Food Day School Curriculum 2013

Lesson 3: Not Too Much
— Getting Started —
Overview
Students review the health and ecological benefits
of eating real, and mostly plants and what positive
changes they have made. Then they learn about
why it is important to limit overly processed foods
that contain little or no nutrients and often have
high amounts of added fat and sugar. They learn
that the recommendation for empty calories is no
more than 150 calories per day for this age group
and learn to translate that to teaspoons of sugar
and fat. They measure out the teaspoons of sugar
and fat in common foods and learn that many of
these foods have more than the recommended daily
maximum — just in one food or drink. Since we
live in an environment that is dishing out more fat
and sugar than our bodies can handle, the “Not Too
Much” message is very important. The students write
a paragraph or create a drawing that describes why
eating plenty of whole plant-based foods and fewer
overly processed foods is personally important.
Finally, they create a “small-size-it” action plan for
how they will have a small size when they do have
processed foods such as sweetened drinks, chips,
candy, fast foods, and baked goods.
Behavior Change Objective
As a result of this lesson, students will eat fewer overly
processed foods with excessive sugar and fat.
Learning Objectives
Students will be able to:
• assess if they have successfully consumed more
whole, plant-based foods at their meals;
• state the number of empty calories they can have
in a day and how that translates into snacks and
drinks;
• discuss how much fat and sugar are in commonly
consumed snacks and drinks;
• create an action plan for “small-sizing” overly
processed foods.
Background for Teachers
The first two lessons are about what to eat — to eat
real food and to eat mostly plants. This lesson is on
the third Food Day Eating Goal, to not eat too much
of overly processed foods. In today’s world, telling
kids what not to eat is a very necessary reality.
The food industry aggressively markets unhealthful
foods to kids yet rarely prompts children to eat
whole, healthful meals. These marketing efforts
are pervasive, and include: television advertising,
advergaming web sites, cartoon characters on
packages, and even toys included with nutritionally
poor fast-food meals. They help kids cultivate a taste
for white bread, French fries, fatty meat, fatty cheese,
and sweetened drinks. Most of the foods marketed to
kids are mediocre fast foods, sugary breakfast cereals,
and candies. Many of them are based on white flour,
sugar, fat, and salt, plus a sprinkling of artificial
colorings and flavorings.
Additionally, ordinary sugar and high-fructose corn
syrup make up one-sixth of the average American’s
calorie intake. Half of all added sugars come to us in
the form of “liquid candy”: soft drinks, fruit drinks,
sports drinks, and iced teas. And it is those sugary
drinks that pose the biggest risk of weight gain,
because they don’t seem to curb appetite as much as
solid foods do.
See this lesson as a way to give your students the
antidote to food industry marketing. They learn that
our bodies cannot handle excessive sugar and fat
on a regular basis and see first-hand how much fat
and sugar are in common foods. We believe that the
way to have students become people who want to
make healthful choices for themselves, despite the
obstacles, is for them to believe that it has personal
benefits. Encourage your students to think seriously
as they write their personal essay on making healthful
choices, and encourage them to make a “small-size-it”
action plan that is specific, clear, and measurable to
be on the road to positive change.
44 | Food Day Lessons