KS3 ~ Year 8 ~ Energy in Food

This lesson is designed for the KS3 Year 8 Science course, specifically the P2 1.2 unit on ‘Energy.

The lesson begins with a ‘Think > Pair > Share’ task whereby students are asked to think about why explorers need some large quantities of energy? What foods would provide them with such daily energy requirements? Students should have the covered the ‘Diet & Nutrients’ topic in Biology by this point, so after a short discussion in pairs they can feed their ideas back to the class and the answer can be revealed.

Students will now be provided with a set of food labels, if possible they should also be allowed access to the Internet via phones/laptops, using these tools students should estimate their daily energy intake, compare this with others and then make a list of all the ways their body might use this energy.

This follows into a task whereby students will look at activities, students will need to place these activities in order from most energy intensive to least energy intensive. Once complete, students can assess their work against the answers provided in the PowerPoint presentation.

Students are now provided with a set of data on the energy required to perform a range of activities for one hour. They will firstly need to plot this data onto a bar graph, they will also need to answer a set of questions. The mark scheme for this task is included in the PowerPoint presentation so students can self-assess their work once it is complete.

Lastly, students will complete an investigation into the energy content within food. The practical worksheet is included, students can collect the equipment listed and follow the steps in the method to fill in the results table in their books. Once complete, students should answer the summary questions.

The plenary task requires students to write a twitter message to their friends, including #keywords.

All resources are included at the end of the presentation, thanks for looking, if you have any questions please let me know in the comments section and any feedback would be appreciated :)