Sugar Kills - Canva Design School
Design School Lesson Plan
Sugar Kills Authored by William Ferriter (@ plugusin ) TITLE OF LESSON
#sugarkills ACHIEVABLES
● Students will learn more about the amount of added sugar that they are supposed to consume on a daily basis. ● Students will learn more about the amount of added sugar in everyday foods. ● Students will develop graphics designed to raise awareness about the amount of added sugar in everyday foods.
BACKGROUND KNOWLEDGE FOR TEACHERS
According to recommendations made by the American Heart Association and Livestrong , the average teen should consume no more than 2133 grams of added sugar per day. Adult women can consume 25 grams of added sugar per day, while adult men can consume 37 grams of added sugar per day. The hitch is that the foods that we eat on a regular basis are literally loaded with added sugars. A single can of Coke has 39 grams of added sugar, a single bite sized bag of Skittles candy has 37 grams of added sugar, and a single small milkshake from Burger King has 84 grams of added sugar. Even foods we think of as healthy can have incredible amounts of added sugar. For example, a single serving of Yoplait yogurt has 26 grams of added sugar – more than a teen is supposed to consume in an entire day’s worth of eating. Fighting obesity, then, starts by building awareness about the amount of added sugar that is actually in our foods.
PREPARATION
For this lesson, students will need access to the Internet to explore several websites. This can be done by students working alone, in small groups, or as a whole class depending on the number of devices that you have available to you. For the best results, consider having students work in groups of three. SUGGESTED LESSON FLOW
1. To get a sense for what your students already know about the amount of added sugar in the foods that they are eating on a regular basis, ask the following yes/no questions: ● Most of the time, I make healthy eating choices. ● Most of the time, my friends and family make healthy eating choices. ● I know how much sugar I’m supposed to eat on a daily basis. ● I don’t eat an excessive amount of sugar. ● I think obesity is a problem in our school, community or nation. 2. Introduce your students to the #sugarkills website , which is a site maintained by a group of middle schoolers in Raleigh, North Carolina who are determined to raise awareness about the amount of added sugar in everyday foods. Specifically, point students to this page , which explains just how much added sugar a teen can safely eat in a day. 3. Ask students to search through the #sugarkills website looking for information on the amount of added sugar in the foods that they eat on a daily basis. Give students 20 minutes to explore. When that exploration is finished, ask students to share the most surprising statistics that they found while exploring the site. 4. Lead a classroom conversation around the following questions: ● Were you surprised by the amount of added sugar that you eat on a daily basis? Has exploring the #sugarkills site challenged you to think more carefully about the amount of added sugar that you eat in a day? ● Do you think that your peers realize that there is SO much added sugar in the foods that we eat on a regular basis? ● How much added sugar do you think you actually eat in a day? How can we find out? ● What can we do to change the eating habits of our peers? How can we help to build awareness about the amount of added sugar in everyday foods? ● Did you like the work of the #sugarkills kids? Is that work that we could replicate for the kids in our own school community?
5. Ask students to identify the characteristics of #sugarkills blog posts that would probably resonate with young readers. 6. Point out that the basic graphics on the #sugarkills site that include squares representing one day’s worth of added sugar ( see sample here ) are easy to create, to learn from and to consume. Also, point out that the #sugarkills team also creates more visual graphics about specific foods ( see sample here ) to add variety to their blog. 7. Ask students if they would like to use Canva to start their own #sugarkills campaign designed to raise awareness about the amount of added sugar in everyday foods. Share the following examples to help students imagine what is possible with Canva: Gingerbread , Cranberry Sauce , Halloween . 8. Have students gather information on the amount of added sugar in everyday foods by either looking at the packaging of foods in their lunch boxes or by looking up foods in online food databases like this one . 9. After choosing a food with a surprising amount of added sugar, have students use Canva to create a #sugarkills graphic. Graphic Design Notes (Use Quick Tips for Great Design ) Before students start designing, run through the Quick Tips for Great Design onepage reference guide. This includes five important tips for creating an effective design. 10. Encourage students to experiment with the Infographic templates and options in Canva to design their own unique graphic for comparing the amount of added sugar that teens should eat to the amount of added sugar found in common foods. 11. Consider publishing final products to a dedicated classroom blog or wiki page. Have students share the link to your classroom blog in their social networks. Advertise your project with local news agencies. Explain to students that raising awareness depends on their ability to draw attention to their work. HOMEWORK/EXTENSION ACTIVITIES
Consider asking students to examine other unhealthy substances – salts, saturated fats, carbohydrates – found in the foods that we eat on a daily basis. Ask them to determine which unhealthy substance everyday eaters should be most concerned about. Then, have them make a case for either continuing your #sugarkills work or moving on to a #fatkills or #saltkills effort instead.
