Sustainability Students are introduced to the Food System and the terms

consumer, producer and processor. They learn the difference between local producers and those far away,

raising animals for meat versus growing crops, that world hunger is a matter of distribution and that farmers are our

allies - we appreciate and advocate for farmers’ markets.

Nourishment Students discuss the concept of food miles, make the

connection that as gardeners we are producers, too, and highlight eating whole grains, fruits and vegetables.

Garden Lesson G7-5

The Food System

Communication Students learn about the food system by reading out loud

and playing the game The Wind Blows.

Academics This lesson fulfills Common Core State Standards for

following a multistep procedure; translating quantitative or technical information; collaborative discussion; speaking

and listening; language; and acquiring words and phrases.

Life Skills Students focus on listening and following directions,

participate in class routines and realize they have many opportunities to “vote with their dollar”.

Garden Lesson #5 Grade 7 Spring Rotation

G7-5

The Food System Abstract Summary In this 7th grade science lesson, students are introduced to the food system and play an interactive game called The Wind Blows. Objectives After this lesson, students will be able to:

• Understand the steps involved in the production of food • Realize that they are active members of the food system

Assessments During this lesson, students will:

• Provide examples of producers, processors and retailers • Connect their own actions with the food system while playing a game called The Wind Blows

Communication is strengthened by reading out loud and playing the game The Wind Blows. Sustainability is highlighted by learning about the food system and the terms consumer, producer and processor. Students learn the difference between local producers and those far away, raising animals for meat versus growing crops, that world hunger is a matter of distribution, and that farmers are our allies - we appreciate and advocate for farmers’ markets. Nourishment is strengthened by discussing the concept of food miles, making the connection that as gardeners we are producers, too, and highlighting whole grains, fruits and vegetables. Life Skills are sharpened as students focus on listening and following directions, participate in class routines and realize they have many opportunities to “vote with their dollar”. Academics fulfill Common Core State Standards for following a multistep procedure; translating quantitative or technical information; collaborative discussion; speaking and listening; language; and acquiring words and phrases. See Connections to Academic Standards below for details.

Edible Schoolyard curriculumemphasizes developing community and personal stewardship, along with skills that will help students navigate different situations throughout their lives; and making connections between the diets of historic cultures and foods we eat today. This lesson follows the BEETLES Project’s Learning Cycle (Invitation-> Exploration -> Concept Invention -> Application -> Reflection) and uses their Discussion Routines (Think-Pair-Share, Whip-Around). All are highlighted in Green* with an asterisk for easy identification. See the documents BEETLES_Discussion_Routines.pdf and BEETLES_Learning_Cycle.pdf included in Resources below for more information. Games and activities from other sources are also identified in Green, without an asterisk. Common Core State Standards, English Language Arts and Literacy, Grade 7

• RST.7.3 Follow precisely a multistep procedure when carrying out experiments, taking measurements, or performing technical tasks.

• RST.7.7 Translate quantitative or technical information expressed in words in a text into visual form (e.g., a table or chart) and translate information expressed visually or mathematically (e.g., in an equation) into words.

• SL.7.1 Engage effectively in a range of collaborative discussions (one-on-one, in groups, and teacher-led) with diverse partners on grade 7 topics, texts, and issues, building on others’ ideas and expressing their own clearly.

• SL.7.1.b Follow rules for collegial discussions, track progress toward specific goals and deadlines, and define individual roles as needed.

• SL7.1.c Pose questions that elicit elaboration and respond to others’ questions and comments with relevant observations and ideas that bring the discussion back on topic as needed.

• SL.7.1.d Acknowledge new information expressed by others and, when warranted, modify their own views. • SL7.2 Analyze the main ideas and supporting details presented in diverse media and formats (e.g., visually, quantitatively,

orally) and explain how the ideas clarify a topic, text, or issue under study. • SL.7.4 Present claims and findings, emphasizing salient points in a focused, coherent manner with pertinent descriptions,

facts, details, and examples; use appropriate eye contact, adequate volume, and clear pronunciation. • SL.7.6 Adapt speech to a variety of contexts and tasks, demonstrating command of formal English when indicated or

appropriate. (See grade 7 Language standards 1 and 3 on page 53 for specific expectations.) • L7.1 Demonstrate command of the conventions of standard English grammar and usage when writing or speaking.

