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Fifth Grade Curriculum Resources

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Standard of Learning

5.2   The student will demonstrate responsibility for developing personal health habits and practicing the behaviors that promote an active, healthy lifestyle. Key concepts/skills include:

  1. the relationship between health promotion and disease prevention;
  2. the connection between nutritional guidelines and weight management;
  3. strategies for managing stress;
  4. the importance of exercise and recreation;
  5. the effects of personal health habits on cardiovascular fitness;
  6. the importance of developing and maintaining a positive self-image.

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Understanding the Standard

The student will understand the effects of diet, exercise, and drug use on cardiovascular health.

Essential Knowledge and Skills

The student will:

  • identify the parts of the cardiovascular system. (heart and blood vessels)
  • define cardiovascular fitness. (a strong heart muscle and healthy blood vessels)
  • explain personal health habits that positively affect the cardiovascular system. (exercising, eating a low fat diet with lots of fruits, vegetables, and whole grains, not smoking, managing stress, maintaining a healthful weight, getting regular check-ups, etc.)
  • describe personal health habits that negatively affect the cardiovascular system. (alcohol, smoking, fatty foods, overweight, etc.)
  • define heart disease. (a disease of the heart or blood vessels)
  • explain blood pressure. (the force of blood against artery walls)
  • describe a heart attack. (a sudden lack of oxygen to the heart which causes death to the cells that make up the heart muscle)


Sample Lessons

About All You Can Eat: A Feast at Plimoth Plantation
Grades 3-5
Compares foods eaten in 1627 with high fat foods eaten today. Also looks at 500 BC.
Sponsor: PBS
Two class periods
http://www.pbs.org/teachersource (select Health & Fitness - Grades 3-5 - Fitness & Nutrition)
Free

Coordinated Approach to Child Health (CATCH)
Grades 3-5 (Hearty Heart and Friends - 3rd grade; Go For Health - 4th and 5th grades; and Facts for 5 - 5th grade)
*Evaluated program with mixed results
Coordinated effort between classroom, cafeteria, and physical education to decrease fat, saturated fat, and sodium in students' diets; increase physical activity; and prevent tobacco use.
Sponsor: Coordinated Approach to Child Health (CATCH)
http://www.sph.uth.tmc.edu/chppr/catch/ and http://www.flaghouse.com
+Cost

Discovering Foods of Mexico
Grades 5-6
Compares nutritional and wellness practices between cultural groups.
Sponsor: PBS
One-two class periods
http://www.pbs.org/foodancestors/midplan.html Free

Don't Buy It - Get Media Smart!
Discusses advertisements and marketing. Students design a cereal box; graph data; complete nutritional comparisons; and use statistics to sell a product.
Sponsor: PBS
Six class periods
http://www.pbs.org/teachersource (select Health & Fitness - Grades 3-5 - safety)
Free

Eat Well and Keep Moving
Grades 4-5
*Evaluated program
Comprehensive program to increase physical activity, increase fruits and vegetables, decrease fat, and decrease television viewing. Children learn as they move. Includes 44 lessons, CD-ROM to customize lessons, worksheets, school campaigns, and reproducible materials.
Sponsor: Harvard University
http://www.humankinetics.com
+Cost

5 A Day The Color Way - "There's a Rainbow on My Plate"
Grades K-6 (K-3, 4, 5, 6)
Encourages students to eat more fruits and vegetables each day through a variety of lessons and activity sheets. Teacher's guide, take home literature, recipes.
Sponsor: Dole Food Company
http://www.5aday.com
Free

The Food Groups: Food Pyramid
Grades 3-5
Students learn about the five food groups and how to use the food pyramid as their guide.
Sponsor: Ask ERIC Lesson Plan
Two classes
Contact: http://www.eduref.org (select lesson plans – health – nutrition)
Free

Food Works
Grades 3-5
Activity-based program to build skills and motivate students to make healthy food choices. Each kit includes teaching guide, videos, magazines, family newsletter, posters, and worksheets. Produced in 1995.
Sponsor: USDA
http://www.fns.usda.gov/tn/educators/scholastic.html
+Cost

