Food Choices Throughout Your Day

Introduction

Q: Do you eat broccoli?
A: I hope you do! Broccoli has twice as much vitamin C as oranges and just as much calcium as whole milk. What is your favorite way to eat broccoli? 

You make food choices throughout your day. Before you choose, ask yourself, “Is this a fit choice?”

• Avoid eating high-sugar snacks like candy. Eat fruits instead.
• Avoid drinking beverages like soda or fruit drinks that are high in sugar. Drink water or milk instead.
• Think your food! Plan and make nutritious food choices for all your meals and snacks.

This activity will help you learn about planning what you will eat and drink throughout the day.

Activity Instructions

1. Place 1 of each meal time (breakfast, lunch, snack, and dinner) papers in the center of the activity space and 1 paper in each corner.
2. All kids start in the center of the activity space and draw a Food Activity Card.
3. Point out that each corner represents a meal time. Ask kids to think about what meal time that they would choose to eat the food item they have drawn.
4. Shout, "GO!" All kids run to the corner with their chosen meal time. Encourage multiple kids at each time of day—every corner should have 3-4 kids. If there are more than 3-4 kids at a corner, suggest that they choose another meal time
5. After all kids have selected a meal/snack time to stand by, each group looks at the color of the word on the food card. The color of the word indicates whether the food is a green-light, yellow-light, or red-light food.
6. Tell kids the actions that go with the color of the word on each card:
   • Red-light food choices sit.
   • Yellow-light food choices walk in place as you count to five.
   • Green-light food choices run in place as you count to five.
7. Each group stands up and picks their favorite green or yellow-light food they would eat at the specific time of day and chooses one kid to go to the center of the activity area and stands next to their time of day.
8. The remaining kids in the group continue to walk in place (or leader-selected movement).
9. Lead the kids in shouting out the fit food plan for the day.
   • “At breakfast time I will eat __________.” (Call out the names of the green-light foods.)
   • “At lunch time I will eat ____________.” (Call out the names of the green-light foods.)
   • “At snack time I will eat ____________.” (Call out the names of the green-light foods.)
   • “At dinner time I will eat ____________.” (Call out the names of the green-light foods.)
10. Lead the kids to call out, “We have a fit food plan for our day!”
11. Gather all kids and hand out My fit Food Planner and pencils or markers.
    • Have kids fill out the planner with their own personal food choices before you begin the next activity.

Reflections

Q: What 5 foods come to mind when you think of a healthy meal? Use your air pen (pretend to write in the air with a pen) to make a grocery shopping list!
A: Any green-light food.

Plan your nutritious food choices for the day! 

Challenge

Be the healthy choice advocate in your house. What green-light foods and beverages do you eat as part of your meals? For an extra challenge, learn to make a veggie side dish.