• L.7.1.a Explain the function of phrases and clauses in general and their function in specific sentences. • L.7.1.b Choose among simple, compound, complex, and compound-complex sentences to signal differing

relationships among ideas.

• L.7.1.c Place phrases and clauses within a sentence, recognizing and correcting misplaced and dangling modifiers.* • L.7.3 Use knowledge of language and its conventions when writing, speaking, reading, or listening.

• L.7.3.a Choose language that expresses ideas precisely and concisely, recognizing and eliminating wordiness and redundancy.

• L.7.6 Acquire and use accurately grade-appropriate general academic and domain-specific words and phrases; gather vocabulary knowledge when considering a word or phrase important to comprehension or expression.

Connections to Edible Schoolyard Standards Edible Schoolyard 3.0 In the Edible Schoolyard Program

• 1.0 Students work with each other and teachers to develop community and personal stewardship, along with skills that will help them navigate different situations throughout their lives.

• 1.1.1 – 1.3.12 This lesson fulfills all Edible Schoolyard Program standards, numbers 1.1.1 through 1.3.12. See The Edible Schoolyard Berkeley Standards for details.

With focus on: • Concepts 1.3.11 Understand seasonality by recognizing and enjoying foods at their peak of flavor and ripeness. Students

know that locally sourced foods are good choices because they provide optimum freshness, support the local economy, and help offset global warming.

Garden Lesson #5 Grade 7, Spring Rotation

G7-5 The Food System Lesson

Materials

• G7-5_Visual aid • Cards for The Wind Blows game

Before you begin

• Create the Visual Aid • Create the cards for The Wind Blows game

Timeline Overview Total Duration: 90 minutes

1. Invitation* (5 minutes) 2. Concept Invention* (10 minutes) 3. Application* (60 minutes) 4. Reflection* (15 minutes)

Procedures At the Opening Circle

1. Invitation*: (5 minutes) a. Welcome students and introduce our food system.

2. Concept Invention*: (10 minutes)

Students learn about the food system. a. Ask students what comes to mind when they hear that term. b. Explain to students that the food system includes all the steps involved in getting food to our bellies. c. Focus attention to the Visual Aid and ask students to read, one by one, the different steps involved in the food

system. i. Invite students to share what they already know about the food system.

ii. Have student volunteers read the Visual Aid out loud. d. Ask students if they know a consumer.

i. Guide them to understand that they are consumers. e. Explore with students different examples of:

i. Producers (farms) ii. Processors (brand names) iii. Retailers (stores or restaurants)

f. Ask students to estimate how many miles food travels between the producer and their plate. i. Share that the average meal travels 1500 miles for the average American.

1) Ask students how far the food from the garden travels before we eat it. g. Tell students that in Closing Circle they will play a version of The Wind Blows that is all about the food system. h. Divide students into 4 working groups to complete garden jobs. i. Encourage students to be thinking about the food system during their time in the garden.

In the Field Garden Work Rotation

3. Application*: (60 minutes) Students think about the food system while they work on their garden job.

At the Closing Circle

4. Reflection*: (15 minutes) a. Play The Wind Blows, a game similar to musical chairs.

i. To start the game a teacher reads a statement, and all students for whom the statement is true stand up and change seats.

ii. The last student standing without a seat reads a follow-up to the statement and then reads the next statement. In this particular instance of the game, the statements are about the food system.

