LEARN NC

6.3 Food and culture

Provided by Nutrition Services Branch of the North Carolina Division of Public Health.

We associate different kinds of cuisine with specific places in the world, but why do people eat what they eat? This lesson plan for the fifth-grade, from the Food for Thought nutrition curriculum, explores world cultures and ethnic groups and the foods in their diets.

Learning outcomes

Students will:

  • learn about the importance of food in other cultures.
  • learn the history of food and why we eat what we eat.
  • learn the etymology of the names of foods from other countries

Teacher planning

Materials/resources

Teacher background information

Why we eat what we eat
Provided by David Heber, MD,PhD, Professor of Medicine and the Director of the UCLA Center for Human Nutrition at the David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA
Open as PDF (22 KB, 2 pages)
An international menu
Document courtesy of Oklahoma Cooperative Extension Service, Oklahoma State University
Open as PDF (34 KB, 3 pages)
Tortilla in a bag
Document courtesy of Oklahoma Cooperative Extension Service, Oklahoma State University
Open as PDF (39 KB, 3 pages)

Websites

“The Meaning of Food” from PBS.
“Gonna Eat That?” from PBS.

Handouts

“The Meaning of Food” worksheet from PBS. Print this page and make copies to handout for students to complete.

An international menu worksheet
Document courtesy of Oklahoma Cooperative Extension Service, Oklahoma State University
Open as PDF (42 KB, 2 pages)
Breads around the world
Document courtesy of Oklahoma Cooperative Extension Service, Oklahoma State University
Open as PDF (40 KB, 1 page)
Tortilla in a bag recipe
Document courtesy of Oklahoma Cooperative Extension Service, Oklahoma State University
Open as PDF (40 KB, 1 page)

Activities

  1. Show students students the PBS webpage, “Gonna Eat That?” and use the following questions for discussion:
    1. What role does food play in people’s lives?
    2. How are the foods in the article different from the foods you eat?
    3. How important is food in our daily lives?
    4. Why do we eat the foods we eat?
    5. How does our culture or ethnic background affect the way we eat?
  2. Using the “Why We Eat What We Eat” article, “An International Menu” teacher resource, and the website “The Meaning of Food,” discuss that there are many types of foods associated with different cultural and ethnic groups, traditions, and celebrations that feature foods and different rules about how and when people eat. Foods and food rituals help us learn about cultures and groups.
  3. In small groups or pairs, ask students to describe their family celebrations and daily meals, foods served, how foods are eaten and with whom, how similar and different this is from what they perceive as “mainstream America,” and how this reflects the specific identity of their family and/or culture.
  4. Using the “An International Menu” teacher resource, discuss the word “etymology” and instruct students to complete activities one through four outlined in the resource.
  5. Distribute “The Meaning of Food” handout. Instruct students to choose something to research that was discussed in class. This assignment can be done individually, in pairs, or small groups. Instruct students to present their research findings to the class as a poem, picture/drawing with associated story, food tasting, one-act play, or multimedia presentation.
  6. Distribute and direct students to complete the “An International Menu” handout. Students will use a dictionary to determine the etymology of the words given on the worksheet.

Additional Activities

  1. In pairs or individually, instruct students to research a country and write about the culture and the foods of the people. Suggestions for questions to include in the report:
    1. Where does the food they eat come from?
    2. Who cooks the food?
    3. How do they eat it and who do they eat with?
    4. Are there foods that they eat every day?
    5. Are there any foods that are forbidden?
    6. Are there special foods for celebrations?
  2. Follow the lesson plan provided in the “Tortilla in a Bag” teacher resource.
  3. Distribute and direct students to complete the “Breads around the World” and “Tortillas in a Bag” handouts. Note: if the “Tortillas in a Bag” activity is done in class, additional materials are needed.

Assessment

Students are assessed on the completion of the handouts, their presentation to the class on what they learned about foods and cultures, and if given the additional assignment, their report on the country they researched and foods of the people.

North Carolina curriculum alignment

English Language Arts (2004)

Grade 5

  • Goal 1: The learner will apply enabling strategies and skills to read and write.
    • Objective 1.01: Expand and refine vocabulary through knowledge of prefixes, suffixes, roots, derivatives, and etymologies (word origins) to assist comprehension.
    • Objective 1.04: Use word reference materials (e.g., glossary, dictionary, thesaurus, on-line reference tools) to identify and comprehend unknown words.

Healthful Living Education (2006)

Grade 5

  • Goal 4: The learner will apply knowledge and behavior self management skills to areas of nutrition and physical activity for healthy growth, development, and maintenance.
    • Objective 4.03: Recognize the social significance of food in families and cultures.