Lessons

Lesson 1

Age group: 2-4

Topic: Diversity in food

Learning Standards: 

2.63- Children are provided varied learning opportunities that foster positive identity and an emerging sense of self and others.

2.75- Children are provided varied opportunities and materials to build their understanding of diversity in culture, family structure, ability, language, age, and gender in non-stereotypical ways.

Materials: 

Book- Babies Around The World: Eating, by Puck

Fruits From Different Countries- 

China-Kiwi

Canada/US-Blueberries

France-Pear

India-Mango

Mexico-Avocado

Turkmenistan-Watermelon

Spain-Grapes

CAR-Banana

Greece-Olive

Malaysia-Papaya

Plastic versions of these foods and other cultural foods for dramatic play after the activity

Pictures of all fruits going to be tasted and the places they are from

A map showing where the fruits are from

Song- Fruit Juice Dance- https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gN3pn_alymA

Song- Happy Fruits Learning Song- https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5tB9ZZBUcv4

Opening: Ask the children what their favorite fruits are and then get them moving and dancing with the fruit juice dance song. Ask them “Was your favorite fruit in that song?”  And then let them know we will be traveling around the world to discover all kinds of fruits and we may be finding their favorite fruits as well. Then to introduce them to the different countries and different foods, we will read the book Babies Around The World: Eating. 

Instruction: Tell the children that many of our favorite fruits come from different countries and that there are many more fruits than the ones we usually eat at home. 

Guided practice: Place the fruits (cut or chopped to be eaten safely) on a table or area where they can walk around to travel to the different countries where those fruits are from (national fruits). There will be pictures placed showing how that country looks in each area. The children will try different fruits that they may never have tasted before so maybe be ready with a trashcan nearby. As we eat the different foods we will describe what they taste like. Then we will place the pictures of the fruits on the map so they can see where people eat those fruits. 

Extension Activity: We can continue to learn about different cultures and food by setting out cultural attire for the children to wear, focus on a specific place/culture to try foods from and learn about in a day, have a mock festival of a specific country (Diwali, Oktoberfest, etc.).

Learning Strategies: Auditory learner: Happy fruits learning song - has most of the fruits we will be trying put into a song. Kinesthetic learner: The children are able to feel and eat fruit to help them learn about them. Visual learner: The visuals of the fruits, places, and the maps will help the visual learners see the items. 

Assessment: Ask them to recall the new fruits and old fruits they have tried. Play a matching game or activity to see which children remember where fruits came from. 

If a child needs help: Create more visuals that can be kept out throughout the room. Also create a matching game for them to do but only have a few options so they can focus on a few fruits at a time.

If a child is excelling: Introduce a fruit passport where they can continue to explore the materials around the room and the countries they are from. When they introduce new material about the country to you and show an extra understanding they can get a sticker or stamp in their passport for that country/fruit.

ANOTHER VIDEO!!!!: Learn Fruit for Kids | What is it? Game for Kids | Maple Leaf Learning