NUTRITION EDUCATION AND THE TECHNOLOGY LEARNING AREA pg12

NUTRITION EDUCATION
AND THE TECHNOLOGY LEARNING AREA

PART C

A FOCUS ON THE TECHNOLOGY LEARNING AREA

Developing autonomy with respect to PERSONAL HEALTH-PROMOTING FOOD-RELATED BEHAVIOURS

Working through the technology learning area to develop autonomy with respect to health-promoting personal food-related behaviours warrants design, make and appraise activities which link primarily on "systems" and with the "materials" strands of the learning area.

Systems

The system of key importance in developing personal health-promoting behaviours is a management system. Learning experiences should enable students to design, make and appraise a personal management system for a healthy diet. The examples which follow illustrate how an empowerment approach to the technology process of the technology learning area can be used as the vehicle for developing health promoting behaviours. They also show the links with the empowerment process advocated in the National Nutrition Education in Schools project.

Materials

The material of key importance is food. In the case of developing health promoting food-related behaviours, learning experiences would enable students to design, make and appraise food products to support their goals for a healthy diet, as determined in their personal management plans as outlined above.

UNIT 1 WHACKY SNACKING

Target audience: Upper primary

Technology strands: Designing, making and appraising; Systems

Design situation: Personal management systems to enhance personal diet

Technology process
Some possible learning experiences
Learning process for nutrition education

Developing a context for a design brief

1. Motivation

Range of snacks on table when students enter room
Notice on board ‘Do you eat healthy snacks?’
Class discussion about health and how snacks affect health
Teacher explanation of how they can learn to eat healthier snacks, and that they will be looking at their own snacking habits and students will be able to make changes if necessary

Motivation

2. What are snacks?

Class discussion — what are snacks?, which snacks do students eat?, and when do they eat them?
Students brainstorm snacks they eat, and put their ideas on the board.
Classification of snacks into three groups — pre-packaged, natural and prepared
Discussion on why these snacks are eaten — including advertising, convenience etc.

Gathering information

Analysing

3. Teacher explanation of how the students can find out if their snacks are healthy and how they can make changes

Explanation of the process that students will undertake, using a pin-board to highlight each of the steps. Steps to be left on pin-board for the unit of work. Each lesson, groups to identify which step they are up to.

Understanding the process

4. Snack diary

Discussion of what a food diary might include, teacher modelling of how to make the diary entries
Students and teacher asked to make a diary of snacks eaten for a period of one week — when, what and why that snack.

Collecting information

5. Does advertising affect the snacks we eat?

Brainstorm of favourite snacks
Discussion of links, if any, between favourite snacks and advertising
Discussion of if and how advertising influence their choices
Students develop, analyse and evaluate an advertisement for a healthy snack

Gathering information

Analysing

Evaluating

6. Analysis of snack diaries

In small groups, students analyse their diaries to determine what, when and why snacks are commonly eaten

Analysing

7. Analysis and evaluation of snacks most commonly eaten

Students bring in packaging from snacks
Teacher models processes in analysing snacks
Students analyse snacks in terms of the Healthy Diet Pyramid
In pairs, evaluation of 2 snacks as excellent, good, fair or poor, dependent upon the analysis (could use Target on Healthy Eating)
Class compilation of excellent, good, fair and poor snacks
Examination (eg teacher led discussion, texts, nutrition leaflets, video etc) of why some snacks are considered ‘poor’— what happens to our health when we eat too many foods that are high in fat and/or sugar and low in fibre — students drawing pictures to show what the results might be, small groups each write a segment for the school magazine on why children should be careful about the snacks they eat.

Analysing

Evaluating

Analysing

8. Analysis and evaluation of snacks in students’ own snack diaries

Students analyse and evaluate the snacks entered in their diaries either by referring to class list or doing a new analysis
Students asked to identify if their snacking needed changing in view of their analysis

Analysing and evaluating

Setting the design brief

9. Goal setting

In small groups, students set realistic goals with respect to their snacking to be carried out over the next three weeks. (Even though some students’ snacks may not need changing, within each group someone will typically want to make change, so the goals for one or two people became the goals for the group).

Goal setting

Investigating

10. Identification of barriers and enablers

Discussion in groups of the barriers and enablers and how these might be overcome or used to advantage.
Investigating nutritional value of snack foods and/or their ingredients, and how these might be modified.

Identifying barriers and enablers

Devising a plan

11. Planning

Students plan how they are going to change or modify their snacks. This could include writing a letter to their parents explaining what and why they wanted to make changes, and role-playing some situations.

Planning

Producing

12. Carrying out the plan

Over a three-week period the students carry out their plans and record their actions in a log book.

