LEARNING OBJECTIVES

Evaluate how the goals of food companies affect people’s health.

HEALTH ED STANDARDS

NHES 2: Analyze influences that affect health and well-being of self and others.

CASEL COMPETENCY: Responsible Decision Making

KEY VOCAB

addictive

calories

ultra-processed foods

preservatives

Lesson Plan: Crave. Crunch. Repeat?

Don’t feel bad if you can’t resist packaged treats. Here’s why they’re so hard to put down—and advice for how to snack smarter.

PREPARE TO READ

Invite students to share their favorite snack foods, including specific brands and flavors. Write the names on the board. Ask: What do you like about these snacks? Encourage students to use descriptive language about how their favorite snack tastes, sounds, and feels in their mouth.

Explain that these experiences are the result of carefully researched and tested choices made by food companies to keep you eating.

READ AND DISCUSS

Read the article together as a class, pausing to discuss key ideas and vocabulary. Ask:

  • Why do companies design their foods to be addictive?
  • How do companies’ choices affect the experience of eating processed food?
  • How does eating ultra-processed foods affect the health of communities?

RESPOND TO READING

Return to the list of snack foods you wrote on the board and circle all those you think are ultra-processed. Have students work on the extension activity in small groups, using what they learned in the article to identify strategies used by snack food manufacturers.

You can also use the comprehension quiz or critical-thinking questions as informal assessments.

Print the Lesson Plan

Text-to-Speech