TRACKS
Lesson Plan
Label Reading & Choosing Healthy Snacks
Snack Wise
Grades 9-12
I.
Nutrition Education Objective:
Goal 1: Students will comprehend concepts consistent with USDA guidance related to eating
and physical activity for good health.
Objective: As a result of Pennsylvania’s SNAP-Ed plan, students will know, understand,
analyze, and apply concepts, as developmentally appropriate, that are consistent with
USDA guidance about the benefits of:
1. Eating healthy snacks.
2. Limiting foods high in fat, sodium and added sugar.
Goal 2: Students will apply skills consistent with USDA guidance related to eating and physical
activity for good health.
Objective: As a result of Pennsylvania’s SNAP-Ed plan, students will be able to:
1. Assess personal health practices.
2. Plan strategies for performing health-enhancing practices.
II.
Pennsylvania Educational Standards:
A. 2.5 Mathematical Problem Solving and Communication
B. 10.1 Concepts of Health
C. 10.2 Healthful Living
D. 11.3 Food Science and Nutrition
III.
Outcomes:
A. Students will make better snacking choices.
B. Students will use food labels to make healthier choices.
C. Students will describe the relationship between fat and calories in similar foods.
IV.
Materials:
A. Laptop/Projector with PowerPoint presentation
B. Handout: “Read It Before you Eat It”
C. Handout: “Nutrition Labels”
D. Handout: “The Name Game”
E. Optional handout: “Snack Wise” fill in the blanks worksheet
F. Optional Handout: Fruit and Vegetable Scramble
G. Visuals: Assorted food labels from popular snack foods
H. Taste-test: String cheese
I. Hand Wipes
J. Supplies: Mini Pencils
K. Reinforcement: Healthy snacks bookmark and More Matters Pen or any other
appropriate reinforcement
L. Caregiver Newsletter: Snacks
M. Extension lessons for the teacher
Drexel University, HS Snacks Lesson Plan, revised 7/11, Page 1
V.
Procedure:
A. Introductory
1. Introduce lesson and educator.
2. Give brief introduction about the workshop and why it is important to high
school students.
3. Review last lesson, if applicable.
4. Distribute a copy of the “Name Game” worksheet to each student and
explain the Icebreaker activity.
5. Distribute a copy of “Read it Before you Eat It” handout to each student.
B. Icebreaker
1. Distribute the Name Game worksheet to each student. You can have the
students work in teams or individually. The object of the game is to name as
many of the candy bars, fruits, and or vegetables.
2. Show the 1st slide: Candy bars. Allow just a couple of minutes for students to
write down their guesses. Do the same with the fruit and vegetable slide.
3. Reveal the answers for both slides.
4. Ask the students which did they have more correct, candy bars or fruits &
vegetables.
5. Congratulate the students that had more of the fruits and vegetables correct.
C. Developmental
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
Slide 1 – Snack Wise
Slide 2 – Project Sponsors
Slide 3 –Name Game Icebreaker Candy (Directions Above)
Slide 4 –Name Game Icebreaker Fruits and Vegetables (Directions Above)
Slide 5- Name Game Answers
Slide 6-Name Game Answers
Slide 7-Healthy Snacking Tips
a. This acronym should serve as good snacking guidelines. Snacks can
be a healthy part of your day, when healthier snacks are chosen.
Choose a smaller portion for a snack, not the whole bag of potato
chips!
b. Snacks can prevent us from being hungry and help us to maintain
energy.
c. Most of the time, people are snacking because they are bored and or
sitting in front of the television. People tend to overeat while
watching a television show because they do not realize how much
they are actually eating. Before you know it-you have eaten the entire
gallon of ice cream or bag of chips. So portion your snack out before
sitting down and stay in the kitchen to enjoy your snack.
d. Many people eat because they are bored, sad, and lonely or just
because they like the taste of the food. Before you reach for a snack,
make sure you are truly hungry.
e. Choose a variety of foods from MyPlate food groups! Fruits and
vegetables make great snacks. They are easy to store and carry
around in your bag.
Drexel University, HS Snacks Lesson Plan, revised 7/11, Page 2
f. Take your time when eating. It is important to eat slowly and enjoy
your food. It takes an average of 30 minutes for our brains to tell our
body it’s full. If you eat too quickly, you will eat more than your body
needs before the message can be sent.
