LEARN NC

4.5 Portions and servings

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

Sometimes the difference between a portion and a serving size can be confusing. This third-grade lesson plan, from the Food for Thought nutrition curriculum, helps students understand the difference and gives them healthful ideas for snacks.

Learning outcomes

Students will:

  • learn the difference between a portion and a serving.
  • learn which snacks are healthy choices.

Teacher planning

Materials/resources

Teacher background information

Is it a portion or a serving?
Document courtesy of Eat Smart, Move More North Carolina
Open as PDF (12 KB, 1 page)
Trends in portion sizes
Provided by Nutrition Services Branch of the North Carolina Division of Public Health and published in the Food for Thought curriculum.
Open as PDF (14 KB, 1 page)
Serving sizes are in your hand
Provided by Nutrition Services Branch of the North Carolina Division of Public Health and published in the Food for Thought curriculum.
Open as PDF (50 KB, 1 page)
What’s in a serving size?
Provided by Nutrition Services Branch of the North Carolina Division of Public Health and published in the Food for Thought curriculum.
Open as PDF (23 KB, 1 page)

Materials

  • Twenty-ounce soda bottle with nutrition facts label
  • Deck of cards
  • Four dice
  • Tennis ball
  • Computer mouse
  • Paper plates, bowls, and cups
  • Box of cereal
  • Pretzels
  • Can of green beans or other vegetable
  • Peanut butter
  • Measuring cups (liquid and dry measures)
  • Measuring spoons

Handouts

Five-star snacks and five-star snack ideas
Provided by Nutrition Services Branch of the North Carolina Division of Public Health and published in the Food for Thought curriculum.
Open as PDF (31 KB, 5 pages)
MyPyramid for kids poster
Document courtesy of U.S. Department of Agriculture
Open as PDF (2 MB, 1 page)

Pre-activities

Students should be familiar with the mathematical concepts of measurement and estimation.

Activities

  1. Ask for a volunteer who drinks soda. Ask if he/she regularly drinks a twenty-ounce size soda as part of a snack or meal. Have another student look at the nutrition facts label from a twenty-ounce bottle of soda and report how many servings are in the bottle. One bottle actually contains two and a half servings; one serving is equal to eight ounces. So, if you drink the whole twenty ounces, you are drinking two and a half servings, or enough soda for you, a friend, and then there’s still some left over.
  2. Using the “Is it a Portion or a Serving?,” “Trends in Portion Sizes,” “Serving Sizes are in Your Hand,” and “What’s in a Serving Size?” teacher resources, discuss the difference between portions and servings. Discuss portions with students using the reflective questions below.
    1. How do you decide how much of a food or drink you are going to eat for a meal or snack?
    2. Do you use a scoop or measuring cup?
    3. Does your plate or bowl serve as your guide for how much you will eat?
    4. What about when you eat out? Do you eat whatever amount the restaurant gives you?
    5. Just how much food does one person need in a day? And what does it look like in terms of portion sizes?
  3. Demonstrate various serving sizes using the “What’s in a Serving Size?” teacher resource and the deck of cards, dice, tennis ball, and computer mouse.
  4. Ask students how they can tell if they are eating a healthy meal or snack. One way to tell if you are eating a healthy snack is to use the “five-star snack” rating system. Distribute the “Five-Star Snacks” and “MyPyramid for Kids” handouts. Review the rating system and examples outlined on the handout with students and develop an additional example as a class. Note: refer to MyPyramid for kids to determine from which food group/s the foods are from.
  5. Use the paper plates, bowls and cups, and the cereal, pretzels, canned vegetables, and peanut butter. Place the items at the front of the classroom. Ask two students to come up and pour out the amount of cereal that he or she would eat for breakfast. Give them a measuring cup and help them measure the amount of cereal in the bowl. Read the nutrition facts label to determine what the serving size is. Direct students to calculate how many servings are in the portions that were measured. Repeat this activity for the other foods. Point out that it is okay to eat more than one serving at a time but they need to balance out the total number of servings they eat throughout the day. Note: the foods listed for this activity are examples. Alternative foods may be used.
  6. Distribute the “Five-Star Snacks” handout and direct students to write down a snack they ate the day before or a favorite snack and complete the remainder of the handout. Direct them to use the “Five-Star Snack Ideas” and “MyPyramid for Kids” handouts to guide their answers.

Assessment

Assessment can be made from the students’ completed handouts and participation in the classroom activities.

North Carolina curriculum alignment

Healthful Living Education (2006)

Grade 3

  • 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 4.05: Differentiate between a portion and a serving and explain how to plan meals and snacks using appropriate portion sizes.