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Food for Thought

Elementary, Middle

Description

Food For Thought is part of a series of lessons designed by Earth Rangers. These lessons offer a series of hands-on and interactive activities that are curriculum linked and broaden the scope of environmental education in the classroom. 

Food For Thought introduces students to the ways our everyday food choices contribute to climate change and challenges them to shrink their carbon footprints by making sustainable choices at lunch. 

In this lesson, students will:

  • discuss some key concepts like climate change and carbon footprint.
  • assess the impact of food consumption on climate change by  doing an audit of what they brought in their lunch.
  • learn how to make smarter food choices to help shrink their carbon footprint. 

In completing this lesson, students will be able to assess human impacts on biodiversity, and identify ways of preserving biodiversity. 

This lesson offers the opportunity to extend the learning through an optional extension activity where students would visit a local farm or a community garden to introduce students to some of these amazing initiatives. 

General Assessment

What skills does this resource explicitly teach?

Students will learn to complete an audit of their lunch to determine their carbon footprint. 

Strengths

  • The lesson is well described for teachers
  • The quiz needed for the audit it provided and ready to print in the resource
  • Background information on carbon footprint and climate change is provided in the resource
  • A list of additional resources is available in the lesson

Weaknesses

  • Evaluations are not provided in this resource.
  • This lesson does not provide options for students with learning disabilities. 

Recommendation of how and where to use it

This lesson would be a great way to introduce the ecological footprint, climate change, and biodiversity in Science courses and sustainability in Geography courses. 

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Themes Addressed

  • Air, Atmosphere & Climate (1)

    • Climate Change

  • Citizenship (1)

    • Ecological Footprint

  • Ecosystems (1)

    • Biodiversity

  • Food & Agriculture (2)

    • Local Food
    • Organic Farming

Sustainability Education Principles

Principle Rating Explanation
Consideration of Alternative Perspectives Very Good

Through their lunch audit, students get to see for themselves the effects of food on the environment. They form their own opinion and discuss their point of view through classroom discussions on the subject. 

Consideration of Alternative Perspectives:
  • Satisfactory: absence of bias towards any one point of view
  • Good: students consider different points of view regarding issues, problems discussed
  • Very good: based on the consideration of different views, students form opinions and  take an informed position
Multiple Dimensions of Problems & Solutions Good

In looking at how food consumption affects the environment, students will examine how all three dimensions are interconnected in this issue. 

Multiple Dimensions of Problems & Solutions:

Effectively addresses the environmental, economic and social dimensions of the issue(s) being explored.

  • Satisfactory: resource supports the examination of  these dimensions
  • Good:  resource explicitly examines the interplay of these dimensions
  • Very Good:  a systems-thinking approach is encouraged to examine these three dimensions
Respects Complexity Very Good
Respects Complexity:

The complexity of the problems/issues being discussed is respected.

Acting on Learning Satisfactory

There is no exact action activities in this lesson, however students will have a look at their food consumption and hopefully will make changes to their regular consumption. 

Acting on Learning:

Learning moves from understanding  issues  to working towards positive change — in personal lifestyle, in school, in the community,  or for the planet

  • Satisfactory: action opportunities are included as extensions 
  • Good: action opportunities are core components of the resource
  • Very Good: action opportunities for students are well supported and intended to result in observable, positive change
Values Education Very Good

This lesson has many discussions where students get to express their own beliefs and values. 

Values Education:

Students are explicitly provided with opportunities to identify, clarify and express their own beliefs/values.

Empathy & Respect for Humans Poor/Not considered

This is not a focus of this resource.

Empathy & Respect for Humans: Empathy and respect are fostered for diverse groups of humans (including different genders, ethnic groups, sexual preferences, etc.).
Personal Affinity with Earth Good

This lesson centers around the environment therefore helping students foster an appreciation for the natural world. 

Personal Affinity with Earth:

Encourages a personal affinity with -the natural world.  