8. Slide 8 – Fat or Calories Comparison
a. Review each of the examples and discuss: Even though the label says
that this product is fat free, low fat, or nonfat doesn’t always mean
that it is lower in calories, in some cases there could be more calories
in the fat free or nonfat product versus the regular product.
b. The fat used in foods adds flavor and texture to the product. When a
food company wants to make a low fat version, they need a product
that will still have flavor and texture. Most of the time, sugar is used
as a fat replacement, which adds calories to the food.
9. Slide 9 – Pop Quiz: Which has fewer calories?
a. Have the students guess which food out of the 17 French fries and 1
cup of noodles and which out of 1 ounce of chips and 1 ounce of chips
would have fewer calories.
b. 1 cup of noodles has fewer calories. French fries are higher in fat
usually because they are deep-fried.
c. 1 ounce of pretzels has fewer calories. Potato chips are higher in fat,
which adds more calories.
10. Slide 10 –Which has fewer calories? Calorie amounts
a. This slide provides the calorie amounts for all 4 of the foods. Explain
and discuss why fat provides more calories and why high fat foods
are also high in calories.
11. Slide 11 – To have balance, look beyond the calories…
a. The calories are not the only thing that matters when selecting foods.
b. This slide lists the calorie amounts for each of the drinks.
i. 12 ounces of 100% juice has 15 calories less than 12 ounces of
orange soda. The difference is that the orange juice provide
vital vitamins and minerals, such as Vitamin C and potassium,
while soda does not provide any. The calories in the soda are
“empty calories”, which means there is no nutritional value.
ii. 12 ounces of low-fat milk provides 154 calories and 12 ounces
of cola provides 155 calories.
iii. Ask the students: What nutrients does the soda offer? No
nutrients.
iv. Ask the students: What nutrients does the low-fat milk offer?
Protein, vitamins and minerals such as calcium, phosphorus,
vitamin D, and vitamin A. The cola provides us with “empty
calories”.
12. Slide 12- Healthier Snack Options
Ask the students what their favorite snack is. Help them figure out
what would be a healthier alternative, if it isn’t a healthy snack.
Explain why the listed snack foods are healthier than maybe some of
the snacks the students have mentioned to be their favorites.
13. Slide 13- Reading Labels
a. Distribute “Read It Before You Eat” handout
Drexel University, HS Snacks Lesson Plan, revised 7/11, Page 3
b. Nutrition labels can be found on all food packages. The labels let you
know what nutrients this food provides. Also, the amounts are
located next to each nutrient.
c. The amount of each nutrient is based on the standard serving size of
this particular food.
d. To find out what the serving size is, look at the very top of the label.
14. Slide 14 –– Percent Daily Value
a. Explain what the % daily value is and how it is used in conjunction
with the nutrition label.
b. % daily value shows how each food fits into the daily diet. The daily
diet is based on 2000 calories.
c. The percentages for each nutrient are based on 100%.
d. The percentages are interpreted by high and low. 20% would be
considered a high value. 5% would be considered a low value. This
interpretation will help you decide if the food you are about to eat is
high fat, or low in calcium.
e. Nutrients that should have a low percentage: Fat, saturated fat,
cholesterol, and sodium.
f. Nutrients that should have a high percentage: Dietary fiber, calcium,
iron, vitamin A, and vitamin C.
g. Calcium: Is very important for all age groups, but especially
important for teenagers. Teens aged 9-18 need 4 servings of low fat
dairy products a day or 1300mg. Choose foods that have 20% or
higher percentage per serving. Milk has 30% calcium per serving.
Milk is an excellent source of calcium.
16. Slide 15- Reading label: Looking at calories & fat
a. Explain what calories and fat mean in relation to the serving size of
this particular food. Explain to students to pay attention to the
servings per container.
b. Have the students guess how many calories they would consume if
they ate the entire package.
c. Calories: 500. There are 2 servings in the box at 250 calories per
serving. This concept goes for all nutrients that are listed on the
nutrition label of the same package. Many food packages, especially
snacks, have more than one serving in the container.
d. Grams of fat: 24g
17. Slide 16 – Pop Quiz: Percent Daily Value
a. Ask students, “Which nutrients have high values?” Fat, sodium, and
calcium.
b. Ask students, “Which nutrients have low values?” Vitamin A, Vitamin
C, and Iron.
c. Ask students, “What nutrient is this food lacking?” Dietary Fiber.
May want to explain that we need 25 grams per day, so we want a
higher percentage for fiber.
d. Using the %DV interpretation: look at the % and decide if it falls into
the high or low category to answer questions.
e. Bonus Question Idea: What nutrients do we want to have high values
that we are sometimes lacking in our daily diet? Answer: Dietary
fiber, all vitamins, and minerals; especially calcium.
