Subject: Food / Environment
Topic: Fair Trade and Food Miles
Age Group: Year 3 / 4
Synopsis: All over the world, people are working to protect our planet in new and exciting ways. Spark classroom curiosity about the 4,500 Fairtrade mark products being sold in the UK. Inspired by the ‘Fair Trade’ text by Jillian Powell, the pack provides structured activities, from debating on food miles to making fruit ice cream sundae using Fairtrade ingredients. These classroom activities will not only keep your class engaged but they have the potential to encourage the pupils to grow their own vegetables and fruit.
Wanda Gajewski
Wandsworth LRS
Librarian’s view:
‘Somewhere inside of us is the power to change the world’’
Roald Dahl
What’s the story of our food? Incorporate picture books into a discussion about the different countries that our food comes from. This will help your children develop constructive and critical thinking about some of the environmental and ethical issues around the world’s food supply. The pack will also spark a discussion with your children about how they can get involved with saving the planet. It might also lead to exploring the benefits of growing their own foods.
High quality resources will excite and engage children studying about Fair Trade and food using:
Project Resources
The World Came to My Place Today
by Jo Readman
Take your children on a journey around the world. They will be amazed to discover how plants from all over the world affect their daily lives. The children will join the main character as he drinks orange juice from Spain, eats rice from China and sets sail for Africa in search for chocolate.
Food and Fair trade
by Paul Mason
Explore the many types of Fairtrade-certified products from bananas to tea then track the long journeys some food makes before it reaches the plate. Children will expand their knowledge about food miles, sustainable food growing and the importance of protecting our planet.
The Story of Tea
by Alex Woolf
The tea we use to brew a morning cuppa has an amazing story that spans centuries, continents and cultures. From ancient Chinese rituals to an everyday staple drink, this book reveals many interesting facts about tea.
From Bean to Bar
by Andrew Baker
Children will learn about the story of chocolate. They might be surprised to find out that the chocolate is made from cocoa beans which grow on trees. The first people to grow cacao trees were the Mayan, who lived in Central America more than 1,000 years ago.
Activities
Suggested activities:
- Ask the children to bring in a Fairtrade product or packaging to make a display. Use a map to illustrate where products come from. You could also make a collage of empty packaging.
- Plan to celebrate Fairtrade Fortnight, which happens nationally in March.
- Make a yummy fruit ice cream sundae with your children. You can adapt the sundae by using different fair-trade fruits, flavoured ice cream or yogurt.
- Children will discover that you do not need to have green fingers to grow your own tomatoes. Encourage your class to join a gardening club or set one up at your school.
Websites to visit:
