My intent is to use the short story the Little Red Hen as the central literature piece to introduce and develop the topics of food and responsibility and using an inquiry-based teaching method. There are two products I hope to achieve: 1) is to test methods to teach understanding (such as the scientific method), and 2) to teach students the concept of responsibility in respect to eating habits.
Outline of the unit
Introduction -- Teaching about responsibility
The Earth - Our Planet; The Sun; and Water Changes
Living things - Plants and animals
Why do we need food?
Likes and dislikes
We have choices
Final Project: Student created book (Ongoing from the beginning lesson).
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Topics: responsibility and food
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Students will create drawings as a reflective activity after each session of the unit.
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Student discussion with the adult in the classroom will produce the text as a joint activity.
A graphic organizer for the curriculum unit:
(figure available in print form)
I. Introduction -- Teaching about responsibility
In this part of the unit I intend to read the “Little Red Hen” short story to introduce both topics, the topic of responsibility and the topic of food and how do we obtain it. Prior to reading the book I must activate my students prior knowledge about chores, planting and sharing work and food. It is crucial to engage the students in a rich and interactive discussion among themselves and myself (the teacher). To allow for this I intend to ask open-ended questions, questions with more than one answer, and questions without known answers.
Sample Lessons and classroom activities
Lesson 1
Objective: The students will be able to define responsibility and give examples of responsible behavior.
Initiation: I will talk with my students about responsibility, I will encourage them to explain what are some of the things people do to help each other to complete chores at home and at school. The discussion will expand to include who is responsible to complete chores and come up with ideas on how they could help at home and school.
Presentation: I introduce the book (The Little Red Hen) by showing the cover and prompting the students to predict what is the topic and character in the story. After a brief discussion, I will read the story aloud for all the students. (At this point in the year the students are used to listening to stories).
Activity: Students will make a reflective drawing that will depict what happen in the story or their own version of the story; make sure they give emphasis to responsible behavior. In addition, I (with small groups of students) will discuss their drawings (the first group will talk with “the teacher”, me or other adult, about what they want to draw while the others are drawing independently). It is more effective if the drawing is done in pairs at this stage so they can help each other.
Closure: As a group let students present their versions of the story and how responsibility is portrayed. Teacher (me) should summarize by helping students define responsibility and introducing the next topic, which is responsible decisions.
Lesson 2
Objective: Students can define and identify responsible decisions.
Initiation: I will start a conversation with my students about the Little Red Hen and how her friends made decisions not to help her. I will read a letter from “With love, Little Red Hen”, I can pose questions on how the students could change the story so the hen’s friends would make responsible choices. Allow for the students to speculate and construct their own story they can reflect on both the friends and the red hen’s behavior.
*Note: Discussing this topic with one of my future students she expressed concern for the Little Red Hen reaction to her friends behavior. Jules said: “She should have shared her food anyway and maybe her friends would be nicer next time”.
Presentation: I will talk about decisions, explain how choices/decisions are made by individuals and in the case of kids their parents make decisions for them. Use illustrations to help students understand what is a decision. Ask students to give me examples of decisions they make and decisions their parents make for them.
Activity: Give students drawing paper and ask them to draw themselves making a decision and presented to their partner. Students need a lot of help from the adults in the classroom. You could give them alternative suggestions such as: drawing a decision they made in the morning, decisions their parents make for them, etc.
Closure: I will ask the group to help me define what is a decision, I will prompt the students to give examples of decisions they made today and decisions their parents or significant adults made for them today. You can play a game to give everyone a turn. Introduce the topic of responsible decisions that help our home, our community and our environment. (Environment might be a new concept for the students; I’ll introduce it in depth in the next session).
Lesson 3
Objective: The students will identify components of the environment.
Initiation: Talk about the Little Red Hen as an animal and planting to be able to eat. In the conversation is important to talk about actions and how the environment is affected by what we do. Bring a plant and show the soil, the roots, the leaves, etc. Also talk about the sun and water as important for plants to grow. Also how plants are important for animals and people.
Activity: Take students outside let them observe their surroundings and find plants or animals, the sun, other things they may see could be pollutants. This should be done in small groups of four or five so kids can help each other. Back in the classroom students will draw the “environment”, pictures of the outside of their school.
