Reading Food Labels

Name: Hayley Sefton

Instructional Model: Direct Instruction
Central Focus: Nutrition
Lesson # 3
# of Students: 30 Length of Lesson: 50
minutes
Grade Level(s): 9
Facilities & Equipment:
Skill Level: x New Material
Developing
Mastery
1. Classroom
2. Food Labels
3. Projector
4. Markers

of 10
Review

Lesson Objective(s) edTPA Phase II: Planning Pyramid (Standards, Goals/Objectives, and Assessment)
1. TSWBAT analyze parts of a food label by completing a worksheet 70% correctly.
2. TSWBAT calculate serving sizes from the food labels 70% correctly.
3. TLW accurately identify all 4 vitamins and minerals that are mandatory on every food label.
4. TLW learn how to make healthier choices by knowing the ingredients in the food and apply the
knowledge to the 2 week nutrition plan.
TIME

LESSON SEGMENTS

5-10
minutes

ANTICIPATORY SET:
Food labels appear on virtually
every food item. The only foods
that do not need to carry
nutrition labels are plain coffee,
tea, and spices. We are going to
learn how to read food labels
and then put it into practice by
creating a nutrition plan that can
be easily implemented into your
daily life. Learning how to
choose healthier foods will cut
down on nutrition related
illnesses and childhood obesity.
Eating healthy will also give
you more energy.

15-25
minutes

ACTIVITY:
1. The first thing that you want
to look at when reading a
nutrition label is the serving
size. This is a crucial piece of
information, and its easy to

TASK PRESENTATION &

STRUCTURE*
Review: Components of a
healthy diet.
Review: Health conditions that
resulted from a poor diet.
Periodic Review:
Hand out Pre test
(Appendix 1)

Hand out food labels

(Appendix 4)

INSTRUCTIONAL
INFORMATION
CRITICAL
ELEMENTS:
Food labels or Nutrition
facts must contain
certain information by
the food and drug
administration: Serving
size, servings per
container, the nutrients
that should be limited,
carbohydrates and
sugars, protein,
nutrients that should be
included, and the
percent daily values
based on a 2,000 calorie
diet. The ingredients
will also be included
and will be listed
descending according to
weight.
CUES:

miss. Serving sizes on the label

may differ from those of the
food guide pyramid. For
example, a serving of rice on
the box may be 1 cup (C), but
on the food pyramid it is a C.
2. The FDA has established
specific serving sizes on some
foods; for instance, a beverage
serving size is 8 fluid ounces
and an ice cream serving size
is C. It is easy to
comparison shop for these
food items. However, some
food serving sizes are not
regulated. This is why its so
important to read the serving
size first. It is easy to assume
that some food packages only
hold one serving. The little bags
of potato chips are one such
food. Some of those bags
actually contain what the
manufacturer considers to be
2 servings. If you just look at
calories and see 150 calories,
you would think that the entire
bag contains 150 calories, when
in fact it may contain 375
calories.
3. Labels present nutrition
information in two ways
quantities (such as grams or
milligrams) and in percentages
of daily values.
4. The amount of fat that every
person should consume in a day
is not a set amount. Instead,
recommendations are based on
a percentage of calories. The
% daily value column
provides a ballpark figure of
how individual foods contribute
to the overall diet. You can see
that every food label bases the
% daily value on a 2,000- and a
2,500-calorie diet. Your needs
may differ based on your age,

New Material:
Hand out food guide pyramid
(Appendix 2)

Food Guide Pyramid:

BVFMMF
Bread
Veggie
Fruit
Milk
Meat
Fat

8oz = 1 cup
New Material:
Compare the food guide
pyramid serving size to the
health food label serving size

Guided Material:
Hand out worksheet: How to
read a food label
(Appendix 3)