Graphing a Healthy Lifestyle
Grade(s): 5
Students will, over a week, record the amount of time they spend sleeping, attending school, watching T.V., exercising and doing homework. At the end of the week the students will graph all of their information and discuss how sleep impacts their learning. The graphs will be used to discuss daily habits and ways to improve overall health.
http://www.uen.org/Lessonplan/preview.cgi?LPid=66
Free

The Great Body Shop
Grades preK-6
Evaluated program
Encourages students to make life-long healthy choices including healthy nutrition and physical activity. Comprehensive health education program. Topics include:
--Critical thinking
--Life skills
--Health values
Available in English and Spanish; parent bulletins in seven languages
Sponsor: The Children's Health Market
http://www.thegreatbodyshop.net
+Cost

Health Database
Grades 2-5
Students analyze the content of school lunches to see if the lunches are balanced.
Sponsor: Ask ERIC Lesson Plan
Five class periods
Contact: http://www.eduref.org (select lesson plans – health – nutrition)
Free

Healthy Weights for Healthy Kids
Grades 3-6
Addresses healthy eating, physical activity, and positive body image for children. Discusses healthy food, drink, and snack choices; physical activity options; and positive body image.
Contact local County Extension Office
Free

HeartPower
Grades 3-5
Teaches students about the heart and how to keep it healthy. Includes physical activity, nutrition, and living tobacco-free. Science-based.
--Healthy-Heart Menus Quick Activity (Children create a one-minute television feature called "The Healthy-Heart Minute.")
--Target: No Smoking Game
--A Bunch of Reasons Not to Smoke Quick Activity
--Stand and Deliver Game
--What Does the Heart Do? - lesson idea
--How Does Blood Circulate? - lesson idea
--How Do Foods Help Our Bodies? - lesson idea (Encourages students to eat a variety of healthy foods. Describes various nutrients.)
--How Do You Choose Snacks and Other Foods? - lesson idea (Discusses factors influencing why students choose the foods they do. Activity sheets.)
--How Does Physical Activity Help You? - lesson idea (Discusses factors that influence students' choices about physical activity.)
--How Can You Stay Fit? - lesson idea (Discusses peer influences on personal health decisions related to fitness. Discusses heart-healthy fitness. Activity sheet. "What's Your Activity IQ?")
--"Smoking in the Cellar" - lesson idea
--Label the Heart's Parts - activity sheet
--What's in Foods? - activity sheet
--Be Choosy! - activity sheet
--Rate that Snack! - activity sheet
Sponsor: American Heart Association
http://www.americanheart.org (select HeartPower!)
Free

Interactive Heart Rate Worksheet
Grade(s): 4-5
This interactive worksheet is meant to teach students basic facts about the heart, how to find target heart rate, and the importance of aerobic exercise. A secondary purpose of this lesson is to give students more experience using the computer.
http://www.pecentral.org/lessonideas/ViewLesson.asp?ID=4874
Free

Is Our Health Inherited or Acquired?
Grade(s): 5
Students will be able to list the traits they get from their parents. They will be able to distnguish inherited traits from acquired ones, especially those relating to health.
http://www.uen.org/Lessonplan/preview.cgi?LPid=69
Free

Lessons for human body materials
Grade(s): 1-5
This unit investigates some of the systems of the human body.  The lessons are designed to use the various human body models from ARC.  These lessons focus on four systems: skeletal, circulatory, respiratory and digestive. 
http://www.colby.edu/cpse/equipment2/human/human.html#Circulatory%20System
Free

Let’s Get Moving!
Grades 4-5
Students consider different forms of physical activity; track exercise; and compare with other children throughout the US. Keep daily log for 1-2 weeks.
Three class periods
--Keeping a Physical Activity Log
--Classroom Comparison of Activities
--Family Fitness
Sponsor: Michigan State University
http://commtechlab.msu.edu/sites/letsnet/noframes/subjects/health/b8u4.html
Free

