Topic: Taking care of food

Author: Zyta Sendecka

Target group

Students of the 4th grade of an elementary school (new core curriculum)

Core curriculum

The general aim of education

The students name the rules for handling food products from the moment of purchase to consumption.

Criteria of success

● read and use the information on the food product label concerning suitability for consumption;

● describe the characteristics of an expired product;

● name three methods and three reasons for food preservation;

● show the best places to store raw meat, cheese, vegetables, among others.

Key competences

● communication in the mother tongue;

● communication in foreign languages;

● digital competence;

● learning to learn.

Methods / forms of work

Conversation, work with text, “smiley” method, and workshop method.

Individual work and frontal work.

Teaching aids

● abstract;

● interactive or traditional board;

● tablets/computers;

● product labels.

Lesson plan overview (Process)

Before lesson

The students make measurements according to instructions:

• prepare three thermometers;

• place the thermometers in different places (shelves) of the refrigerator for one hour;

• read and note where the refrigerator is the coldest and where it is the warmest.

Introduction

1. The teacher gives the topic and the goals of the lesson in a language understandable for the student.

2. The teacher begins the conversation by asking the children the question: How do you know that a food product is not suitable for consumption?

Realization

1. The teacher randomly gives product labels to the students working in pairs, which, apart from other information, differ in the words „use by” and „best before”, and asks the students to consider what information about the usefulness of the food product can be found on the label, and look for explanations in the content and write them down in their notebooks. Keen students present their notes.

2. The teacher shows the students a film about natural ways of preserving food.

3. The teacher asks the students to explain why people preserve food (if they have problems with it, they can look for information in the abstract). Keen students give answers, the teacher writes down the answers and together with the students evaluates their truthfulness.

4. The teacher asks the students: How can you know that a food product is spoiled?

5. The teacher gives the students a text and asks them to read it: “The temperature on the shelves in the refrigerator is not always the same. In the fridge, on the coldest shelf we keep tightly packed raw meat, which we soon want to prepare for eating, and cold cuts. On the warmest shelf, we store yellow cheese, yoghurt and milk. Additionally, the fridge can be equipped with a drawer. We put vegetables and fruits into it: radishes, onions, carrots, oranges, and lemons. Other products, such as soft cheese, dry meat and products previously prepared and chilled, such as soups, stews or roasts, are put on the remaining shelves. On the door, we put products that require light cooling: mustard, ketchup, butter, oil and eggs”.

6. The teacher asks the students to use the text and temperature readings from the refrigerator (work before the lesson) to do the indicated interactive exercise.

Summary

1. The teacher asks the students to do an interactive exercise no. 3.

2. The teacher asks the students to evaluate today's lesson using the „smiley” method when leaving the classroom.

The following terms and recordings will be used during this lesson

Terms

Texts and recordings

Taking care of food

How to prevent food from going off? Many food products, in particular those that are dry, like pasta, rice or flour, do not go off even when you do not keep them in a fridge. Other products, like for example fish, should be prepared and eaten very quickly, otherwise already on the following day they go bad; one of the tell‑tale signs of that is the smell. Food goes bad usually because of very small organisms, the so‑called microorganisms that live all around us. In order to prevent this process food should be stored properly. The process of food going off may be slowed down by preservation. Most products are preserved in some way. The so‑called natural preservation methods have been known for a very long time. Those methods include freezing, drying, salting and pickling, as well as making jams and marinades. Food preserved using those methods changes its flavour, but it still remains wholesome. Artificial preservatives added to food usually maintain its natural flavour, however they are believed to cause allergies, breathlessness and skin ailments if consumed in excessive quantities. You should therefore consider whether eating them is good for you.

Even preserved food should be stored in appropriate conditions. I am sure you know that some food is stored in the fridge, while other products in cool and dry places, such as kitchen cabinets. Also in shops some foods are displayed in refrigerated counters, while others are simply placed on shelves. Wrong storage may cause the product to be unsuitable for consumption after a short time.

• Food can be preserved naturally or with artificial substances. It is important to provide the right amount of protein.

• Food products should be stored in an appropriate manner to preserve their nutritional values for as long as possible.

• Overdue products are unfit for consumption.