Grade by Grade
D. Healthy Living · Healthy Living

Healthy Meals and Snacks: What I Can and Can't Control

D2.2 A1.6About 35 minutes
Learning goals
  • I can make healthy choices for meals and snacks.
  • I can name things about food that I can control, like what snack I pick and how much I eat.
  • I can name things about food I cannot control, like what food is in my home or what is served at a party.
  • I can make the best choice from the foods I have.

Words to know

snack
A small amount of food eaten between meals to give you energy.
meal
A bigger time of eating, like breakfast, lunch or supper.
choice
When you pick one thing from two or more things.
control
To be the one who decides. Some things you can decide, and some things other people or the situation decide.
culture
The ways of living, like food, language and celebrations, that a family or group of people share.
traditional food
A food that a family or a people have eaten for a long time, often for many generations.

Snack time!

It is 3:30. You just got home from school, and your tummy is rumbling. What will you eat?

Today you will learn to make healthy choices for meals and snacks. You will also learn that some things about food you can control and some things you cannot control.

Healthy snacks

A good snack gives you energy until your next meal. Try to choose a snack with two food groups, like a fruit and a protein. It will keep you full longer.

Here are some ideas:

Apple slices and cheese cubes on a plate next to a glass of milk on a kitchen counter.
Apple slices with cheese is a snack with two food groups: a fruit and a protein food. AI-generated image
SnackFood groups
Apple slices and cheese 🍎🧀fruit + protein
Carrots and hummus 🥕vegetable + protein (hummus is made from chickpeas)
Whole grain crackers and a hard-boiled egg 🥚whole grain + protein
Yogurt with berries 🫐protein + fruit
Banana and a glass of milk 🍌🥛fruit + protein
Snack ideas with two food groups. Choose water to drink!
apple slices+cheese=fruit + proteincarrots+hummus=vegetable + proteinyogurt+berries=protein + fruit
Each snack has two food groups. A snack with two groups keeps you full longer than a snack with just one.

Things I can control

There are many food choices you can make:

  • which snack you choose from the foods you have
  • how much you eat (listen to your hunger and fullness cues)
  • choosing water when you are thirsty
  • eating slowly and enjoying your food
  • trying a new food, even just one bite
  • helping to plan, shop for, or pack your lunch

Things I cannot control

Some things about food are decided by other people or by the situation:

  • what food is in your home or at the store
  • how much money a family has to spend on food
  • what is served at a party, a friend's house or a school event
  • food allergies (your body decides that!)
  • how busy a morning is
  • foods that are part of your family's culture or religion
  • where you live. In some places, like communities in the far North, fresh fruits and vegetables cost a lot more.

When you can't control everything, you can still make the best choice from what you have.

I CAN controlwhich snack I pickhow much I eatwater when I am thirstytrying a new foodI CAN'T controlwhat food is at homewhat's served at a partywhere I livefoodallergiesa busymorning
Some food things are up to you (inside) and some are not (outside). When you can't control everything, make the best choice from what you have.

Food and culture

Families from all over the world live in Canada, and many eat foods from their culture. All cultures have healthy foods!

Some First Nations, Inuit and Métis families eat traditional foods that come from the land and water, like fish, wild game, berries and wild rice. Harvesting, sharing and eating these foods together is an important part of their culture.

Just for fun

Long ago, most carrots were purple or yellow. Orange carrots only became popular a few hundred years ago. Would you dip a purple carrot in hummus?

Worked example

Let's pick the best snack

Zoe is hungry after school. In her kitchen there are: cookies, a pear, a bag of chips and a cheese stick. What is a healthy snack she can make?

  1. What can Zoe control? She can choose which foods to eat.
  2. Look for the food groups. A pear is a fruit. A cheese stick is a protein food.
  3. Cookies and chips are highly processed foods. They are once-in-a-while foods.
  4. A snack with two groups keeps her full longer.

Zoe can choose the pear and the cheese stick, with a glass of water. 🍐🧀💧

Worked example

Let's think about a party

Omar goes to a birthday party. The food is pizza, cake and juice boxes. Omar did not choose the menu. What can he control?

  1. What can Omar not control? The menu. The party host chose it.
  2. What can he control? How much he eats, and listening to his body.
  3. He can enjoy one piece of pizza and cake and stop when he is full.
  4. He can ask for water if he is still thirsty after one juice box.

Omar can enjoy the party food and still listen to his body. One party does not change his healthy eating pattern.

Hands-on activity

Plan a snack menu

You need: paper, crayons, and a grown-up.

  1. With your grown-up, look in your kitchen. Which foods do you have this week? (That is something you can't fully control!)
  2. Make a Snack Menu with 5 snacks. Each snack should have two food groups.
  3. Draw a picture of each snack.
  4. Stick the menu on the fridge. When you are hungry after school, choose from your menu.

Bonus: Help pack your lunch tomorrow. Check that it has vegetables or fruit, a whole grain and a protein, plus water.

Your turn

1

Name a snack that has two food groups.

2

Name one thing about food that you can control.

3

Name one thing about food that you cannot control.

4

You are thirsty after lunch. What is the best drink to choose?

5

Why is a snack with two food groups a good idea?

6

Your grandma made a dish from your culture that you have never tried. What can you do?

More practice: warm-up

1

Is breakfast a meal or a snack?

2

Is a banana a healthy snack? Yes or no?

3

Can you control how much you eat?

4

Can you control what food is sold at the grocery store?

5

What drink goes with every healthy snack?

More practice: on your own

1

Your fridge has yogurt, carrots and pop. Pick a healthy snack and a drink.

2

Mia's family is out of fresh fruit. She has a can of peaches packed in juice and some frozen peas. Can she still eat fruit and vegetables? Explain.

3

Sam's morning is rushed and he has only 5 minutes. Suggest a quick, healthy breakfast.

4

Lily is allergic to milk. Is that something she can control? How can she still eat healthy protein foods?

5

Sort into can control and can't control: (a) what's served at a school pizza day, (b) eating slowly, (c) choosing water, (d) the price of food.

Challenge

1

A friend says, "My family can't buy a lot of fancy food, so we can't eat healthy." What could you say?

2

At a hockey tournament, the snack bar sells only fries, candy and pop. You are hungry and have two hours left. What could you and your family do next time? Think of a plan.

3

Explain how listening to your hunger and fullness cues is a choice you can control, even at a party.

Check your understanding

Quiz

1.

Which snack has two food groups?

2.

Which is something you can control?

3.

Which is something you cannot control?

4.

Do frozen vegetables count as vegetables?

5.

Your kitchen only has cookies, a pear and an egg. What is the best snack?

6.

What is a traditional food?

For parents and teachers

Big idea: The Grade 2 expectation asks students to demonstrate an understanding of how to make healthy food choices for meals and snacks, considering the factors they can and cannot control. Children learn that they don't control everything about food (what is bought, cost, allergies, culture, what is served elsewhere), but they can make the best choice from what is available and decide how much to eat.

Be sensitive: Food security varies from family to family. Keep the message positive: healthy food can be simple and affordable (oats, beans, lentils, eggs, canned or frozen vegetables and fruit). Never shame a child for what is in their lunch.

How to help at home:

  • Offer two healthy options and let your child choose. Choice builds independence.
  • Make a snack menu together and keep it on the fridge.
  • Let your child help plan and pack lunches.
  • Share a food from your family's culture and talk about why it matters to you.

Common difficulties: thinking that "healthy" means expensive or fresh only; feeling they "failed" if a party had treats. Reassure them that healthy eating is about the pattern, not a single meal.

This lesson also builds critical and creative thinking (A1.6): weighing choices and solving problems.