Where does our food come from?

Lesson Plan A Where does our food come from? Activity for Year Level: Years 2/3 Duration of activity: 40 minutes Essential Learning based on 1) SOSE Essential Learnings by the end of Year 3 2) The Australian Curriculum for Mathematics, Science and English Broad Core Learning Outcomes from: 1) SOSE Essential Learnings by the end of Year 3 Place and Space Resources and environments can be used, conserved and protected by valuing and applying sustainable practices. Political and Economic Systems Australians are connected to other people and places by shared interests, including travel, exchanging goods and services, and environmental issues. People and resources are involved in the production and consumption of familiar goods and services. 2) The Australian Curriculum for Mathematics, Science and English Please refer to Table 1 - Lesson Plan A with the Australian Curriculum (page 14-15 of this document). Specific Learning Outcome: Knowledge Students have an increased awareness and understanding of the concept of food miles how and why foods are transported across the world, the resources involved in the production of food, and the environmental impacts that can result from this. Students learn the environmental and health benefits of eating locally, in addition to sustainable food practices that help conserve and protect the earth s resources and environment. Skills acquired Students learn the practical skills to choose foods with lower food miles at the supermarket by improving their skills in label reading (i.e. how to identify the countries of origin of packaged food products). Behaviour change Students are able to encourage their families to adopt food sustainability practices at Nutrition Promotion Unit July 2012 www.ecofriendlyfood.org.au

home by choosing foods with lower food miles and eating foods produced close to where they live. Introduction to the topic: The aim of this activity is to teach students where foods are produced, and consider the environmental issues associated with transporting foods over long distances. Students will learn about the concept of food miles the distance a food travels from where it is produced to where it reaches the consumer. Foods that travel a long distance and have many food miles consume a much larger amount of fuel, and thus release more carbon dioxide and greenhouse gases into the atmosphere. An increase in these gases contributes significantly to global warming and climate change the steady rise in the earth s temperature. Students are therefore encouraged to purchase items locally made within Australia (particularly from South East (SEQ)) to reduce their food miles and, as a result, their impact on the environment and global warming. List of Resources: White board 30 packaged, healthy food items labelled with Product of, Made in or Imported from (these items can be brought from home and could include foods such as canned tomatoes, corn or other canned vegetables, canned fruit, rice or other grains, or grain products, such as couscous, noodles or pasta) Laminated large world map available from Hema Maps for approx. $29.95AUD. http://www.hemamaps.com.au/ Laminated map of Australia or map of eastern side of Australia (template provided) Laminated colour paper cut-outs of fresh, packaged and tinned fruits and vegetables from Australia and around the world country of origin labelled (template provided) Laminated paper cut outs of planes, boats, trains and trucks (template provided) Pens, whiteboard markers, Blu-Tack and sticky tape Wool to mark approximate transport routes from other countries to Australia attached to map prior to start of activity. Refer to Table 1 to complete Cost of kit: approx. $35AUD (2010) Classroom Organisation: Students are seated at their desks, with individual students selected to come to the front of the class to participate in the activity as required. Activity Outline: Introduction Ask students: Where do we get our food from? Answers: Supermarkets, local shops, farmers markets, petrol stations, backyard. Ask students: Where did it come from before you bought it from the shop? Answers: It was grown or produced on farms or in factories in Australia and all around the world! Ask students: What do you consider when purchasing food? What affects your decision? Answers: Price, taste, packaging, quality, amount, etc. Explain: Foods with a lot of food miles are bad for the environment because this means they Nutrition Promotion Unit July 2012 www.ecofriendlyfood.org.au 2 2

have come from very far away, and the further a food has to travel to reach us, the more fuel it has to use. When we burn fuel, carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases are released into the atmosphere, which causes climate change and global warming the steady rise in the earth s temperature. Main Body 1. Each student receives a packaged food item and is asked to identify what country the food comes from by reading the label. Students should look for the words Product of, Made in and Imported from. 2. Generate class discussion about where their food comes from. Ask students to swap items with their neighbour once they have figured out where it comes from to practice reading different labels and find out other countries foods are imported from. 3. While the children are reading their labels, write the list of countries where the food items come from on the white board, leaving a space next to each country to record the food items. 4. Go through each country on the white board, asking which students have food items from this country (e.g. Who had items from Australia? ), writing down the food items that correspond to each country. 5. Explain to students that some items travel a short way, from within Australia, Taiwan or New Zealand, whereas others have travelled from very far away, from Europe or America. 6. Identify these places on the world map, so students visually understand the concept of food items travelling from close and far away. 7. Select individual students to give a picture of a fruit or vegetable to and ask them to classify these foods as being from either Australia or from another country (food origin is labelled on the back of the food item). Alternative method: after placing different coloured hula-hoops on the floor around the classroom to represent the different countries of origin, label selected individual students as the fruit or vegetable pictures they are holding. Ask students to place themselves in the hula-hoop that corresponds with their country of origin. 8. Students then take turns to stick their picture to the world map, correlating to where it was originally produced. The transport routes have already been marked in wool on the map (refer to Figure 1.) A summary table (Table 1) of the fruit and vegetables used in this activity and their food miles is included for your quick reference. 9. Explain that food miles are the distance between where the food was produced and where it is eaten. 10. Remind children that eating fruit and vegetables keeps us healthy, but choosing foods with fewer food miles are better for the environment this means buying foods that are made as close to home as possible, so from or Australia. 11. Ask students How would you get food from China to Australia? to generate class Nutrition Promotion Unit July 2012 www.ecofriendlyfood.org.au 3 3