Closure: Discuss with the students how does their school’s yard looks like and how they can make it cleaner and more beautiful. Listen to the ideas, be sure to take into consideration good ideas for future projects.
Possible closing activity: Make Hot fudge sundaes. A poet called Jonathan Holden (Kessler, 1996) sees this type of sundae as our planet with clouds on top and layers of soil and lava. The whip cream represents the clouds, the hot fudge the soil and the ice cream the lava. This is an interesting activity to introduce the next topic.
II. The Earth - Our Planet; The Sun; and Water Changes
Lesson 1, 2, and 3
Objective: Students will be able to explain they live on a ball that is called Earth; the plants and the animals also live here. In addition, students will be able to explain their responsibility to keep the planet clean.
Initiation: 1) Start talking about the environment; the plants, the animals the water, the sun and the moon. Show students a globe and an orange ask students to tell you how they are similar. (Shape is the key here.) Let them touch it and ask them if they know what the globe is, encourage them to expand on their explanation. Talk about how round things move.
2) Ask them what they saw last night while looking at the stars. Bring a flashlight to school place it inside a box with a piping hole. Let the students look at the darkness inside the box then turn on the light and let them look again. Ask them what they saw in the box.
3) With both drawings of the day and night and the globe ask students what they think helps the sun and the earth for the plants to grow. Guide them by asking what is the blue component of the globe. Ask about thirst and how they enjoy water.
Presentation: In small groups of five I will read to students the following books: Our Planet, The Sun, and Water changes. (For the teacher to do this she/he would have to involve other adults and/or prepare centers that may enhance what the learning of this topic. In the small group discussions teacher and students engage in a discussion about the environment (another very brief initiation), then read the “Our Planet” book (substitute Our Planet with The Sun for 2, and Water changes for 3). Ask open-ended questions as you are reading to keep students clear about these new and difficult concepts. After reading ask student to help you summarize by making a group drawing of the information, let students participate in making the drawing.
Closure: 1) Ask students to gaze at the stars today with the help of an adult. Ask them to make a drawing of the sky. (Give students black construction paper and a white, silver or gold crayon to complete this activity). 2) Talk about the sun as our star. Ask them what they think they will see if you all went outside (record their predictions). Go outside and let them draw what they see. 3) Make terrariums that will help you explain how earth’s soil is a source for nutrients, the sun needs to play a part in the keeping of the terrarium and so does water. (This activity will also serve me to introduce the next part of the unit).
III. Living things - Plants and animals: and how they become food
This part of the unit includes an introduction to living things as opposed to non-living things.
Lesson sample 1
Initiation: Gather students around the terrariums to observe any changes. Have them draw what they observe. In small groups let the students share their drawings.
Presentation: I want to show them how different plants have seeds and how some of the food we consume are in fact seeds such as corn or beans (I am going to bring the real fruits or vegetables). I want to show them with a Chart how plants grow from seeds.
Classroom activity: In small containers (cups or milk containers) plant the bean seeds one with nothing, one with water and one with soil and water. I want the students to draw what they did for each container (the procedure).
Closure: After we have completed the drawings we will talk as a group about seeds and plants. I also want to read with them a book on plants’ growth and help them make connections to previous learned material that is related this one.
IV. Why do we need food? (Possibly include a brief overview of nutrition).
This part of the unit includes a brief lesson on nutrition and our bodies. I intend to talk about how food can give us energy and how it helps us to grow.
Lesson sample 1
Initiation: Introduce a KWL chart (K -- what do the students know; W -- what do they want to learn; and after the presentation do L -- what did they learned). Ask students to give you ideas on how food is good for your body. Then ask them what would they like to learn (in your discussion you may have to encourage them by giving them suggestion).
Presentation: I want to give a brief explanation about the food pyramid using manipulatives. I want to use plastic foods to show the kids samples of the actual components of the pyramid. Then I want to encourage them to give me examples of foods that are similar to the ones I brought to show them. I hope to be able to teach them the different type of foods and where they come from (e.g. animals or plants).
Closure: I want to complete the L part of the KWL chart. This chart will help me introduce the next topic. Which is food we like and dislikes and how food can be altered so we like it better.
Closing activity: I would like the students to participate in preparing a balanced meal, one that would include all the components we learned about and that would give me the opportunity to teach them about food safety and hygiene.
