After School Curriculum
Reading Nutrition Labels
Objectives
1. Students will understand how to locate the serving size, servings per container
and nutrients on a nutrition label.
2. Students will understand how to avoid eating more than one serving of food at a
time.
3. Students will understand that the nutrient amounts listed on the nutrition label
pertain to one serving of food.
Materials needed for this lesson
1.
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6.
7.
8.
Box of crackers*
Loaf of bread (sliced)*
Nutrition labels from the crackers and bread
Reading Nutrition Labels worksheet (provided)- enough for one per student or
group
Calculators or scratch paper
Food package nutrition labels, enough for two per student or group
Pencils
Sample nutrition label (provided)
* Make sure that the crackers and bread have nutrients listed, as some bread and crackers
appear healthy but are not. Our suggestions: whole wheat or seven grain bread and multigrain crackers.
Background information and notes
Nutrition labels are the single best source for nutrition information for a food. They
provide a wealth of product information. It is important for students to understand how
to read a nutrition label, as they can be tricky. The sooner children learn to read nutrition
labels and get in the habit of doing so, the sooner they can moderate their intake of
unhealthy foods and portion sizes.
*Note: This lesson uses basic math skills. If the program leader does not feel
comfortable with the included activities, s/he can simplify the lesson to just the basic
content.
© 2004-2007 The Keren Emrich Foundation DBA Road of Life, www.roadoflife.org
After School Curriculum
Presenting the Lesson
Ask the students whether bread or crackers have more nutrients. Explain that they cannot
correctly answer the question without knowing how much bread is being compared to
how many crackers. Display the entire loaf of bread and one cracker. Ask the question
again: which has more nutrients?
Since there is so much bread compared to the one cracker, the loaf of bread as a whole is
going to have more nutrients. The same would be true for the entire box of crackers
compared to a slice of bread.
Ask students how many crackers they think are in the box. Let them make guesses. There
are two ways to know how many crackers the box contains:
1. Count all the crackers in the box (this will give you an exact total)
2. Look at the nutrition label (this will give you an exact total or a very good
estimate)
Estimating is usually much quicker and more efficient than counting the number of
crackers in the box. To estimate the number of crackers in the box, students should look
at the serving size listed on the nutrition label. In this case, a serving size is a given
number of crackers. Let’s say a serving size is 12 crackers. Under the serving size, the
number of servings is usually listed. Let’s say in this case there are about 4 servings in
the box. You would need to multiply the number of crackers per serving by the number
of servings per box.
12 crackers x about 4 servings = about 48 crackers per box
If the serving size is given in an exact amount, then you have an exact total. If it gives an
uncertain amount (usually denoted with the word “about”) then you have an estimate.
It may be beneficial for the students to do another example using the loaf of bread. If a
serving of bread is 1 slice and the number of servings per loaf is exactly 16 slices, it
would be calculated as follows:
1 slice x 16 servings = exactly 16 servings
The nutrition label, by law, must be on every package of food. The nutrition label tells us
which nutrients are in a particular food and how many nutrients are in it. The food label
also tells us how much of that food or drink is in the package.
What is a nutrient? Remind students that a nutrient is a part of food that gives the body
energy, keeps it healthy and helps it perform important functions. Students can find out
how many nutrients are in a product by looking under the nutrient bar. The nutrient bar is
the dark horizontal line found near the bottom of nutrition labels under which you are
able to see many nutrients listed with percentages next to them.
Students may be wondering what exactly a serving size is. The serving size is listed on
the nutrition label and it is how much of that food you should consume at one time. A
© 2004-2007 The Keren Emrich Foundation DBA Road of Life, www.roadoflife.org
After School Curriculum
serving size is not always the whole package of food (as we saw with the crackers and the
bread). Therefore, the amount of nutrients written on the nutrition label pertains to one
serving size, which may not be the whole package.
Eating more than one serving at a time: If a person eats two serving sizes at once, such as
two pieces of bread for a sandwich, then all the information on the label must be
multiplied by 2. If you eat three servings, it should be multiplied by 3, and so on. If you
only eat half of a serving, you divide the information by two.
Who decides what a serving size is? Who says that 12 crackers or 1 slice of bread is what
should be consumed at one time? The company that makes the packaged food decides
what the serving size for the product is. Then, they base the rest of the nutrition label on
the serving size.
-The exception to this rule is fruits and vegetables. The United States Department of
Agriculture (USDA) determines the serving sizes for fruits and vegetables. In this case, 1
serving = 1 cup. This follows their guidelines for the amount of servings of fruits and
vegetables needed per day. The recommendation is 5 to 9 a day. Since fruits and
vegetables are rarely packaged, it can be difficult to determine their serving sizes.
