What is my weight?
Final Imagine IT Report
Over the course of days, they weighed and measured themselves. They were comparing their results with each other’s as a way of competing with each other to see who was the tallest in the class. Once everyone got their own plan, they compared their results they had before to the total that they needed to consume based on their new plan. They again used their math skills, adding and subtracting to solve the problem. They were surprised to see that they were not getting the appropriate calories they needed to be active and alert at school! Most of them were under the recommended level, which explained their tired and lethargic attitude during class, and the lack of participation, especially during the morning instruction. These results brought discussions on the effects of lacking appropriate food. We had a session of discussion where I took their questions and did my best to answer to their satisfaction. This was simply a discussion where I was basically responding to their questions.
As my students became more engaged in the project,I included activities that combined nutrition and math skills. One of the activities focused onsnacks where the students had a table with different types of them. They had to use the calorie
chart to answer questions such as finding the total number of calories, finding the combined calories, how many calories are in a half bowl, how many calories are in two cups of yogurt, or 3 sticks of celery with peanut butter. To solve these questions, they used addition, subtraction and multiplication. In the end, they ordered the snacks with fewer calories over the ones with more
calories.
The more we progressed into the project, the more things popped up such as: the need for more information about vitamins, the role of the exercise type and frequency, how to prepare some healthy snacks, recipes for preparing healthy meals, and managing one’s weight, among others.There were a lot of things I wanted to do as this is a project that should start at an early age and continue throughout the school years. I didn’t cover everything and there are still a lot of questions that need answers. However, I created an honest concern in them about the consequences of unhealthy eating, and at the same time I helped them become more aware of their eating habits, which was the purpose of my project. As more days passed, my students were
more mindful of the foods they were eating and were asking “Ms. Healy it is okay if I eat pizzaonce per week?, can I have tortas with meat, is a can of fruits okay? Since they were trying to make better choices and figuring out healthier meals, we decided to create our own menu of healthy foods to eat at breakfast, lunch and dinner. Students chose their preference and created a
meal. They made a poster and presented it to their classmates. This gave me an idea on how to recognize their willingness to make an effort in changing their habits and their interest in doing something good for themselves, for their own health.
I recognized how hard they worked on the project and how much they have learned since westarted, and since they already understand how to make better choices , they will be receiving a certificate that recognizes them as NINJAS OF NUTRITION.
I do not consider ourselves done with this project; it is just the beginning point to continue working on improving my student’s habits. Since I have learned about my student’s eating habits and the kinds of foods they eat, I will be more watchful in reminding them to eat foods from the different food groups, and to make sure they get breakfast and lunch at school. Also, this project has revealed sad surprises to me such as how students don’t eat breakfast and even sometimes lunch. The only complete meal they receive is at dinner. Among the reasons offered were: the parents didn’t have time to make it, they don’t like the school’s breakfast, or they don’t feel like eating at that time. This concern is an eye opener for me, and creates a new dilemma: what to do?
Since testing is coming, I will send a letter to the parents detailing the importance of giving healthy meals to their kids, and how this is connected to their performance at school. Along with this explanation, I will write down a list of food choices appropriate for their kids, and let them know that these are the choices picked out by the students themselves. However, I will be constantly thinking of new ways to help my students and try to provide them with some food alternatives when they are at school.