WebQuest

Cultural Cuisine in the Cafeteria!

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STUDENT SURVEY:
In this section you will examine trends and issues in food and nutrition by gathering input from your classmates using a survey tool.  This will also give you valuable information about their likes and dislikes, and will be a key element when you are creating your menu.  Have as many students as possible (including yourselves) participate in the survey to obtain the best results.

Go to Food Survey to access the student survey tool.


LOCAL RESTAURANT RESEARCH:
For this activity you will be divided into groups.  Please see your teacher to find out what group you are in.  Each groups' research should include multiple recipes for their type of cuisine.  You will compare and contrast the differences between American, French, Italian and Asian cuisine.  We can add a Mexican restaurants group as well if you would like.  Keep in mind when researching that you will need to identify elements and characteristics of each type.  Since research is sometimes trial and error, don't forget that you can ask for help if you need it!

  • Go to http://www.yellowpages.com/ to access a list of local restaurants.
  • Under 'Business Name or Category' type in 'restaurant'.
  • Under 'Enter Location' type in your city and state (example:  Atlanta GA).  To maximize your search results you can narrow your search by entering 'Italian restaurant' or 'Japanese restaurant' for example.
  • Click on 'find'.
Remember to choose restaurants that are not chains.  If a type of cuisine is not present in your area you may have to expand your search.
  • On a piece of paper list your groups type of cuisine, and underneath, list the restaurants you found.  Your next step will be to locate menus for these.  Not all restaurants will have online menus so be sure to have a few options.
  • To find menus for the restaurants you have chosen go to http://www.google.com  and type in the name of the restaurant and your location (for example: Marco's Pizza Savannah GA).
  • For the restaurant you are researching, choose one or two menu items that you feel are representative of the type of food, and not something that may be unusual for that type of cuisine.
  • After each of you has chosen a menu item that you will research, go to the following websites and find recipes for the dishes (you may write the recipes down, print them out, or copy and paste them into a nutritional fact finder listed next):
  • To acquire calorie and nutritional information for your recipes go to the following websites (these websites will allow you to enter your recipe by copy and pasting or typing, and will calculate the calorie and nutritional content of the recipe):

As a group you will analyze the calorie and nutritional content of each dish.  Using the average or mean you will combine your findings. Remember, to find the mean you add the numbers then divide by the number of numbers (example: One of your recipes has 2 grams of sugar, one has 4 grams, and one has 6 grams.  2+4+6=12, 12/3=4).  Please see your teacher for help or use a calculator if needed.
  • Each group will create a bar chart for their type of cuisine.  Your charts will include basic nutritional and caloric findings.
  • For the title of the chart you will use the type of cuisine, and the average/mean of calories you found in the recipes for that type of cuisine (example: Italian Recipes:  800 calorie average).
  • On the Y axis (left side) your numbers will be listed depending on your results.
  • On the X axis (across the bottom) list fat, sodium mg, sugar, fiber, and protein.  All of these items will be in grams except for sodium, which should be milligrams.
  • After creating your chart and discussing your findings with your group, write a conclusion about your findings.
  • In your conclusion you need to expand your online research to include a few thoughts on elements such as life expectancy, rates of heart disease, diabetes, high cholesterol, high blood pressure, or other factors that you may find to be relevant to the area from which your cuisine originates.
  • Use these websites to help develop your conclusion.

After each group finishes their survey and conclusions we will convene as a class.  All charts will be printed and displayed together, and each group will choose a group member to speak to the class about their chart and their conclusion.  At this point you will take some time to compare the findings from the different types of cuisine and the results of the survey.  You will also discuss what findings were surprising, and what findings reflected your predictions.  You will use this research again later when you are creating your menu.



MY PYRAMID:
Using the web resources listed below you will learn about My Pyramid.  You will use this information along with your restaurant research and survey findings to create a menu that will align closely with My Pyramid.

  • Watch the My Pyramid video below (under resources).
  • Back in your groups you will use the following links to research My Pyramid.
  • Write down interesting facts that you learn while researching.
  • After you have sufficient time to research, come back together as a class and discuss your findings.
  • During this discussion each group should be adding facts to their lists.  You will use this information when creating your menu.
http://www.mypyramid.gov/
http://www.wheatfoods.org/_FileLibrary/Product/11/MyPyramid.pdf
http://ncsu.edu/ffci/publications/2006/v11-n1-2006-june/perspectives-mypyramid.php
http://www.hsph.harvard.edu/nutritionsource/what-should-you-eat/pyramid-full-story/index.html
Any group who needs additional resources please see your teacher.

CREATING YOUR MENU & PRESENTATION:
Now that all the research has been completed, as a class, you will discuss aspects of the survey, the restaurant research, and My Pyramid.  The recipes for your menu need to be nutritionally beneficial, delicious, and consistent with the favored results of the survey.  When creating your menu please consider common food allergies that may make certain foods inappropriate for a school cafeteria.

  • During the discussion, have one person write down elements that you, as a class, find to be the most vital in creating your menu.
  • After considering what you are looking for in your menu, review the recipes that you have researched.
  • From the recipes, you will choose the best recipes to supply the school with one weeks worth of food.
  • Using Juxio you will create a proposal menu.  Your proposal needs to include your recipes with corresponding facts and nutritional content.  It also needs to include suggested serving size proportions for each item.  You will include persuasive evidence that defines and elaborates on the need for a healthier menu in your school.  Part of this could be your research and charts.  You may also incorporate your ideas on current food trends and issues related to food if you believe it will further your cause.  The various parts of your proposal need to be delegated among students so a few students can be in charge of each part.  See your teacher to find out who will work on what parts.
  • Create an account on the website below and begin working on your menu proposal.
http://www.juxio.com/beta/index.php
  • Stop at regular intervals to have the teacher review what you have done so far.  This will require revision along the way and will require approval of your teacher before you can present your proposal to the principal or nutritional board.
  • You will also create a hard copy of relevant information to hand out at your presentation, which will include a hard copy of your menu. This will give the principal and nutrition board facts to review, ask questions about, and take with them for further consideration.  This will be created using Microsoft Publisher, or other page layout software or web based application.
  • After finishing your menu proposal you will arrange a time to present your menu proposal to the principal.  You will use the Promethean Board in the media center to do so.  Your presentation and using the Promethean Board needs to be practiced before you have your actual meeting with the principle.  See your teacher for details on how to go about arranging a meeting.  Your teacher will also give a tutorial on the use of the Promethean Board.
After finishing this lesson we will display your research and presentation on a wiki or website so your fellow classmates, teachers, and parents can also enjoy and learn from all the research you completed!  There are additional resources at the bottom of this page if you have any extra time to explore!

The Public URL for this WebQuest:
http://zunal.com/webquest.php?w=73633
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