18. Slide 17 -When Snacking …
Drexel University, HS Snacks Lesson Plan, revised 7/11, Page 4
Before reaching for a snack, be sure you are truly hungry. Choose low
fat healthy choices from MyPlate. The quality of the calories is
important. Calories should come from foods that provide vitamins and
minerals for the body instead of “empty calorie” foods. Remember,
low fat foods may not contain fewer calories. If you are unsure the
food you chose is healthy, check the food label to make sure. Finally,
sit down and enjoy your snack!
19. Slide 18 - Questions
20. Slide 19 - Activity: Label Reading
a. Distribute food labels from popular snack foods to each of the
students or pairs of students. Also distribute a copy of the Nutrition
Labels handout.
b. Have the students evaluate the food based on calories, fat, and
percent daily value per serving to determine if this is a healthy snack.
c. Have the students identify an alternative snack that would be
healthier.
VI. Conclusion of lesson:
A. Distribute hand wipes.
B. Provide each student with a food tasting and encourage him or her to make
small changes in his or her diet now. Explain why this food is a healthy option.
C. Distribute the reinforcement read the message and/or explain the reason why they are
receiving the reinforcement.
D. Thank the students for their participation and answer any questions the students have.
E. Distribute Caregiver Newsletters
VII. Extension Lessons:
A. Healthy Snack Word Find
B. More Matters Challenge
C. Fruit and Vegetable Quiz
Drexel University, HS Snacks Lesson Plan, revised 7/11, Page 5
N utrition Labels
Name: _________________________________________ Date: _________________
Choose two different food products from the assortment. Record the following information
or values for your products in the chart provided.
Record the following for
Product 1 and 2
What is the products name?
Product 1:
What is the serving size
according to the label?
How many servings are in the
entire container or package?
What is YOUR typical “helping”
of this product? How much do
you usually eat?
How many total calories are
there in one serving?
How many calories would you
consume if you ate everything
in the package?
How many grams of fat are in
one serving of the product?
How many grams of fat would
you consume if you ate
everything in the package?
What is the percent daily value
for fat?
Is it a low fat or high fat product
based on percent daily value?
Which nutrient(s) has a high
percentage that should be a
low percentage?
Which nutrient(s) has a low
percentage that should be a
high percentage?
Drexel University, HS Snacks Lesson Plan, revised 7/11, Page 6
Product 2:
Icebreaker for Snack Wise lesson
The Name Game
Name the Candy Bar
Name the Fruit or Vegetable
Drexel University, HS Snacks Lesson Plan, revised 7/11, Page 7
Snack Wise
Circle or fill in the best answer as the instructor goes through the slides. The instructor will
go over the correct answers.
1. Match the letter with the correct tip by drawing a line to connect them:
S
N
A
C
K
S
Sit down, Slow down, Savor, and Enjoy!
Choose low-fat foods from MyPlate
Kitchen is a good place to eat
Smaller portions
Not in front of the TV
Am I really hungry?
2. What is the serving size for this food item?
_________________
3. How many servings are in the container?
_________________
4. What percentage is considered to be low?
_________________
5. What percentage is considered to be high?
_________________
6. What items on the label should have low percentages?
_________________
7. What items on the label should have high percentages?
_________________
8. What is usually added to low-fat or fat-free products that ends up making the calories
very close to the regular food product?
_________________
9. Which has fewer calories?
17 French fries
OR
1 cup Noodles
1 oz Pretzels
OR
1 oz Potato chips
10. Which drinks have more vitamins and minerals?
12 oz 100% Orange juice OR
12 oz Orange soda
12 oz Cola
12 oz Low-fat milk
OR
Drexel University, HS Snacks Lesson Plan, revised 7/11, Page 8
Drexel University, HS Snacks Lesson Plan, revised 7/11, Page 9
Fruit & Vegetable Word Scramble
Unscramble the letters below to make fruits or vegetables.
The person with the most correct will win a prize.
1. ryerch _______________________________
2. aoomtt _______________________________
3. goman_______________________________
4. iealepppn _______________________________
5. nanaba ________________________________
6. achspin _________________________________
7. colibroc _________________________________
8. plganteg ________________________________
9. yberblreu _______________________________
10. uoaaecntlp ______________________________
11. plape___________________________________
12. orartc __________________________________
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