Lesson Plan - What’s Healthy?

Watch a Video: Read the Label
Discuss: What are some important pieces of information you can find on a food’s nutrition label?

Preview Words to Know
Project the online vocabulary slideshow and introduce the Words to Know. 

• criteria
• moderation

Set a Purpose for Reading
As students read, have them look for details about the benefits of healthy eating.

1. What are highly processed foods? What are some examples?
The text states that highly processed foods are foods that have a lot of artificial ingredients to improve flavor and help the food stay fresh. But they have few health benefits. Potato chips, sugary drinks, and frozen pizza are some examples.
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2. What does the FDA mean when it says its existing definition of healthy foods is outdated?
The FDA means that the existing definition was created a long time ago, and our understanding of what is healthy has changed since then.
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3. Share two facts you can learn from the sidebar, “Get the Facts.”
Sample response: One fact in the sidebar is that a label tells how many servings are in a container. Another fact is that kids ages 9 to 13 should limit sodium intake to 1,800 milligrams per day.
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FEATURED SKILL: Causes and Effects
Use the Skill Builder “Causes and Effects” to have students explore cause-and-effect relationships in the article. 
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