Nutrition and Wellness Unit and Lesson Plan

Unit Title:  Nutrition and Wellness Across the Lifespan

Subject/Topic Areas:  Food Science and Human Nutrition

Key Words:  Nutrition, Wellness, Needs, Family, Individual, Food Safety

Time Frame:  Nine Weeks

National Standards of Family and Consumer Sciences:

Demonstrate nutrition and wellness practices that enhance individual and family well-being.

Analyze factors that influence nutrition and wellness practices across the lifespan.

Evaluate the nutritional needs of individuals and families in relation to health and wellness across the lifespan.

Demonstrate ability to acquire, handle, and use foods to meet nutrition and wellness needs of individuals and families across the lifespan.

Evaluate factors that affect food safety, from production through consumption.

Evaluate the impact of science and technology on food composition, safety, and other issues.

Brief Summary of Unit:  (including curriculum and unit goals)

Students will conduct an in-depth study of health practices and status of the nutrition and wellness of themselves and the community.  This unit will include observation of community services that provide nutrition to persons (i.e. retirement home, daycares, etc.), and they will have the opportunity to listen to various speakers that are involved in careers that relate to health, nutrition, wellness, and the community and the individual.  They will complete this unit with a portfolio that provides examples of how their health, those within the community's health can be improved and enhanced.  They will also understand how to make decisions in relation to health and nutrition and wellness. 

Unit Goals:

Students will be able to:

• Analyze factors that influence nutrition and wellness practices across the lifespan.
• Evaluate nutritional needs of individuals and families in relation to health and wellness across the lifespan.
• Demonstrate ability to acquire, handle, and use foods to meet nutrition/wellness needs of individuals and families across the lifespan.
• Evaluate factors that affect food safety, from production to consumption.
• Evaluate the impact of science and technology on food consumption, safety, and other issues.
• Make informed decisions that enhance individual, family and community health.
• Promote healthful nutrition, dietary practices and physical fitness...

Students will understand:

• Factors that influence nutrition and wellness practices across life
• Decision making process in relation to nutrition and wellness
• Nutritional needs of individuals and families in relation to health and wellness across the lifespan.
• How to acquire, handle, and use foods to meet nutrition/wellness needs for family and individual.
• Impact of science and technology on food consumption, safety, etc.
• Career choices in food science and human nutrition through informed decision making.
• Opportunities available for further education in food science and human nutrition and related areas.

Essential Questions:

• What are the factors that influence nutrition and wellness practices across the lifespan, and in your life?
• What decisions need to be made and how would you make them in relation to nutrition and wellness?
• What are the nutritional needs of individuals and families, community and you?
• How do you acquire, handle, and use foods to meet nutritional/wellness needs for family and individual and community?
• What are the factors that affect food safety, from production to consumption?
• What impact does science and technology have on food consumption, safety, etc.
• What are the career opportunities in food science and human nutrition?
• What are the continuing education opportunities in food science and human nutrition?

What key knowledge and skills will students acquire as a result of this unit?

• How to enhance individual, family and community health
• Factors that influence nutrition/wellness
• Nutritional needs of individuals and families and community
• How to acquire, handle, and use foods to meet nutrition/wellness needs
• Factors that affect food safety, from production to consumption
• Impact of science and technology on food consumption, safety, etc.
• Career opportunities in food science and human nutrition
• Continuing education opportunities in food science and human nutrition and other related fields

• Make informed decisions to enhance individual, family and community health
• Analyze factors that influence nutrition/wellness
• Evaluate nutritional needs of individual and family and community
• Demonstrate ability to acquire, handle, and use foods to meet nutrition/wellness needs of individual and families and community
• Evaluate factors that affect food safety, from production to consumption
• Evaluate impact of science and technology on food consumption, safety, and other issues
• Identify careers in food science and human nutrition
• Make informed decisions about if student wants to attend a continuing education program that relates to food science and human nutrition

Performance Tasks (summarized)

• Personal Diet Assessment:  Students will record their food intake and exercise for a week then they will enter information into software and make recommendations according to their goals, needs, et.  This assessment will be concluded with a brief paper summarizing what they have learned about themselves from diet analysis, with a section analyzing what was found from using the software.  They will also make a wellness plan that they can use to obtain the level of health that was stated in their goals.
• Portfolio:  Students will create a portfolio throughout the nine weeks that contains information that they have been learning throughout the course.  This portfolio will be one task that is used to meet standards including information to cover what is needed to complete  the standard.  The portfolio will require students to make informed decisions about their health practice and how they will achieve their wellness goals.  They will research a community health practice and