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ST Name:

Kym Fox

ST Number:

40036679

Class Level:

6th Class

Date:

12/10/2025

Subject:

English

Time:

12:00

Duration of Lesson:

47 minutes

No of Pupils:

23

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Strand(s) & Elements:

Oral Language

• Oral Communication: Understanding oral texts, Developing oral communication skills
• Listening and Responding: Comprehension and interpretation of audio-visual texts

Reading

• Reading for Understanding: Responding to texts through written activities

Learning Outcome(s):

Following the IE Curriculum framework for English (Primary Curriculum, 1999 with 2015 amendments)

1. The child should be enabled to listen to and interpret oral texts and audio describing daily experiences related to food and diet (Oral Language – Listening and Responding).
2. The child should be enabled to demonstrate comprehension by organising information from spoken texts into categories and making informed judgements (Reading – Reading for Understanding).
3. (Optional) The child should be enabled to express personal experiences through writing, using correct vocabulary related to health and diet (Writing – Expressive Writing).

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Focus of the New Learning / Learning Objectives:

1. The child should be enabled to categorise foods into groups (vitamins and minerals, carbohydrates, protein) from listening tasks.
2. The child should be enabled to evaluate and describe the healthiness of different diets based on their understanding of the food pyramid.
3. The child should be enabled to reflect on and write about their own diet from the previous day using correct food group terminology.

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Assessment:

1. Method:
   Observation of paired discussion; evaluation of worksheet accuracy; review of written personal diet reflection.

2. Assessment of:
   Understanding of food groups; ability to categorise foods; critical thinking about healthiness of diets; written communication skills.

3. To be recorded:
   Completed worksheets, teacher anecdotal notes during class discussion, and personal diet writing samples.

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Teacher Questioning:

Lower order questions (Closed Questions):

1. Which foods belong to the protein group?
2. What is the healthiest part of the meal shown?
3. Is fruit considered a source of vitamins and minerals?

Higher order questions (Open Questions):

1. Why do you think some meals are healthier than others?
2. How can eating a balanced diet help our body?
3. What changes would you make to improve your diet from yesterday?

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Language Development Opportunities in this Lesson:

• Vocabulary development related to food groups and health (e.g., carbohydrates, vitamins, protein, healthy, unhealthy).
• Listening comprehension and note-taking skills.
• Spoken interaction during paired rating and class discussion.

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Literacy Development Opportunities in this Lesson:

• Reading for understanding through worksheet tasks.
• Writing skills by recording personal diet and evaluations on healthiness.
• Categorisation to develop organisational skills in reading and writing.

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Teaching Methodologies:

Primary: Talk and Discussion, Collaborative/Co-operative Learning, Active Learning
Supporting: Skills Through Content, Problem Solving

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Lesson Outline

Introduction (5-10 minutes) – Stimulus: “Rate My Meal!”

Objective:
Activate prior knowledge and promote critical thinking about healthy vs. unhealthy meals.

Materials:

• Pictures/slides of 5 meals:
  • Burger, fries, and soda
  • Grilled chicken, rice, and salad
  • Pizza and soft drink
  • Oatmeal with fruit
  • Fish and vegetables

Steps:

1. Display pictures/slides of meals.
2. Ask pupils to work in pairs to rate each meal from 1 (very unhealthy) to 5 (very healthy).
3. Encourage pairs to discuss reasons for their ratings using vocabulary (healthy/unhealthy, nutritious, balanced).
4. Facilitate whole-class feedback—record scores on the board.
5. Briefly discuss:
   • What makes a meal healthy?
   • What do all the healthy meals have in common?
   • Why do we need to eat different types of foods?
6. Transition: “Today, we will find out how to tell which foods are healthiest by learning about the food pyramid.”

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Development (30 minutes)

Step 1: Video Viewing (10 minutes)

• Show a short, engaging video on the food pyramid, tailored for children, explaining food groups and the healthiest foods.
• Pupils complete a worksheet where they tick or write correct answers to questions such as:
  • Which foods are the healthiest to eat? (vegetables, salad, fruit)
  • Name one food high in carbohydrates.
  • What should we eat less of? (e.g., sugary snacks)

Step 2: Listening Activity (10 minutes)

• Play a pre-recorded audio twice. The audio features 3 people describing what they ate today.
• Pupils listen carefully and categorise the foods mentioned under these headings on their worksheet:
  • Vitamins and minerals
  • Carbohydrates
  • Protein
• Pupils then decide whether the person's diet described sounds healthy or unhealthy, giving reasons for their choice.

Step 3: Personal Reflection and Writing (10 minutes)

• Pupils think about what they ate yesterday. They record these foods using the worksheet categories (vitamins & minerals, carbohydrates, protein).
• Pupils write a short paragraph deciding if their diet was healthy and suggest a small improvement.
• Encourage use of key vocabulary and sentence starters such as:
  • “Yesterday, I ate ___, which is a good source of ___. I think my diet was [healthy/unhealthy] because ___.”

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Conclusion (7 minutes)

Cognitive:

• Whole-class sharing of personal diet reflections (voluntary).
• Recap key messages about the food pyramid and healthy eating.

Social:

• Encourage positive peer feedback on diet reflections.
• Highlight the importance of making healthy food choices.

Transition (Optional):

• Suggest pupils try to eat a balanced meal today and observe their choices, preparing a short report for next class.

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Universal Design for Learning (UDL)

• Visual support through meal pictures, video, and food group charts.
• Auditory learning through clear, repeated audio recordings.
• Kinesthetic engagement through paired discussions and writing.
• Scaffold support with sentence starters and vocabulary prompts.
• Differentiated worksheet options for different literacy levels.

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The Learning Environment

• Pupils seated in pairs for collaborative rating activity.
• Clear view of screen for video and audio playback.
• Worksheets ready for writing and ticking tasks.
• Board or flipchart for recording ratings and feedback.

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Resources

• Meal pictures or slides for rating activity.
• Video on the food pyramid (age-appropriate, Irish curriculum aligned).
• Audio recordings of food descriptions.
• Worksheets: food pyramid questions, food categorisation charts, personal diet reflection template.
• Board/whiteboard and markers.

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Additional Comments:

• This lesson seamlessly integrates English language learning with health education consistent with the Irish Primary Curriculum (1999, 2015 amendments), supporting cross-curricular competencies.
• The use of multimedia (video and audio) and interactive activities caters to diverse learning styles and promotes engagement among 6th class pupils.
• The emphasis on collaborative learning and critical thinking supports both social and cognitive development.
• The personal writing task encourages self-awareness and practical application of learning.

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End of Plan