discussion on the different transport methods we use. Answers include planes, ships, trucks and trains. Refer to Table 2 for additional information on emissions produced by mode of transport. 12. Pick a student from the class to stick the transport pictures onto the appropriate transport paths on the map (indicated by wool. See Figure 2 for how the completed activity should look). Some foods are likely to require more than one transport type. 13. Using the labelled food miles transport paths (indicated by wool on map), demonstrate and discuss the varieties of distances between where food was grown and where it is eaten (in our case SE Qld). Reiterate the concept of food miles by asking students questions about which foods they think would have the most food miles and which would have the least, and, therefore, out of those two items, which items would be best and which would be the worst for the environment. 14. Write these foods on the board in order from the most to the least food miles. Conclusion Ask students: How can we reduce our impact of food miles on the environment? Answers: Buy more food that is produced locally or closer to home, start a veggie patch at home, buy from local farmers markets, buy foods with minimal packaging and try asking local shop keepers where their foods come from if not from Australia, ask why? Discussion of any issues/questions Table 1: Food miles for selected fruits and vegetables in kit Food Location Location Distance Method of Transport Produced Consumed Travelled (km) Coconut Samoa South East 3,900 Ship, Truck Orange USA South East 11,500 Ship, Plane, Truck Grapefruit Israel South East 12,500 Plane, Truck Banana South East 100 Truck Kiwi Fruit France South East 16,500 Plane, Truck Carrot Victoria South East 1,300 Train, Truck Corn South East 50 Truck Frozen Beans Belgium South East 16,300 Plane, Truck Frozen Mixed China South East 8,300 Plane, Ship, Truck Vegetables Bok Choy New South Wales South East 700 Truck, Train Nutrition Promotion Unit July 2012 www.ecofriendlyfood.org.au 4 4

Additional information for discussion at point 11 during Activity A Table 2: Emissions by mode of transport grams of CO2 produced per kilometre travelled Transport method Description CO2 produced (g) Plane Long haul 570 1,500 Truck Large truck 60 100 Ship Cargo 10 40 Train By rail < 60 Figure 1 Activity A: World map close up Nutrition Promotion Unit July 2012 www.ecofriendlyfood.org.au5 5

Figure 2 Activity A: Completed Templates for Activity A: Food pictures, labels, maps and transport methods Print out foods and transport pictures in colour and cut out. Stick labels to back of food pictures. Laminate foods and transport pictures and cut out ready to use. Print and laminate Australia and maps Nutrition Promotion Unit July 2012 www.ecofriendlyfood.org.au 6 6

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Table 1: Lesson Plan A with the Australian Curriculum Australian Curriculum Science Mathematics English Map Activity The Map Activity introduces students to the concept of food miles and the implications of food choice on the environment For Year 2 For Year 3 Science as a Human Endeavour Science as a Human Endeavour Use and influence of science People use science in their daily lives, including when caring for their environment and living things (ACSHE035) Science Inquiry Skills Processing and analysing data and information Use a range of methods to sort information, including drawings and provided tables (ACSIS040) Communicating Represent and communicate observations and ideas in a variety of ways such as oral and written language, drawing and role play (ACSIS042) Use and influence of science Science knowledge helps people to understand the effect of their actions (ACSHE051) Science Inquiry Skills Processing and analysing data and information Use a range of methods including tables and simple column graphs to represent data and to identify patterns and trends(acsis057) Communicating Represent and communicate ideas and findings in a variety of ways such as diagrams, physical representations and simple reports (ACSIS060) Measurement and Geometry Justification The Map Activity allows students in years 2 and 3 to visually understand the concept of food miles and its implications on the environment. The activity also demonstrates that actions (purchasing food with high food miles) have effects (environmentally). Students are required to report their findings via class discussion. They are required to identify the relationship between where a food is produced and where it is consumed, and the implications of that relationship. Measurement and Geometry The Map Activity allows students in years 2 and 3 to identify Location and transformation Location and transformation countries on a world map and to Interpret simple maps of familiar locations Create and interpret simple grid maps to trace them back to Australia. This and identify the relative positions of key show position and pathways will allow the students to features (ACMMG044) (ACMMG065) conceptualise the numbers presented as the distance between the 2 points. Literacy Literacy The Map Activity encourages students to communicate their Nutrition Promotion Unit July 2012 www.ecofriendlyfood.org.au 14

Interacting with others Listen for specific purposes and information, including instructions, and extend students own and others' ideas in discussions (ACELY1666) Interacting with others Listen to and contribute to conversations and discussions to share information and ideas and negotiate in collaborative situations (ACELY1676) ideas and beliefs about the origins of food. It also calls upon students to communicate and articulate their thoughts and answers when prompted to. Nutrition Promotion Unit July 2012 www.ecofriendlyfood.org.au 15