  • Satisfactory: connection is made to the natural world
  • Good: fosters appreciation/concern for the natural world
  • Very Good: fosters stewardship though practical and respectful experiences out-of-doors 
Locally-Focused Learning Good

Students will audit their own school lunch which makes it relevant to the students.

Locally-Focused Learning:

Includes learning experiences that take advantage of issues/elements within the local community. 

  • Satisfactory: learning is made relevant to the lives of the learners
  • Good: learning is made relevant and has a local focus
  • Very Good: learning is made relevant, local and takes place ‘outside’ , in the community 
Past, Present & Future Very Good
Past, Present & Future: Promotes an understanding of the past, a sense of the present, and a positive vision for the future.

Pedagogical Approaches

Principle Rating Explanation
Open-Ended Instruction Very Good

Most of this lesson is centered around discussions where students can openly share their ideas and opinions. They are not steered towards one right answer. 

Open-Ended Instruction :

Lessons are structured so that multiple/complex answers are possible; students are not steered toward one 'right' answer.

Integrated Learning Good
Integrated Learning:

Learning brings together content and skills  from more than one  subject area

  • Satisfactory: content from a number of different  subject areas is readily identifiable
  • Good:  resource is appropriate for use in more than one subject area
  • Very Good:  the lines between subjects are blurred 
Inquiry Learning Poor/Not considered

This is not a focus of this lesson. 

Inquiry Learning:

Learning is directed by questions, problems, or challenges that students work to address.   

  • Satisfactory: Students are provided with questions/problems to solve and some direction on how to arrive at solutions.
  • Good: students, assisted by the teacher clarify the question(s) to ask and the process to follow to arrive at solutions.  Sometimes referred to as Guided Inquiry
  • Very Good:  students generate the questions and assume much of the responsibility for how to solve them.  . Sometimes referred to as self-directed learning.

 

Differentiated Instruction Good

There are a variety of activities in this lesson and therefore it addresses the needs of visual, auditory and kinesthetic learners. However, strategies for learners with difficulties are not provided. 

Differentiated Instruction:

Activities address a range of student learning styles, abilities and readiness.

  • Satisfactory:  includes a variety of instructional approaches
  • Good: addresses  the needs of visual, auditory &  kinesthetic learners
  • Very Good: also includes strategies for learners with difficulties
Experiential Learning Good

Students will look at their own lunches to check their carbon footprint. As well, as an optional activity, classes are encouraged to visit organic farms in their community. 

Experiential Learning:

Authentic learning experiences are provided

  • Satisfactory: learning takes place through ‘hands-on’ experience or simulation
  • Good: learning involves direct experience in a ‘real world context’
  • Very good: learning involves ‘real world experiences’ taking place’ beyond the school walls.
Cooperative Learning Poor/Not considered
Cooperative Learning:

Group and cooperative learning strategies are a priority.

  • Satisfactory:  students work in groups
  • Good: cooperative learning skills are explicitly taught and practiced
  • Very Good: cooperative learning skills are explicitly taught, practiced and assessed
Assessment & Evaluation Poor/Not considered

Assessment opportunities are not provided in this resource.

Assessment & Evaluation: Tools are provided that help students and teachers to capture formative and summative information about students' learning and performance. These tools may include reflection questions, checklists, rubrics, etc.
Peer Teaching Poor/Not considered

This is not a focus of this resource. 

Peer Teaching:

Provides opportunities for students to actively present their knowledge and skills to peers and/or act as teachers and mentors.

  • Satisfactory: incidental teaching that arises from cooperative learning, presentations, etc.
  • Good or Very Good: an opportunity is intentionally created to empower students to teach other students/community members. The audience is somehow reliant on the students' teaching (students are not simply ‘presenting')
Case Studies Very Good

Students will use their own lunches to answer a quiz on carbon footprint. 

Case Studies:

Relevant case studies are included.  Case studies are thorough descriptions of real events from real situations that students use to explore  concepts in an authentic context.

Locus of Control Satisfactory
Locus of Control: Meaningful opportunities are provided for students to choose elements of program content, the medium in which they wish to work, and/or to go deeper into a chosen issue.