Pyramid Explorations™

Planning for Success

Planning for Success
Students begin by reading the last act of The Pyramid Explorations™ Theater. After discussing the last day of the adventure, they plan one day's meals and snacks for themselves and Roc and a second day for themselves and Marlah. Finally, they evaluate their own diets and identify one thing they can do to eat more healthfully.

• Plan a day's worth of body-building meals and snacks that meet the criterion of 4-2-3-2-6

• The Pyramid Explorations™ Theater, PDF worksheet (1 per student)
• Roc's Return PDF worksheet (1 per student)
• Marlah's Return PDF worksheet PDF (1 per student)
• How Am I Doing? PDF worksheet (1 per student)

• Divide students into groups of eight and distribute Act VI, "Conquering the Pyramid." Assign roles and have students read the act in small groups. Position the groups so they can read with minimal disruption to one another.
• When students are done have the class figure out how the alien kids and the earth kids did getting their 4-2-3-2-6. For each food group, ask the following questions:
  • How many servings of _____________ Group foods did they get?
  • What were they?
  • Was it enough?
  • If it wasn't enough, what else could they have eaten to get enough servings?

  Milk Group (4 servings; milk, cheese from macaroni and cheese, frozen yogurt, chocolate milk; yes it was enough.)
  Meat Group (3 servings; peanut butter, hot dogs, lamb; yes, it was enough.)
  Vegetable Group (3 servings; salad, tomatoes, broccoli; yes, it was enough.)
  Fruit Group (2 servings; strawberries and pineapple; yes, it was enough.)
  Grain Group (3 servings; bagel, macaroni, pita bread; no, it was not enough.)

  For the "Others" category, ask:

  • How many serving of "Others" category foods did they eat? (Two.)
  • What were they? (Jelly, cookies.)
  • Was that too much? (No.)
• Continue discussing Act VI, pointing out that Bob wants to take the aliens to an Italian or Chinese restaurant next time they come to earth. Continue:
  • How many of you like Italian food? What's one Italian food you like?
  • How many of you like Chinese food? What's one Chinese food you like?
  • We call restaurants that feature foods from other countries "ethnic" restaurants.
  • What are some other ethnic restaurants you like to eat at? What's a dish you like there?
  • Where else do we eat meals and snacks? (Answers may include fast food restaurants, convenience stores, school cafeteria, home, friends' homes, vending machines)
• Distribute Roc's Return and Marlah's Return worksheets. Introduce the activity:
  • Roc comes to celebrate the 4th of July and Marlah Presidents' Day.
  • Your job is to plan a day's worth of meals and snacks that you and Roc will eat to get at least your 4-2-3-2-6.
  • Decide where you will eat each meal. There is a box at the bottom of the page with all the places you can choose from. Each time you eat it can be a different place, or you can eat all your meals at the same place. You decide.
  • The only thing you must be sure to do is get at least your 4-2-3-2-6.
  • When you are done planning Roc's meals, plan Marlah's meals. Make sure you plan a different food experience for Marlah.
• Allow student adequate time to complete their meal plans. In teams of two, have students compare the places and meals they planned for the two aliens.
• Distribute How Am I Doing? Read through the checklist with students as they respond silently. At the bottom of the page, have them write one thing they will do to eat a healthier diet during the next few weeks. Ask a few students to share their plan.
• If you did all six Pyramid Explorations™ activities, ask students to share one "big" idea they remember from the program.

Going Further
Meal Challenges
Write the following on the chalkboard:
How can you get a nutritious meal or snack when you are:

• Late for school?
• Hungry after school?
• At a fast-food restaurant?
• At the movies?

More Pyramid Adventures
Invite students to continue the Pyramid Explorations adventure by writing a sequel to The Pyramid Explorations Theater. Use these questions to get them started:

• How old will Roc and Marlah be when they return?
• Why did they decide to come back?
• What difficulties do they encounter?
• What's happened to Bob and Jill since the aliens left?
• What new thing do the aliens learn about healthy eating during their second visit?

Note: PDF documents require the Adobe Acrobat Reader. If you don't have Acrobat Reader, click here to download a free copy.

Note: This activity is from the Pyramid Explorations™ student workbook. Pyramid Explorations™ is available from your local dairy council. Click here for contact information.

Reviews

No reviews have been submitted yet. Be the first to submit your own rating and review.