-Able to calculate information

from quantities and percentages

sex, physical activity, etc. These

figures still provide a way for
you to compare different food
items. For instance, if one type
of food contains 25% of the
daily value for fat based on a
2000-calorie diet and another
provides 30%, its probably
wiser to choose the one
containing 25%.
5. You still need to watch
portion sizes when choosing
foods that are described as
nonfat or sugar free. This is
because many low-fat foods are
still high in calories. In fact,
manufacturers may add even
more sugar to food in an
attempt to make up for the lost
taste from fat removal. Sugarfree foods still contain calories
from other carbohydrates, fat,
and protein.
6. Every food label will show
total calories, food energy from
fat, total fat, saturated fat,
cholesterol, sodium, total
carbohydrate, sugar, protein,
and dietary fiber.
7. Some vitamins and minerals
appear on every food label. Can
anyone tell me what these
are? They are vitamin A,
vitamin C, calcium, and iron.
Manufacturers may choose to
include other vitamins or
minerals on the label, but this is
not required
8. Ingredients listed on the label
are in descending order of
predominance by weight. If a
canned fruit label reads sugar,
fruit, water, the item actually
contains more sugar than fruit
by weight. Fruit is pretty heavy;
so, just imagine how much
sugar is in this food.

CFU:
Informal assessment: Can there
be calories in food if they are
fat free or sugar free? How
would you find out?

Guides:

CFU:
Informal assessment: What are
the vitamins and minerals on
every food label?

CFU:
Informal assessment: How are
ingredients listed on a food
label?
Individual Practice:
Hand out work sheet
(PDF File)

Informal assessment: Walk

Saturated is bad fat

that comes from
animal products. It
is usually solid at
room temperature
Example: Butter,
Crisco, margarine
Unsaturated is good
fat that comes from
plant products. It is
usually liquid at
room temperature.
Example: Vegetable
oil, Olive Oil

around observing students

completing the worksheet.

2-4
minutes

CLOSURE:
Perfect foods do not exist.
Every food you eat has pluses
and minuses. Look at the entire
label to see if the food is a good
source of vitamins and
minerals. Dont forget to look at
the serving size first!

Periodic Review:
Hand out Post Test
(Appendix 4)
Periodic Review:
Formal assessment: Collect
completed worksheet

FEEDBACK:
The student will mix up
serving sizes from a
package as opposed the
food guide pyramid
recommended serving
size. Does the
packaging have more
than one serving? Show
on the label where the
serving sizes are shown
and how many servings
are in each product.

1 minute PRE-CUE:
We will continue to work on
how to include healthier food
choices and incorporate the
information into the two week
diet plan.
Academic Language (EdTPA Phase IV)
Discourse Academic language: Food Guide Pyramid
Language demand: Diet Plan students will fill out a two week food diary that relates to the food guide
pyramid and keeping the correct serving sizes
Language function: analyze, label, calculate, recognize, identify, learn
National and State Standards:
National Standards:
1.12.5 Propose ways to reduce or prevent injuries and health problems.
3.12.1 Evaluate the validity of health information, products, and services.
3.12.3 Determine the accessibility of products and services that enhance health.
Illinois Learning Standards (ILS):
24.B.4a Explain how decision making affects the achievement of individual health goals.
24.C.4a Formulate a plan to achieve individual health goals
Criteria for success and assessment:
- Completion of the food label work sheet (formal)
- Pre and posttest (formal)
- Discussion of the differences of pre and posttest (informal)
- Class discussion questions throughout the lesson. (informal)
Management:

- Students will be working individually on the worksheet

Multiple means of representation (input), engagement (practice), and expression(output)
Direct instruction of how to complete the worksheet (input)
Pre/post-test (output)
Worksheet for understanding of the lesson (practice)
Check for understanding will be used throughout the lesson for student input (output)
References
Nutrition 411. (2008)
http://www.nutrition411.com/nutrition-department-management/clinical-inservices/item/83-foodlabel-lesson-plan/
Whitney EN, Rolfes SR. Understanding nutrition. 9th ed. Belmont, CA: Wadsworth/Thompson
Learning; 2002:50-53.

Appendix 1
Pre Test and Post Test
Pretest and posttest
1. Which of the following is an example of a food not requiring a nutrition label?
a. Cheese
b. Potato chips and pretzels
c. Spices
d. Flour
2. Which nutrient is not required on all nutrition facts labels?
a. Vitamin A
b. Potassium
c. Calcium
d. Iron
3. True or false?
You can eat as much low-fat food as you want, because its a good diet food and will keep you full without too
many calories.
4. The ingredients list is put in this order:
a. Alphabetically
b. Randomly
c. With the better foods for you put first
d. With whichever ingredient that theres the most of listed first
Test answers
1. c. Spices
2. b. Potassium
3. False
4. d. With whichever ingredient that theres the most of listed first

Appendix 2
Food Guide Pyramid

Appendix 3
How to Read Labels

Appendix 4