Linking Food and the Environment (LiFE)

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Farm to Table & Beyond (grades 5 or 6)

In Farm to Table & Beyond embark on an exciting adventure— learning science through studying our food system. By investigating the question, What is the system that gets food from farm to table and how does this system affect the environment?, students learn about our complex and highly technological, global food system and how parts of this system interact and influence each other— critical ideas in science. They engage in hands-on investigations of the cycling of matter in nature and human impact on this cycle including energy and resource use in processing, packaging, and transporting food. Students explore and analyze their personal food choices through scientific reasoning, and they apply what they have learned through discussions and debates to personal decisions related to food systems, health, and the natural environment. Farm to Table & Beyond is designed for grades 5 or 6 and the teacher manual includes: Lesson plans with helpful background information, practical teaching tips, and tools for assessment Student activity sheets and readings A matrix that maps Farm to Table & Beyond to the National Science Education Standards and Benchmarks for Science Literacy

Order Farm to Table & Beyond from National Gardening Association

"The curriculum uses materials that are readily available and comes with excellent student activity sheets and readings. The inquiry applies to real-life issues the students encounter in their daily lives. My students could not stop talking about what they were learning."
-Nick G., sixth-grade teacher

"If people on the street knew half of what we know, they might make different choices."
-Sasha F., fifth-gade student

Driving Question:
Module: What is the system that gets food from farm to table and how does this
system affect the environment?

Table of Contents Acknowledgements Introduction Making Science Real, Meaningful, and Successful Getting Acquainted with Farm to Table & Beyond How to Use this Book Materials Science Standards Matrices Project Planner Kitchen Chemistry

	Unit 1: Becoming Food Scientists Driving Question: What is a food scientist? Lesson 1: Corn Investigations Lesson 2: Exploring Grapes Lesson 3: Making Grape Juice Lesson 4: Pre-Assessment
	Unit 2: Interacting Parts Driving Question: What is the system that gets food from farm to table? Lesson 5: From Field to Store Lesson 6: Food Packaging Lesson 7: Materials and Manufacturing Lesson 8: Transporting Food Lesson 9: Food System Synthesis
	Unit 3: Food Processing Driving Question: What happens to food as it goes from farm to table? Lesson 10: Analyzing Food Change Data Lesson 11: Becoming Food Processors Lesson 12: Pancake Science Lesson 13: Degrees of Processing Lesson 14: Growing Microorganisms Lesson 15: Drying and Salting Lesson 16: Making Pickles
	Unit 4: Environmental Effects Driving Question: What are the environmental effects of our farm-to-table system? Lesson 17: Fossil Fuels and Society Lesson 18: The Carbon Cycle Lesson 19: Fossil Fuels and Environment Lesson 20: Sinks of Pollution Lesson 21: Pollution and the Food System Lesson 22: Food System Choices
	Unit 5: Waste and Pollution Driving Question: How can we reduce the amount of food-related waste and pollution we produce? Lesson 23: Beyond the Trash can Lesson 24: Waste Inventory Lesson 25: Analysing Cafeteria Waste Lesson 26: Taking Action Lesson 27: Making Action Work
	Unit 6: Making Choices Driving Question: How can we use the science we learned to make ecologically sound food choices? Lesson 28: Food System Posters Lesson 29: Bringing It All Together

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