

Handouts: Food Combination Chart/ Handout

Activity:
Students will be in groups of 4 or 5 and taste test several fruits and vegetables
Students will fill out their handout as they taste each fruit and vegetable

Discussion:
Discuss with students the importance of eating fruits and vegetables based on the essential nutrients that
are in them. Have students record the taste of each fruit or veggie (sweet, bitter, salty, sour) then have
them record the color. For each item, tell them the most important nutrient that pertains to their age and
development.

Assessment: In class participation and completion of handouts

Note: Students will only receive a sample of each fruit or veggie to avoid any potential allergic reaction
Lessons 8: Keeping food safe to eat

Nutrition Message: Lack of food safety and nasty hygiene causes sickness to ourselves and others!

Goal: The goal is for students to change how they view colorful fruits and vegetables.

Objectives:
-Students will learn the difference between the flu and food borne sickness
-Students will learn the importance of food safety from buying food items to storing food items
-Students will learn the food items that are high in harmful bacteria

Age/Grade: 3rd-4th grade

Safety: No safety precautions

Materials:
- Calculators (Basic)- about 3 of them, students can share

Handouts: Multiplying Germs handout

Activity:
Students will be given different scenarios and each group has to choose the most sanitary solution for
each situation

Discussion:
Explain to students the different types of bacteria in raw foods. They will be shown visuals of E. Coli,
Salmonella, Clostridium and Staphylococcus aureus. Explain the different ways they come into contact
with these microbes and how they can avoid contaminating their food. Explain the difference between the
flu and food borne sickness.

Tell students to imagine a fictional germ:

It doubles once every hour at room temperature (70F/21C),
It doubles once every six hours when cooled in the refrigerator (35F/4C),
It doubles once every four hours when heated in the oven (120F/49C).

Instruct students to estimate how many germs would be present in twenty-four hours in each of the three
environments. The answers are:
room temperature 16,777,216
refrigerator 16
oven 128

Assessment: In class participation and completion of handouts

Lesson 9: Tuning into Good Nutrition/ Mind Mapping

Nutrition Message: Living food promotes life!

Goal: The goal is for students to now incorporate information from previous lessons into making healthy
dietary decisions daily

Objectives:
- Students will learn how to apply nutrition principles into their daily activities
- Students will learn how to create healthy lifestyles
- Students will establish their core values
- Students will learn how to use their core values to create a healthy future
- Students will mind map their vision of healthy living

Age/Grade: 3rd-4th grade

Safety: No safety precautions

Materials:
- Color Pencils/Markers
- 20- 30 sheets of Construction Paper (for presentation on Week 10)
- Glue Sticks if necessary
- Scissors

Handouts: No handouts

Activity:
Students will be given an opportunity to create their vision of a healthy lifestyle. All students should
receive paper to draw their vision of a healthy lifestyle in the present and future. Students should be able
to complete their activity in class to present on Week 10.

Discussion:
First 15 minutes of class: Explain to students the importance of creating their value system. Students
have to know what it is they value in life so that a healthy lifestyle is worth living. This value system is
known as their WHY. Once students discover their core values, they need to understand as life
progresses, values change. So, they must think of their CORE values. CORE values are for ex: spiritual
beliefs, their self-esteem, their siblings, their strengths, passions and desires to make a big change in the
world. These values is what will keep them taking full responsibility of what they consume.

Assessment: In class participation and completion of activity

Week 10: Presentation of Mind map/Healthy lifestyle vision to parents