Lesson 1 Interpreting and Designing Food Labels

Lesson Plans & Curriculum
High School
90 minutes or more

This National FFA lesson plan (Unit 6, Lesson 1 of 3) teaches students to interpret and design nutritional food labels. Through a bell ringer, PowerPoints, and three hands-on activities (a “Go Get It” card hunt, a label interpretation challenge, and a product development/label design challenge), students learn the parts of a nutrition label, their importance, and how to calculate label values. The lesson helps prepare students for the “Team Product Development” section of the Food Science CDE and includes student worksheets, handouts, exit tickets, and answer keys.

At a glance

Learning objectives: Identify the parts of a nutrition label.

Describe the importance of a nutrition label.

Calculate parts of a nutrition label.

Design a nutrition facts label.
Time required: 120 minutes (*Time requirements may vary based upon student understanding and class schedule.)
Grade level: Grades 9 and 10
Materials: Activity 1: "Go Get It: Nutrition Facts" cards (copied, cut out, and placed around the room)

Activity 1: "Go Get It — Nutrition Facts" student worksheet

Student worksheet "Activity 2: Nutritional Label Interpretation Challenge"

Student handout "Food and Drug Administration's Specifications for Health Claims and Descriptive Terms"

Activity 3: PowerPoint "Food Science: Product Development"

Activity 3: "Product Development" student worksheet

Bread Kit scenario (one copy per student)

FFA Costs and Nutritional chart (one copy per student)

Product development chart (one copy per student)

"Label Design Challenge" worksheet (one copy per student)

Student "Exit Tickets"

Optional Activity: a variety of prepackaged food items containing nutritional labels

PowerPoint titled "It's All in a Label"
Vocabulary: Serving size; Calories; Total fat; Cholesterol; Sodium; Total carbohydrates; Protein; Nutritional label; Optional Vocabulary: Use all vocabulary listed on the "Food and Drug Administration's Specifications for Health Claims and Descriptive Terms" handout.
Resources/References: 1. Textbook: Principles of Food Science, 4th Edition, Janet D. Ward. 2. Website: The Food and Drug Administration, https://www.fda.gov/food/new-nutrition-facts-label/how-understand-and-use-nutrition-facts-label (used in the Follow-up in the lesson)
Related Resources: The Food and Drug Administration, https://www.fda.gov/files/food/published/Food-Labeling-Guide-%28PDF%29.pdf (PDF also included in this lesson) — Highly recommended that students read this document if they are planning to compete in the food science CDE
Cross-Curricular Connections: English/Language Arts (Bell ringer, Activity 1, Activity 2: read, interpret, analyze and record information); Mathematics (Nutritional Label Interpretation, Exit Ticket and Optional Activity: interpret, calculate, and create nutritional label numbers)
Virtual Instruction Ideas: This lesson can be converted to a virtual and/or online lesson. Students would need shared copies of all the handouts/activities and the PowerPoint. This lesson would work best virtually because the teacher could guide students through the activities as it would be done in the classroom.
Unit: Unit 6: Lesson 1 of 3 — Interpreting and Designing Nutritional Food Labels

Downloads & Links

Aligned Standards

AFNR Career Ready Practices

CRP.02Apply appropriate academic and technical skills. Career-ready individuals readily access and use the knowledge and skills acquired through experience and education to be more productive.
CRP.04Communicate clearly, effectively, and with reason. Career-ready individuals communicate thoughts, ideas and action plans with clarity, whether using written, verbal and/or visual methods.
CRP.05Consider the environmental, social and economic impact of decisions.
CRP.06Demonstrate creativity and innovation.
CRP.07Employ valid and reliable research strategies. Career-ready individuals are discerning in accepting and using new information to make decisions, change practices or inform strategies.
CRP.08Utilize critical thinking to make sense of problems and persevere in solving them. Career-ready individuals readily recognize problems in the workplace, understand the nature of the problem, and devise effective plans to solve the problem.
CRP.09Model integrity, ethical leadership and effective management.
CRP.11Use technology to enhance productivity. Career-ready individuals find and maximize the productive value of existing and new technology to accomplish workplace tasks and solve workplace problems.

Common Core – Literacy in Science & Technical Subjects: Writing

CCSS.ELA-Literacy.WHST.9-10.7Conduct short as well as more sustained research projects to answer a question (including a self-generated question) or solve a problem; narrow or broaden the inquiry when appropriate; synthesize multiple sources on the subject, demonstrating understanding of the subject under investigation.
CCSS.ELA-Literacy.WHST.9.10.4Produce clear and coherent writing in which the development, organization, and style are appropriate to task, purpose, and audience.

Common Core – Math Practices

CCSS.Math.Practice.MP1Make sense of problems and persevere in solving them.
CCSS.MATH.PRACTICE.MP3Construct viable arguments and critique the reasoning of others.
CCSS.MATH.PRACTICE.MP6Attend to precision.

Common Core – Reading: Informational Text

CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RI.9-10.1Cite strong and thorough textual evidence to support analysis of what the text says explicitly as well as inferences drawn from the text.
CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RI.9-10.2Determine a central idea of a text and analyze its development over the course of the text, including how it emerges and is shaped and refined by specific details; provide an objective summary of the text.

Common Core – Science & Technical Subjects

CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RST.9-10.1Cite specific textual evidence to support analysis of science and technical texts, attending to the precise details of explanations or descriptions.
CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RST.9-10.3Follow precisely a complex multistep procedure when carrying out experiments, taking measurements, or performing technical tasks, attending to special cases or exceptions defined in the text.

Common Core – Speaking and Listening

CCSS.ELA-Literacy.SL.9-10.1.CPropel conversations by posing and responding to questions that relate the current discussion to broader themes or larger ideas; actively incorporate others into the discussion; and clarify, verify, or challenge ideas and conclusions.
CCSS.ELA-Literacy.SL.9-10.4Present information, findings, and supporting evidence clearly, concisely, and logically such that listeners can follow the line of reasoning and the organization, development, substance, and style are appropriate to purpose, audience, and task.

Common Core – Writing

CCSS.ELA-Literacy.W.9-10.2Write informative/explanatory texts to examine and convey complex ideas, concepts, and information clearly and accurately through the effective selection, organization, and analysis of content.

FFA Precept

FFA-CS-M.CommunicationEffectively interact with others in personal and professional settings.
FFA.PG-J.Mental GrowthEmbrace cognitive and intellectual development relative to reasoning, thinking and coping.
FFA.PL-A.ActionAssume responsibility and take the necessary steps to achieve the desired results, no matter what the goal or task at hand.

National Standards for Financial Literacy

Buying Goods and Services, Benchmarks: Grade 12, Statement 1Consumer decisions are influenced by the price of a good or service, the price of alternatives, and the consumer's income as well as his or her preferences.
Buying Goods and Services, Benchmarks: Grade 12, Statement 2When people consume goods and services, their consumption can have positive and negative effects on others.
Buying Goods and Services, Benchmarks: Grade 12, Statement 7Governments establish laws and institutions to provide consumers with information about goods or services being purchased and to protect consumers from fraud.