Field trips to the grocery store can teach students about nutrition.
Field trips provide students with an opportunity to experience hands-on various locations in their community. The supermarket is an excellent choice for a field trip, especially for younger children. Not only does such a field trip connect students to their community, it also connects them to the foods they eat. Visiting the supermarket also provides an opportunity to teach them about nutrition, math, measurements and occupations.
Nutrition
Field trips to the supermarket offer an excellent opportunity for children to learn about nutrition. As you explore the aisles, talk to your students about the different food groups and how the different foods you encounter fit into the food pyramid. Show students read and understand nutrition labels. Divide older students into groups and ask them to choose foods from each of the food groups as determined by the United States Department of Agriculture, My Pyramid: grains, vegetables, fruits, oils and fats, dairy and meat and beans. Talk about which foods should be eaten often, and which should be eaten sparingly. Encourage younger children to fill a basket with produce of every color.
Weights and Measurements
A field trip to the grocery store provides an opportunities for students to learn about weights and measurements. In the produce section, demonstrate choose and weigh fruits and vegetables. In the canned foods section, ask students to find out how many ounces a particular item contains. Look at beverages for pints and liters.
Occupations
A field trip to the supermarket teaches students about occupations. Talk to students about the different jobs people perform to keep the supermarket running smoothly, and the different departments they work in. Discuss the roles performed by workers in the bakery, produce and dairy sections of the store. Meet cashiers, customer service, management and janitorial staff. Explain how students can pursue a career in a supermarket, and the skills and education needed to perform various tasks.
Money and Budget
Before leaving for the supermarket, demonstrate use a budget to buy groceries by making a class grocery list. Determine an amount of money to be spent and items needed. In the supermarket, demonstrate choose items to stay on budget. Let students mark off items on the list as they are placed in the cart. When students have chosen their items, ask cashier to demonstrate how she rings up items, takes money and gives change at the cash register. Talk about how the cashier uses addition and subtraction to calculate totals. Back in the classroom, give students an opportunity to be the customer and the cashier, making their purchases and returning change using fake money.
Food Production
Visiting the supermarket provides an opportunity to talk to students about where the food they eat comes from. With your class, observe how different foods arrive at the supermarket; some in cans, others in boxes or frozen. Visit the bakery department to watch foods being prepared. Discuss how food is canned or prepared before it is sold. Talk about the ways in which food is transported from place to place, in trucks, trains or from local farmers. Houghton Mifflin suggests visiting the receiving department to see how food is unloaded and then stocked in the store. Talk about the importance of limiting their consumption of processed foods.
Tags: students about, Talk about, about nutrition, field trip, Field trips, about different, demonstrate choose