Do some writing!

If you can incorporate more than one subject into a lesson, you're killing two birds with one stone.  So, in the interest of homeschool language arts and nutrition, let's write a little about one of the concepts we've discussed in recent weeks.  Younger kids can write a sentence or paragraph, and older kids can write a full essay. 

Animals are a huge source of food, and hopefully nutritious food if they are raised in a healthy manner.  You could play some animal games and talk about recent nutrition lessons as a way to introduce this project.  Have your child summarize one of the lessons we've discussed here and put what they've learned into their own words.  It'll help to reinforce their learning and it will work some langauge arts into their day! 

The Fluoride Deception

There's a growing segment of the population against the fluoridation of public drinking water.  Have you ever wondered why?  This video answers that question, with a complete analysis of water fluoridation.  But remember, fluoride isn't just in the water supply, it is also present in most toothpastes, and "fluoride treatments" are given to your children at their regular dental cleanings, too.  This video is a good starting point, but I hope you'll do your own research and further explore the subject, in order to make the best choice for your family.

What does President Obama eat?

The intent of this blog is to teach kids about good nutrition, so I thought it might be fun to see what the President has been eating.  Looking at some of the pictures in this article with your kids is a great conversation-starter to talk about healthy eating. 


Barack Obama's Food Favorites Revealed in White House Photos

Here's a little bit of the article.  Click the link above to read the complete article.

"What does President Barack Obama eat? An official White House Flickr photostream was recently released and it includes a few shots of food that is available for President Barack Obama and the White House Staff."

Homophones and vitamin analogs...

I was explaining a concept to my kids the other day, and had to laugh at myself for how I chose to explain it.  It worked, and they understand now, but really....

There are lots of compounds in biology that are basically the same, but have minor differences that allow them to do completely different things.  One example would be different types of vitamins have different actions, or are absorbed differently by the body.  Vitamin D2 and D3 are similar enough that they're both called vitamin D, but there are minor changes associated with them that make D3 more readily absorbed in supplement form.  They are vitamin analogs.

I was trying to explain sound-alike words, or homophones, to my kids the other day and this example came to mind.  Homophones sound alike but are spelled slightly differently, and have different meanings.

It's an example of how science and language are connected!    Goofy, I know.  My poor kids!  :)

There really aren't very many homeschool resources for nutrition out there.  And there are even fewer resources that are FREE, so please share this blog with others if you've enjoyed the lessons here!

Food geography: What are the top crops in your area of the country?

Much of the learning here is designed for upper elementary and middle school kids, so I decided to come up with a little something this week for the younger crowd.  I'm combining geography with nutrition, to teach kids where their food comes from.

This is a simple activity, but like most elementary homeschool curriculum, it will require some direction from a parent.  To start, talk to your kids about what kinds of crops are grown in your own area of the country, and then what kinds of crops are grown in other areas.  For example, if you live in the Great Plains, wheat is surely on the list of top crops, and if you live in New England, cranberries are produced in abundance.  You could even read some books about this kind of thing, just to drive the point home that different things are grown in different areas.  Whether or not a certain crop will thrive depends on the temperature, amount of rain, type of soil, etc.

If you'd like to expand this lesson and learn more about each state, here are some US State games to help. It may be helpful to check out library books about different states and learn a little about them, including the food crops that are grown.  Here's an online resource from the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) that can give you some background on which crops are grown where.  The point is to open a dialogue with your younger kids about where their food is grown, and just supplement that discussion with a few other resources as you see fit.  Discover the answers together!

Of course, if you're really motivated, you could have your older kids do some variety of this same assignment.  Just make it a little more complex and detailed for them.  Enjoy!

"Log It" walking program for kids -- Physical Education