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Science lesson plan · 5th grade (Year 6 in England) · 30 minutes

Energy in food

Energy

CCSS NGSS.5-PS3-1CCSS NGSS.MS-LS1-7England: KS3 Physics: Energy (comparing energy values of foods)

Objective and success criteria

Students will: Energy in food.

  • I can answer questions on today's skill on my own, without help.
  • I can explain each step and say why it works.
  • I can check my answer and spot a mistake.

Before and after

Needs first: Energy stores and transfers

Leads to: the next skill in this area.

Materials: Wind-up toys or a pendulum, Energy transfer diagrams, Mini whiteboards, A diagram or short video clip of the idea, Printed student sheet (below).

Warm-up · 4 min

  • Quick retrieval from earlier learning (Energy stores and transfers). Students answer on mini whiteboards.
  • Show answers together and note who needs support in the main task.
  1. Which energy store is most important here: a flying aeroplane (airplane)? (gravitational potential (height) / elastic potential (stretch or squash) / kinetic (movement) / chemical) → kinetic (movement)Prompt: Is it moving, raised up, stretched, hot, or able to release energy by reacting?
  2. When you rub your hands together, the movement energy is transferred to… (nuclear energy / chemical energy / thermal energy (they warm up) / elastic energy) → thermal energy (they warm up)Prompt: How do your hands feel?
  3. Which of these mainly has a chemical energy store? (a child at the top of a slide / a squashed spring / a stretched trampoline / petrol (gasoline)) → petrol (gasoline)Prompt: Think about what each object is doing.

Hook · 3 min

  • Wind up a toy or stretch an elastic band and ask where the energy goes.
  • Share the objective: Energy in food. Read the success criteria together.

I do: model it · 7 min

  • Work through the example out loud, saying why you do each step, not just what you do.
  • Example: A food label says yoghurt contains 2000 kJ per 100 g. How much energy is in a 200 g portion, in kJ?
  • Step 1: 2000 × 200 ÷ 100 = 4000
  • Step 2: So the answer is: 4000 kJ
  • Answer: 4000 kJ
  • Pause after each step and ask a student to say what comes next.

We do: guided practice · 6 min

  • Do these together. Students try each step on whiteboards before you reveal it.
  • Use the hints as prompts rather than giving the answer.
  1. A food label says pasta contains 150 kJ per 100 g. How much energy is in a 30 g portion, in kJ? → 45 kJPrompt: How many lots of 100 g are in the portion?
  2. Hiro uses about 20 kJ per minute when dancing. How much energy is used in 15 minutes, in kJ? → 300 kJPrompt: Multiply the energy per minute by the number of minutes.

You do: independent practice · 7 min

  • Students work on the student sheet. Circulate and check the first two answers of every student early.
  • Students who finish: write a question of their own for a partner, with the answer.

The 6 questions are on the student sheet below, with answers in the key.

Exit ticket · 3 min

  • Two questions on their own. Sort answers into got it / nearly / not yet to plan the next lesson.
  1. Which nutrient stores the most energy per gram? (water / fat / carbohydrate / protein) → fatPrompt: Butter and oil are very "energy dense".
  2. A food label says yoghurt contains 380 kJ per 100 g. How much energy is in a 250 g portion, in kJ? → 950 kJPrompt: How many lots of 100 g are in the portion?

Watch out for

  • Everyday meanings of words getting in the way of the science meaning: define key words explicitly.
  • Remembering facts without the reason: ask "why?" and "what is the evidence?"

Support and stretch

Support

  • Review first: Energy stores and transfers.
  • Use concrete materials: wind-up toys or a pendulum.
  • Give the first step of each question, or a partly worked example to finish.
  • Pair with a confident partner for the guided practice.

Stretch

  • Explain a common mistake in writing and how to fix it.
  • Write a word problem that uses today's skill, then solve a partner's.

Homework and more practice

Free online practice with hints and printable worksheets for this skill: eurekami.com/science/grade-5.

Free lesson plan from eurekami.com/lesson-plan-builder

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Energy in food

Name

Date

Score/ 6

  1. Question 1

    A food label says cereal contains 150 kJ per 100 g. How much energy is in a 50 g portion, in kJ?

    AnswerkJ

  2. Question 2

    Arjun uses about 50 kJ per minute when swimming. How much energy is used in 40 minutes, in kJ?

    AnswerkJ

  3. Question 3

    Where did the energy in a slice of bread originally come from?

    • A. the soil
    • B. the oven
    • C. the Sun, captured by wheat plants
    • D. the baker

  4. Question 4

    A food label says cereal contains 450 kJ per 100 g. How much energy is in a 250 g portion, in kJ?

    AnswerkJ

  5. Question 5

    Chloe uses about 40 kJ per minute when swimming. How much energy is used in 30 minutes, in kJ?

    AnswerkJ

  6. Question 6

    What happens if you regularly take in more food energy than you use?

    • A. It disappears
    • B. It turns into muscle automatically
    • C. Nothing happens
    • D. The extra is stored, mostly as fat

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Answer key: Energy in food

  1. 1. 75 kJ

  2. 2. 2000 kJ

  3. 3. C. the Sun, captured by wheat plants

  4. 4. 1125 kJ

  5. 5. 1200 kJ

  6. 6. D. The extra is stored, mostly as fat