KS3 You are what you eat

Overview of the 'You are what you eat' Thematic Unit

The four subjects in  this thematic unit are Science, Home Economics, Local and Global Citizenship and Employability.  There are also opportunities to make links with Geography and Modern Languages and these subjects may reflect some aspects of this thematic unit.

Bigger events/activities related to Healthy Eating

Schools may wish to explore the following:

• Healthy eating week/launching a school’s healthy eating policy.
• Schools gardening project – over the course of the school year, growing vegetables and cooking them in a special meal before breaking up for the summer holidays.
• Exploring and celebrating a festival from a different culture; doing the cooking and following the customs for that event.

Science

The Science unit looks at chemicals in the food we eat and an overview of the make-up of our bodies. Growing our own food provides an opportunity to explore photosynthesis and germination as well as practical gardening.  Cooking is used as a context to explore chemical changes, with opportunities to use science in the kitchen.

Home Economics

The Home economics unit explores the concept of a healthy balanced diet and focusses on  practical healthly cooking and cuisines from around the world.

Local and Global citizenship

This unit looks at the cost of our food from environmental and ethical viewpoints. Issues around where our foods come from such as chicken welfare, food miles, fair trade, GM and organic foods are also explored.

Employability

In the Employability unit, careers in the catering and food industry are examined. The unit looks at a  career as a chef, experiences of foreign nationals working in the food industry and the challenges small businesses face in the Northern Ireland.