V. Likes and dislikes. (You could discuss sugar, salt and fats here, and possible flavors and colors.)
Lesson 1
Initiation: In pairs I’m going to have the students complete a Venn Diagram with pre-cut pictures of foods. The categories could be Foods I like, foods the 2 like, Foods my friend likes (you could also write Foods _________ likes, Foods_______& _______ like, Foods ________ likes.). Have students present to the group their Venn Diagrams.
Presentation: Talk about dislikes. Discuss with the groups about their choices of food and get them to share which foods their peers like that they don’t like. Ask them if they have taste it them before (sometimes kids say they don’t like food but they have never tasted them before) and prompt them to talk about why they don’t like them. This is a good opportunity to review senses and how they influence our choices.
Closure: Have the students create a shopping list for a simulated market. The list can be done in groups of four with the pre-cut pictures. This is a good opportunity to practice numbers.
Lesson 2
Objective: Students are able to identify items they like and make a transaction to purchase them at the market.
Initiation: I will review with them the names of food items we discuss the previous session. I will ask them what makes this item likable or dislikable (e.g. taste, looks, smell, etc.).
Presentation: I will teach students to use play money to purchase items. To get them in the mind set of a market I’m going to read them a story: “I don’t like bananas” (Hojel & Guy, 1999). This is a book about a child who goes to the market to purchase fruits. The book also presents the topic of like and dislike.
Classroom Activity: In the market the students are able to find foods that they like to put in a bag, we will have play money and the prices of the items will be posted.
Closure: I want to talk with the students about the market experience and introduce the concept of packaged foods and how supermarkets have many more choices for us to make.
Lesson 3
Objective: Students will be able to identify different flavor and how they influence our choices of foods.
Initiation: I want to review the previous experience in the market and talk about some of our favorite tastes (e. g. sweets, salty, sour) this could be new vocabulary. So we may need to spend some time acting out reaction to these flavors.
Presentation: In groups of 5-7 students I want them to gather around table set up with 6 cups with water. I want to have kids to taste the water and describe the flavor to an adult working with their group. Then I want them to describe how does water looks. Following this exchange of ideas I want to give each kid the opportunity to taste water with some sugar added, some salt added, and food coloring added. I want them to repeat the same discussion they had about the plain water but this time about each of the items tried.
Closure: I will introduce the concept of additives, by explaining that what we put in the water added a different flavor or look to the water. I want to ask them what they liked better the water or the one with sugar, salt, or color. I want to explain that many of the foods in the supermarket have something added so they taste better (or enhance the flavor).
VI. We have choices
Lesson 1
Objectives: Students can identify what garbage they create by consuming food.
Initiation: students will count how many items they throw away from their breakfast and lunch trays (e.g. milk carton, wraps, etc.)
Presentation: We will talk about the garbage we dispose after breakfast and lunch. And discuss the concept of building graphics to present data.
Classroom Activity: I will teach them how to build a graphic to present information we get from observations (data). We will build the graphic by collecting the individual tallies of each student and adults in the classroom.
Closure: Students come up with ideas on how to reduce the garbage so our planet can be kept cleaner.
Lesson 2
Objective: Students are able to talk about contaminants as elements present in food that are not suppose to be there such as metal, insecticide, etc.
Initiation: In a simulation I am going to pretend that I am going to eat a dirty fruit or vegetable. I am going to ask the students if I should eat it or not. Hopefully the answer will be no and then I could have them elaborate on the reasons we shouldn’t eat dirty food.
Presentation: Introduce the need to clean produce before consuming them and due to things that get into food while in traffic to the market or while at the farm.
Activity: Make a salad with vegetables students brought or that they like. Teach them how to clean themselves and the produce to keep safe.
Closure: I want to talk about the importance of cleanliness for food consumption and for our planet. In addition, encourage students to draw a picture about a safe environment that is clean.
Final Project: Student created book (Ongoing from the beginning lesson).
Topics: responsibility and food
Students will create drawings as a reflective activity after each session of the unit.
Student discussion with the adult in the classroom will produce the text as a joint activity.
I intend to implement the preceding lessons. I may modify or add other lessons depending upon the students’ development and understanding of the unit.