Explain that one cup of a fruit or vegetable cut up is approximately the size of a baseball.
(Note: This issue is addressed more thoroughly in the 5 to 9 a day lesson)
Serving Size Tip: A way to ensure you don't eat too many servings of foods lacking
nutrients is to divide the packages into smaller baggies of one serving. Then, when they
eat a snack that does not have a lot of nutrients, they are eating just one serving instead of
many servings- or the whole package- without thinking about it.
© 2004-2007 The Keren Emrich Foundation DBA Road of Life, www.roadoflife.org
After School Curriculum
Learning Activity: Reading Nutrition Labels
Explanation of the activity:
This activity will help students learn to calculate the amounts of certain ingredients in
foods.
Preparation:
You will need a Reading Nutrition Labels worksheet (1 per student or group of students),
calculators (if students are not expected to use mental math or long hand) and food
packages with nutrition labels: enough for 2 per group or individual. Use the example
provided to demonstrate what the students are supposed to do.
Example: Reading Nutrition Labels Activity
Name of Food:
soup
Serving Size: ¾ cup
Servings per container: 5
Sugar:
Per Serving:
18g
Per Container: (18g x 5) = 90g
Fiber:
Per Serving: 4g
Per Container: (4g x 5)= 20g
Fat:
Per Serving:
6g
Per Container: (6g x 5) = 30g
Vitamin C:
Per Serving: 50% of the daily value
Per Container: (50 x 5)=250% of the daily
value
© 2004-2007 The Keren Emrich Foundation DBA Road of Life, www.roadoflife.org
After School Curriculum
Reading Nutrition Labels
Name__________________________
Directions:
Use the information on the nutrition label to fill in the chart. Follow the example done in
class.
Nutrition Label #1
Name of Food:
Serving Size:
Servings per container:
Sugar:
Per Serving:
Fat:
Per Serving:
Per Container:
Fiber:
Per Serving:
Per Container:
Vitamin C:
Per Serving:
Per Container:
Per Container:
Nutrition Label #2
Name of Food:
Serving Size:
Servings per container:
Sugar:
Per Serving:
Fat:
Per Serving:
Per Container:
Fiber:
Per Serving:
Per Container:
Vitamin C:
Per Serving:
Per Container:
Per Container:
© 2004-2007 The Keren Emrich Foundation DBA Road of Life, www.roadoflife.org
After School Curriculum
Activity Debrief:
The following questions will help to summarize the activity:
1. Do you think the serving sizes for either of your foods are realistic? Explain.
____________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________
2. Did either of your foods have many nutrients listed under the Nutrient Bar? Which
food(s)? Which nutrients did it contain?__________________________
__________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________
3. What is one reason why someone might eat more than one serving of either of your
foods?__________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________
© 2004-2007 The Keren Emrich Foundation DBA Road of Life, www.roadoflife.org
After School Curriculum
Learning Activity: Nutrition Label Math
Explanation of the activity:
This activity will help students learn how to calculate the serving sizes of certain food
products.
Directions:
Complete the following math problems. Remember to label your answer and show your
work.
Example: A can of soup has 3 servings in it. One serving is 2 cups. How many cups
are in the can?
2 cups x 3 servings = 6 cups
1. The nutrition label for a box of crackers says there are 5 servings in the box.
There are 8 crackers in a serving. How many total crackers are in the box?
2. The serving size for sour cream is 2 tablespoons. The nutrition label says that
there are about 8 servings in the container. How many tablespoons are in the
container?
3. There are 16 ounces in a bottle of soda. The nutrition label says there are 2
servings per container. How many ounces is one serving of soda?
4. Annie ate one serving of cereal that was 1 ½ cups (1.5 cups). The box of cereal
has 4 ½ cups (4.5 cups). How many servings are left in the box?
5. Jim, Chris and Todd want to share a container of ice cream. One serving is ¾ cup.
The whole container is 3 ½ cups. Is there enough ice cream for each person to
have a serving? Show your work.
6. a. There are 6 cups of pasta in a box. A serving is 1 ½ cups. How many servings
are there per box?
© 2004-2007 The Keren Emrich Foundation DBA Road of Life, www.roadoflife.org
After School Curriculum
b. If Kimberly and Emily each ate one serving of pasta and the box was full
when they opened it, how many cups of pasta are left in the box?
© 2004-2007 The Keren Emrich Foundation DBA Road of Life, www.roadoflife.org
After School Curriculum
Sample Nutrition Label
Serving Size: the
amount of food a
person should eat at
one time.
Nutrient Bar
The number of
servings in the
package: Given here as
an exact amount.
Nutrients
© 2004-2007 The Keren Emrich Foundation DBA Road of Life, www.roadoflife.org