Acting

13. Making healthy snacks

As a class, students decide which healthy snack to make eg. fruit salad ice blocks
Students produce, eat and evaluate the snacks

Acting (making healthy snacks to support goals)

Developing (and taking action on) a new design brief

14. Advocating

Students brainstorm and act on how they could promote the healthy snack they made eg. students could
approach the school canteen to see if it would sell the snack
plan and implement a morning tea which includes healthy snacks. Parents and school administrators and canteen personnel could be invited.
compile a recipe book of all the healthy snacks they had made for the morning tea
write to local newspaper telling the paper about their activities

Advocating

Evaluating

15. Reflecting

Students share whether they have been successful with their goals, what had helped then be successful, or what had prevented them.
Students reflect on the process they have gone through and how it helped them, and how they could use it again.

Reflecting

CONTENTS | PREVIOUS PAGE | NEXT PAGE

Technology process	Some possible learning experiences	Learning process for nutrition education
Developing a context for a design brief	1. Motivation Range of snacks on table when students enter room Notice on board ‘Do you eat healthy snacks?’ Class discussion about health and how snacks affect health Teacher explanation of how they can learn to eat healthier snacks, and that they will be looking at their own snacking habits and students will be able to make changes if necessary	Motivation
	2. What are snacks? Class discussion — what are snacks?, which snacks do students eat?, and when do they eat them? Students brainstorm snacks they eat, and put their ideas on the board. Classification of snacks into three groups — pre-packaged, natural and prepared Discussion on why these snacks are eaten — including advertising, convenience etc.	Gathering information Analysing
	3. Teacher explanation of how the students can find out if their snacks are healthy and how they can make changes Explanation of the process that students will undertake, using a pin-board to highlight each of the steps. Steps to be left on pin-board for the unit of work. Each lesson, groups to identify which step they are up to.	Understanding the process
	4. Snack diary Discussion of what a food diary might include, teacher modelling of how to make the diary entries Students and teacher asked to make a diary of snacks eaten for a period of one week — when, what and why that snack.	Collecting information
	5. Does advertising affect the snacks we eat? Brainstorm of favourite snacks Discussion of links, if any, between favourite snacks and advertising Discussion of if and how advertising influence their choices Students develop, analyse and evaluate an advertisement for a healthy snack	Gathering information Analysing Evaluating
	6. Analysis of snack diaries In small groups, students analyse their diaries to determine what, when and why snacks are commonly eaten	Analysing
	7. Analysis and evaluation of snacks most commonly eaten Students bring in packaging from snacks Teacher models processes in analysing snacks Students analyse snacks in terms of the Healthy Diet Pyramid In pairs, evaluation of 2 snacks as excellent, good, fair or poor, dependent upon the analysis (could use Target on Healthy Eating) Class compilation of excellent, good, fair and poor snacks Examination (eg teacher led discussion, texts, nutrition leaflets, video etc) of why some snacks are considered ‘poor’— what happens to our health when we eat too many foods that are high in fat and/or sugar and low in fibre — students drawing pictures to show what the results might be, small groups each write a segment for the school magazine on why children should be careful about the snacks they eat.	Analysing Evaluating Analysing
	8. Analysis and evaluation of snacks in students’ own snack diaries Students analyse and evaluate the snacks entered in their diaries either by referring to class list or doing a new analysis Students asked to identify if their snacking needed changing in view of their analysis	Analysing and evaluating
Setting the design brief	9. Goal setting In small groups, students set realistic goals with respect to their snacking to be carried out over the next three weeks. (Even though some students’ snacks may not need changing, within each group someone will typically want to make change, so the goals for one or two people became the goals for the group).	Goal setting
Investigating	10. Identification of barriers and enablers Discussion in groups of the barriers and enablers and how these might be overcome or used to advantage. Investigating nutritional value of snack foods and/or their ingredients, and how these might be modified.	Identifying barriers and enablers
Devising a plan	11. Planning Students plan how they are going to change or modify their snacks. This could include writing a letter to their parents explaining what and why they wanted to make changes, and role-playing some situations.	Planning
Producing	12. Carrying out the plan Over a three-week period the students carry out their plans and record their actions in a log book.	Acting
	13. Making healthy snacks As a class, students decide which healthy snack to make eg. fruit salad ice blocks Students produce, eat and evaluate the snacks	Acting (making healthy snacks to support goals)
Developing (and taking action on) a new design brief	14. Advocating Students brainstorm and act on how they could promote the healthy snack they made eg. students could approach the school canteen to see if it would sell the snack plan and implement a morning tea which includes healthy snacks. Parents and school administrators and canteen personnel could be invited. compile a recipe book of all the healthy snacks they had made for the morning tea write to local newspaper telling the paper about their activities	Advocating
Evaluating	15. Reflecting Students share whether they have been successful with their goals, what had helped then be successful, or what had prevented them. Students reflect on the process they have gone through and how it helped them, and how they could use it again.	Reflecting