Summary
Students will choose a restaurant and highlight an unhealthy meal option and a health alternative. They will use an infographic to display the information. The infographic will be shared with the restaurant. This lesson was based upon a lesson from Moody Middle School with several modifications and on the concept of swapping out unhealthy meals in restaurants for ones that are healthier options as seen in the “Eat This, Not That” series.
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The nature of the research task is open-ended and authentic. Many students have eaten at the restaurant they chose because the restaurants listed are in the area. Students’ personal interests guide the research questions they investigated. Students are using primary sources and limited secondary sources. Students were able to choose the restaurant. In terms of meals, some chose breakfast options, some chose vegetarian options, etc. Students use background knowledge and research to determine which meal is unhealthy and which meal is healthy. They work with the infographic tool to figure out the best method to display the information collected (type of graphs, etc.).
Students work in teacher/student selected pairs or individually during this process. They post their final work to a class website. A website is used to display all of the student work so that students may share their work with their friends and families (who might also eat at these restaurants). Additionally, by putting the work online, the students are creating a bank of resources that can be referenced in the future. In this manner, the students are using digital tools to communicate information to their peers. Students also brainstorm other methods to get the word out about their infographics in the wider community.
Students are creating infographics to solve the problem of helping others make healthy choices when eating out. Before creating the infographics, the students generate purposeful questions regarding the nutritional value of their meals (Ex. – “How much sodium do these meals contain?”). The students respond to these questions through their research and creation of their infographic (using Infogr.am). The students use their infographic not only to display their research, but to make meal options easier to understand. Students do not choose the tool(s) that they use to solve the lesson “problem.” This goal of the assignment is to teach students nutritional information, but also instruct about visually displaying information in a clear and concise manner, which is why infogr.am is an effective tool for this particular lesson. After this lesson, students will have a greater idea when it comes to choosing their own digital tools to approach problems.
This lesson ultimately culminates with the students creating a product that can be shared with a wide audience with a definite purpose. This infographic allows the students to summarize and analyze their research and make predictions about what they should be eating in the future. Students look at existing meal choices and work to come up with a way to help restaurant goers make healthy and informed decisions. Students also analyze current marketing for meals (menus and websites) and propose changes by answering the question of whether or not the restaurant did an effective job at promoting healthy choices. Groups proposed new solutions for existing menus and marketing.
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