Introduction


 * [[image:Mobile-Marketing-Advertising-To-Grow-At-A-Compound-Annual-Growth-Rate-CAGR-Of-40-Percent-Over-Next-Five-Years.jpg width="95" height="58"]] || [[image:coollogo_com-14035109978.png width="282" height="54"]] ||

** AN INSATIABLE APPETITE FOR ADVERTISING **

// How Does Advertising Affect the Food Choices We Make? //

How we feel about our-selves impacts daily on the way we relate and engage in the world around us. Having knowledge about food and making wise nutritional choices so that we can fuel our body and help it work is vital for our growth and well-being. In a fast paced media saturated society where so much emphasis is put on looks and image to buy products, are we actually making wise choices? Or are we just grabbing the brand names we know or the eye-catching packaging and throwing them into our lunchboxes and shopping trundlers as we rush to the next place without giving it much thought?

Our wiki resource aims to look past the veneer of branding and attractive packaging and delve below the surface. What is really in the foods we eat? If we knew would we still be making the same product choices? And why do we need those vitamin supplements? The intention is to encourage and challenge teachers and students alike to discern between the images we are bombarded with and clever marketing strategies we see as we walk down the supermarket aisles, open a magazine or turn on the TV to make informed and healthy choices about the nutritional practices we keep.

Teachers and students using our wiki will be able to explore the issues between, healthy eating, marketing, branding, and advertising through a range of curriculum areas including english, health, social sciences, technology, science, maths and the arts. We believe the meaningful and authentic learning experiences provided in this resource will engage, motivate and excite students and teachers alike, while providing opportunities to promote critical thinking skills, consumption and citizenship. These integrated activities also aim to encourage students to collaborate and construct their own understanding through the use of digital technologies such as flip minos, comic life, internet, You Tube, word processing, spreadsheets and keynote. In the suggested culminating task, students will be able to share their learning in both a collaborative ‘celebratory’ whole class activity and an individual digital presentation.

Choosing to teach a topic like this will allow you as teachers to explore and promote the **Key Competencies** with your pupils. The nature and scope of the topic will encompass all the competencies. (Ministry of Education - The New Zealand Curriculum 2007)
 * Thinking - Students will have the opportunity to problem solve, seek knowledge of the topic, they will be asking questions and using ideas of their own.
 * Using language, symbols, and text - There is vast scope here for students to use not only traditional methods of language, (reports,letters), but to engage with the new technology.
 * Managing Self - Students could be asked to formulate their own inquiry questions, to follow them up independently, and assess for themselves how well they understood and explained the topic.
 * Relating to Others. - There is also the opportunity for pupils to work in co-operative groups, negotiating paths to follow,collaborating on information.
 * Participating and contributing - We will give you ideas for taking students out into the wider community, as part of their investigation, but also when delivering their findings.

This resource is designed for year 5-6 students but many suggested activities could be modified to include year 4 students. We recommend this as a summer or spring unit to optimize vegetable growth.

__** References: **__ Ministry of Education -//The New Zealand Curriculum 2007// Learning Media, Wellington. Anne-Maree and Kathryn ||
 * [[image:balanced_nutrition.jpg width="90" height="55"]] || We hope you find this Teacher Resource enjoyable and hands on friendly to use.