Vocabulary Consumer Producer Processor Retailer

Food system Contributors All lessons at the Edible Schoolyard Berkeley are developed in collaboration with the teachers and staff of the Edible Schoolyard and Martin Luther King Jr. Middle School. Learning Cycle and Think-Pair-Share discussion routine © The Regents of the University of California. All materials created by BEETLESTM at The Lawrence Hall of Science. Resources G7-5_Visual_Aid.pdf G7-5_Wind_Blows_Cards.pdf BEETLES_Learning_Cycle.pdf (See lesson G6-0)

The W

ind Blow

s: Food Systems

Instructions: To play The Wind Blow

s, which is sim

ilar to musical chairs, there

must be one less seat than participants in the circle (in our class, w

e ask that each student sit on one gardening cushion). The person left standing reads the first W

ind Blow

s card and all players for whom

the sentence applies must stand up and find a

new seat, m

oving at least 3 spaces away from

their original seat. The standing person also finds a seat, so w

hoever is left without a seat replaces them

next to the pile of cards. First, the standing person from

the first round reads aloud the back of their W

ind Blows card from

their new seat, and then the new

standing person reads the next W

ind Blows card. The gam

e continues until time or cards have run out.

Cards

Make a card w

ith the wind blow

s prompt on the front and the associated inform

ation (w

ritten in italics below) on the back. C

ards can be used in any order.

FRON

T OF C

ARD

: The wind blow

s for anyone who thinks that farm

ers are a valuable part of our society.

BAC

K OF C

ARD

: On average, farm

ers and ranchers only receive 20 cents of every dollar that consum

ers spend on food.

1. The wind blow

s for anyone who thinks that farm

ers are a valuable part of our society. O

n average, farmers and ranchers only receive 20 cents of every dollar that consum

ers spend on food. 2. The w

ind blows for anyone that has ever seen farm

animals being raised outside.

In factory farms, chickens are cram

med together in such tiny cages that they cannot

lift a single wing. 3. The w

ind blows for anyone w

ho has eaten popcorn. The U

nited States grows more corn than any country in the world! H

owever, only 2% directly feeds people. M

ost corn is used for animal feed and in processed foods like

chips and corn syrup. 4. The w

ind blows for anyone w

ho thinks that there is enough food in the world to

feed everyone. A

lmost 100 billion pounds of food is wasted in A

merica each year. That is

approximately the weight of 25 billion ham

burgers (or enough hamburgers to wrap

around the equator almost 67 tim

es!) 5. The w

ind blows for anyone w

ho knows of Ronald M

cDonald.

McD

onalds spends 800 million dollars on their advertisem

ents. On the other hand, the

National C

ancer Society is only able to spend 1 million dollars to prom

ote eating

vegetables and fruits. 6. The w

ind blows for anyone w

ho has been to a local farmer’s m

arket. Farm

ers’ markets support local farm

ers that grow seasonal fruits and vegetables usually within 150 m

iles. The closer your food comes from

, the richer in nutrients it is. 7. The w

ind blows for anyone w

ho has been to a farm or know

s a farmer.

The number of farm

ers in the United States has decreased from

7 million in 1935 to 2

million. H

owever, 1000 students a year at King participate in growing fruits and vegetables in their 1 acre garden and there are over 100 G

arden programs in the

country teaching students how to grow their food. 8. The w

ind blows for anyone w

ho has eaten Hot C

heetos. A

lthough bright red and tasty, Hot C

heetos contain over 40 ingredients, but almost no

vitamins or m

inerals. 9. The w

ind blows for anyone w

ho has harvested food from the garden for a tasting or

a meal.

The average meal travels about 1,500 m

iles before reaching our plates. How m

any m

iles does the food we pick in the garden travel? 10. The w

ind blows for anyone w

ho has eaten meat in the last w

eek. It takes 200 tim

es the amount of water to produce 1 pound of m

eat than it does to produce 1 pound of wheat. You can save m

ore water by not eating a pound of beef than you would by not showering for an entire year. 11. The w

ind blows for anyone w

ho eats grains, vegetables, and fruits every day. O

nly 1% of U.S. children eat the recom

mended portions of fruits, vegetables, and grains.

This means that 99% of all children in the U

nited States are not eating a balanced diet, putting them

at risk for health problems.

!