Talking point: Balanced diet

Planning your lessons

Use the e-flashcards ‘Food groups’ to introduce the main food groups. Discuss in your own language how a balanced diet for healthy living should include some items from each group.

Ask children to identify the items shown in each group; a few are new French words. Show the advice given to French children; use this to plan (in French) a healthy picnic with a good balance from the food groups. Children can also talk in French about how they keep fit (see French 2, Ch.2.13).

Activities

Warm up

Discuss with children what they already know about food groups (in your own language).

Get used to the sounds (food groups)

❑ Echoing: use the ‘Eating to be healthy: food groups’ e-flashcards to show the French names for each food group (but don’t click to name any items, just the group).

NEW

KEY SOUNDS in food groups

Listen and enjoy copying these typical sounds: where have you heard them before?

as in... féculent, sucré, salé, laitiers, végétarien heard before in café, légumes as in... viande, santé, orange, sandwich heard before in jambon as in... poisson, boisson heard before in jambon, bon as in... moins, boisson, fois, poisson, produits as in... l’huile, fruit, produits heard before in frites, chips as in... fruit, gras, gâteaux, produits, lait heard before in salut, frites

A-EXTRA: NEW WORDS

Food groups les féculents starch (carbohydrates) les fruits et les légumes fruit and vegetables les produits laitiers dairy products la viande, les oeufs ou le poisson meat, eggs or fish (i.e. proteins) les produits sucrés sweet / sugary products le gras et l’huile fats and oils les produits salés salty products

Children echo the food group names; pay close attention to the “key sounds” (see box).

❑ Echoing: Go through the e-flashcards again; click on each food item in the illustration to hear it named. You will also see the name.

Respond with understanding

❑ Play “True or false?”

Show the pictures again, with sound and text OFF. You say what group it is, e.g. “les féculents”, or name an item, e.g. “le pain”. If you are correct, children echo, otherwise stay silent.

Talk about why some foods are not put in what might be their obvious group, eg:

- butter is counted as fat, not dairy product;

- potatoes as starch, not vegetables;

- chips as fat, not vegetables;

- crisps as salt, not vegetables;

- sliced sausage as salty, not meat;

- oily fish (mackerel, salmon, etc) are included in ‘fat and oil; as well as ‘meat and fish’.

Get used to the sounds (diet advice)

❑ Echoing: Introduce the food groups in French, using the e-flashcards This information has been adapted from authentic French materials designed for French schools. As you display each food group with diet advice OFF, ask the class to predict (in their own language) what advice they think will be given about that food group, e.g. will children be encouraged to consume more of it or less? How much and how frequently should these items be eaten?

n Then click on the [?] bubble to show the actual diet advice given to French children.

❑ Echoing: Children echo the diet advice displayed, paying attention to the ‘key sounds’ - see also ‘A-extra: New words’. (Page 1.7)

TALKING ABOUT: food groups and healthy eating advice

Eating and diet advice for each food group: féculents : à chaque repas et selon son appétit. starchy foods: at each meal and according to appetite. fruits et légumes : au moins 5 par jour! fruit and vegetables: at least 5 a day! produits laitiers : 3 ou 4 par jour. dairy products: 3 or 4 a day. viande, oeuf ou poisson : 1 à 2 fois par jour. meat, egg or fish: 1 to 2 times a day. poisson: au moins 2 fois par semaine. fish: at least 2 times a week. gras et huile : à consommer avec modération. fats and oils: eat in moderation. produits sucrés : à consommer avec modération. sugary products: eat in moderation. produits salés : à limiter. salty products: cut down / reduce. boissons : de l’eau à volonté! drinks: as much water as you want!

Extra Words And Phrases

au moins moins de plus de

3 ou 4 |1 à 2 par jour par semaine à limiter à volonté une fois bouger un végétarien une végétarienne il faut...

- at least

- less than

- more than

- 3 or 4 |1 to 2

- a day/daily

- a week/weekly

- reduce/cut down

- as much you want

- one time (once)

- move

- a vegetarian

- you (one) must

Activité physique : 30 mn à 1 heure par jour.

Exercise: 30 mins to 1 hour a day.

Respond with understanding

❑ Talk about the diet advice

For each food group, ask the children to work out what the French diet advice means in English (or your own language).

Focus particularly on the very useful ‘little words’ listed in ‘extra words’, like “moins de” and “plus de”, e.g. ask children whether they should eat MORE or LESS of some foods:

“il faut consommer moins de... (chocolat)?”

“il faut consommer plus de... (légumes)?”

Children can reply “oui” or “non” as appropriate. You could refer to the diet advice in the e-flashcards to amplify the discussion, e.g.

“Chocolat: il faut consommer: ...avec modération? ... 5 par jour?”

“Fruit et légumes: il faut limiter?” n Ask children how they would follow the advice, e.g. can they name in French the five fruit or vegetables they would choose today? n If there are some vegetarians or vegans in your class (or children with other dietary requirements), you could look at what options they have to create a balanced diet.

(NOTE: The proteins e-flashcard includes a green box showing vegan sources of protein)

❑ Make a food groups display

Take a set of all the food flashcards you have (from Early Start French 2 and 3), and sort them into which food group they belong in. Make a display labelled in French.

❑ Play “Healthy picnic”

Look at films A2 and A3 again, and sort each child’s picnic into the appropriate groups. N.B. some items might contribute to more than one group, eg sandwich includes bread and filling(s)...

Discuss how to make a healthier picnic for that child, and describe it in French.

Watch film A4 “Q & A” again

❑ Watch film A4 to look at keeping active as part of keeping your body healthy.

❑ Talk about: “How do you keep fit?”

Click on ‘Activité physique’ as a starting point. Ask children to name possible ways to keep fit - how long should they spend being active?

Ask the question, “Qu’est-ce que tu fais pour être en forme?” Children can respond with sports and leisure activities they know from French 2, Ch.2.13.