Mission Nutrition
Grades K-5 (K-1; 2-3; 4-5)
Three units related to promoting healthy body image, healthy eating, and physical activity. Includes lesson plans and student activities.
Sponsor: Dietitians of Canada and Team from Kellogg Canada, Inc.
http://www.missionnutrition.ca/missionnutrition/eng/educators
Free

Nutrition 3: Got Broccoli?
Grade(s): 3-5
In this lesson students will understand why the body needs food, and how it takes necessary nutrients as food passes through the digestive system.
http://www.sciencenetlinks.com/lessons.cfm?BenchmarkID=6&DocID=58
Free

Nutrition Education - Balance Benefits
Grade(s): 5
Students will understand how a healthy diet and exercise can increase the likelihood of physical and mental wellness.
http://www.uen.org/Lessonplan/preview.cgi?LPid=956
Free

Nutrition Education - Dietary Guidelines
Grade(s): 5
Students will learn about  suggested dietery guidelines and from that will understand how a healthy diet and exercise can increase the likelihood of physical and mental wellness.
http://www.uen.org/Lessonplan/preview.cgi?LPid=955
Free

Nutrition – Food Pyramid Book and Game
Grades 2-6
Students create a food pyramid and classify foods.
Sponsor: Ask ERIC Lesson Plan
One class period.
Contact: http://www.eduref.org (select lesson plans – health – nutrition)
Free

Nutrition Station Circuit
Grade(s): 3-5
The purpose of this lesson plan is to have the kids review and understand the different fitness concepts along with different basketball skills.
http://www.pecentral.org/lessonideas/ViewLesson.asp?ID=5786
Free

Salt, To Use or Not To Use
Grade(s): 5
Salt is important to human life. Potassium, added to salt, helps the kidneys regulate the body's fluid levels. Salt, made from sodium and chloride, is found in many beverages and foods we eat. Some people consume 10 times more salt than required daily. What are the real risks connected to our salt intake?
http://www.uen.org/Lessonplan/preview.cgi?LPid=248
Free

The SPARK Programs (Sports, Play and Active Recreation in Kids)
Grades preK-8
*Evaluated program with mixed results
Program to increase physical activity within and outside of school. Includes materials for PE and non-PE teachers. Special teacher training required.
Sponsor: San Diego University
http://www.sparkpe.org
+Cost

Straight from the Heart
Grade(s): K-12
The main objectives of this mini-teach are to define and demonstrate the functions of the heart; observe the vibration of a match due to the pulsation of blood in the wrist; to construct a simple stethoscope and use it to listen to your heartbeat; to measure your heart rate (pulse); to compare your heart rate with your partner's heart rate; and to calculate the number of times your heart beats in one hour.
http://www.iit.edu/~smile/bi9514.html
Free

Take 10!
Grades K-5
*Evaluated program
Yearlong classroom-based physical activity program. Students do 10 minutes of moderate to vigorous physical activities throughout the day. No special equipment or space needed. Students track activity. Materials include activity cards, student worksheets (sorted by curriculum), teacher resources, posters, stickers, teacher video, and evaluation tools.
Sponsor: International Life Sciences Institute
http://www.take10.net/funforstudents.asp
+Cost

Texas Department of State Health Services: "Anatomy" (Fifth Grade)
Grade(s): 5
The purpose of this lesson is to teach students about the basic structures and functions of the human body and how they relate to personal health.
http://www.dshs.state.tx.us/kids/lessonplans/5thgrade.htm
Free


Additional Instructional Resources

  • American Heart Association - Jump Rope For Heart (fund-raising activity for AHA - elementary schools) - http://www.americanheart.org
  • "Eating and Exercise" - http://www.healthteacher.com


Assessment Ideas

The student will:

  • write a one-page essay about personal health habits that positively effect cardiovascular fitness.
  • keep a one-week log of personal health habits that positively effect their cardiovascular system.

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