Social Emotional Learning Activity

The Journey of Food

Overview

Students will understand the journey of a selected fruit or vegetable from its origin to their plate and understand the environmental impact of food transportation. Students will develop empathy and perspective-taking skills by creating a narrative from the food's point of view.

Materials

  • World map or globe

  • Internet access for research

  • Drawing and writing materials

  • Optional: tacks, pins, sticky notes, chart paper and markers

 

Activity Duration:

  • 90 minutes

Vocabulary

  • Regenerative Farming

  • Grazing

  • Diverse Crops

 

Instructions

  1. Discuss: Ask your students what they know about where their favorite foods comes from. If they don’t know yet, that’s okay! Review the concept of a food's journey from the farm to the table and tell them that we will be learning where our food comes from and how it reaches us.

    2. Assign: Give each student a specific fruit or vegetable to research. Provide resources for them to investigate the plant's life cycle, including planting, growing, harvesting, and transportation. Encourage students to find information about the region where their food is commonly grown and the distance it might travel to reach Boston, Massachusetts.

    3. Map: Have students locate the region where their fruit or vegetable is grown on a world map or globe. Review the concept of miles and help students estimate the distance from the growing region to your city.
    Ask students to mark the journey on the map and share their findings with the class.

    4. Write:

    1. Guide students in brainstorming the different stages of their food's journey.

    2. Have students imagine themselves as the fruit or vegetable and write a creative story from its

      perspective, describing the experiences and challenges it faces during its journey.

    3. Encourage students to include details about the people involved, the transportation methods used,

      and any environmental impact.

    5. Wrap up

    1. Encourage students to share their stories with partners or with the class.
    2. Discuss the environmental impact of transporting food over long distances.
    3. Conclude by highlighting the importance of making informed food choices and understanding where our food comes from. Students can brainstorm ways to source their food from closer to home.