Sugar Kills Authored by William Ferriter (@ plugusin ) TITLE OF LESSON
#sugarkills ACHIEVABLES
● Students will learn more about the amount of added sugar that they are supposed to consume on a daily basis. ● Students will learn more about the amount of added sugar in everyday foods. ● Students will develop graphics designed to raise awareness about the amount of added sugar in everyday foods.
BACKGROUND KNOWLEDGE FOR TEACHERS
According to recommendations made by the American Heart Association and Livestrong , the average teen should consume no more than 2133 grams of added sugar per day. Adult women can consume 25 grams of added sugar per day, while adult men can consume 37 grams of added sugar per day. The hitch is that the foods that we eat on a regular basis are literally loaded with added sugars. A single can of Coke has 39 grams of added sugar, a single bite sized bag of Skittles candy has 37 grams of added sugar, and a single small milkshake from Burger King has 84 grams of added sugar. Even foods we think of as healthy can have incredible amounts of added sugar. For example, a single serving of Yoplait yogurt has 26 grams of added sugar – more than a teen is supposed to consume in an entire day’s worth of eating. Fighting obesity, then, starts by building awareness about the amount of added sugar that is actually in our foods.
PREPARATION
For this lesson, students will need access to the Internet to explore several websites. This can be done by students working alone, in small groups, or as a whole class depending on the number of devices that you have available to you. For the best results, consider having students work in groups of three. SUGGESTED LESSON FLOW
1. To get a sense for what your students already know about the amount of added sugar in the foods that they are eating on a regular basis, ask the following yes/no questions: ● Most of the time, I make healthy eating choices. ● Most of the time, my friends and family make healthy eating choices. ● I know how much sugar I’m supposed to eat on a daily basis. ● I don’t eat an excessive amount of sugar. ● I think obesity is a problem in our school, community or nation. 2. Introduce your students to the #sugarkills website , which is a site maintained by a group of middle schoolers in Raleigh, North Carolina who are determined to raise awareness about the amount of added sugar in everyday foods. Specifically, point students to this page , which explains just how much added sugar a teen can safely eat in a day. 3. Ask students to search through the #sugarkills website looking for information on the amount of added sugar in the foods that they eat on a daily basis. Give students 20 minutes to explore. When that exploration is finished, ask students to share the most surprising statistics that they found while exploring the site. 4. Lead a classroom conversation around the following questions: ● Were you surprised by the amount of added sugar that you eat on a daily basis? Has exploring the #sugarkills site challenged you to think more carefully about the amount of added sugar that you eat in a day? ● Do you think that your peers realize that there is SO much added sugar in the foods that we eat on a regular basis? ● How much added sugar do you think you actually eat in a day? How can we find out? ● What can we do to change the eating habits of our peers? How can we help to build awareness about the amount of added sugar in everyday foods? ● Did you like the work of the #sugarkills kids? Is that work that we could replicate for the kids in our own school community?
5. Ask students to identify the characteristics of #sugarkills blog posts that would probably resonate with young readers. 6. Point out that the basic graphics on the #sugarkills site that include squares representing one day’s worth of added sugar ( see sample here ) are easy to create, to learn from and to consume. Also, point out that the #sugarkills team also creates more visual graphics about specific foods ( see sample here ) to add variety to their blog. 7. Ask students if they would like to use Canva to start their own #sugarkills campaign designed to raise awareness about the amount of added sugar in everyday foods. Share the following examples to help students imagine what is possible with Canva: Gingerbread , Cranberry Sauce , Halloween . 8. Have students gather information on the amount of added sugar in everyday foods by either looking at the packaging of foods in their lunch boxes or by looking up foods in online food databases like this one . 9. After choosing a food with a surprising amount of added sugar, have students use Canva to create a #sugarkills graphic. Graphic Design Notes (Use Quick Tips for Great Design ) Before students start designing, run through the Quick Tips for Great Design onepage reference guide. This includes five important tips for creating an effective design. 10. Encourage students to experiment with the Infographic templates and options in Canva to design their own unique graphic for comparing the amount of added sugar that teens should eat to the amount of added sugar found in common foods. 11. Consider publishing final products to a dedicated classroom blog or wiki page. Have students share the link to your classroom blog in their social networks. Advertise your project with local news agencies. Explain to students that raising awareness depends on their ability to draw attention to their work. HOMEWORK/EXTENSION ACTIVITIES
Consider asking students to examine other unhealthy substances – salts, saturated fats, carbohydrates – found in the foods that we eat on a daily basis. Ask them to determine which unhealthy substance everyday eaters should be most concerned about. Then, have them make a case for either continuing your #sugarkills work or moving on to a #fatkills or #saltkills effort instead.
