How to Gamify Healthy Food Choices

Talk with students about the idea that food is fuel for their bodies. “Food” refers to what you eat and what you drink. The lessons in this unit use a stoplight as a tool to help students think about their food choices:

• Eat More: Green-light foods have the most nutrition for energy and growth, so eat them often! Examples: fruits, vegetables, whole grains, lean meat, milk, and water.
• Eat Some: Yellow-light foods do not keep you fueled up the way green-light foods do, so eat them sometimes. Examples: canned or dried fruit, veggies with sauces, white bread or pasta, peanut butter, and juice.
• Eat Less: Red-light foods are the least nutritious. It's okay to have a red-light food once in a while. Stop and think about your choice and eat the red-light foods least often. Examples: chips, candy, fried foods, cakes, donuts, and soda. 

It's important that kids understand that some foods provide you with more nutrition than others. Check out the Eat More Eat Some Eat Less Food Chart for examples. For more information about the nutritional benefits of foods and different food groups, read Food is Fuel. 

Play a quick game of Red Light, Green Light or have kids explain how the game works.

To use this with your students click here.

Use Games to Teach Healthy Food Choices

Play a new version of Red Light, Green Light. Choose a game leader to toggle slides back and forth.

1. When leader selects “green light” students march in place or wave their arms high in the air.
2. “Yellow light” means march or move your arms in slow motion.
3. “Red light” means sit very still.

Think About Healthy Food Choices

Stoplights make a fun move game! They can also be used to help you think your food: 

• Eat more green-light foods.
• Eat some yellow-light foods. 
• Eat less red-light foods.

Check for understanding: How will you use a stoplight's colors to choose your food?

Home-to-School Connection for Healthy Food Choices

Print copies of the Eat More, Eat Some, Eat Less food chart for students to take home and post on their refrigerators. Encourage them to talk with their family members about healthy eating choices.

Option: Print the fit Food Word Search for kids to find healthy foods hidden in the puzzle. Encourage kids to create their own healthy food word search!

Today we played a game that helped us think about nutritious food choices. Next we will learn about nutritious snacks.