Life skills and special education
Nutrition Activities for Teens
Reading Food Labels & Meal Planning on a Budget
- Grades
- Grades 6–12
- Formats
- Google Slides, PDF, PowerPoint
- Pages
- 30
- Answer keys
- Included
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Teach teens to read food labels and plan meals on a budget with this complete set of nutrition activities for grades 6-12. Students learn the current Nutrition Facts label one part at a time, do the math behind serving sizes and % Daily Value, build a label of their own, find the 9 major food allergens in ingredient lists, plan balanced meals, compare unit prices and price a 3-dinner meal plan on a $30 budget. Every label is a fictional product drawn in the FDA format, every number is checked, and the tone is kind: no "good" or "bad" foods, no dieting and no talk about weight.
What's included
- Teacher guide with 5-day pacing, learning goals and materials
- Teaching notes: differentiation (support, on level, challenge), a sensitivity note (eating disorders, food insecurity, allergies, cultures), a 2026 update on MyPlate and the new Dietary Guidelines, and where every fact comes from
- Standards page (National Health Education Standards, FCS National Standards, Common Core math and literacy) with a full table of contents
- Label Words: 12 vocabulary terms + 10 practice items
- Meet the Nutrition Facts Label: a large labeled diagram of the 5 parts + 9 questions
- The 5-20 Guide to % Daily Value: low/in between/high and nutrients to get more of or less of
- Serving Size Math: scale a label for 1, 2 and 4 servings
- Label Showdown: compare two yogurts (total vs. added sugars, protein, calcium)
- Build a Label: divide a 12-muffin batch, find each %DV and fill in a blank Nutrition Facts label
- Ingredients & the 9 Major Allergens: order by weight, names for added sugars, allergen statements and "may contain"
- Allergen Detective: 8 product ingredient lists + a 9-allergen chart
- Food Groups in Our Own Words, with foods from many cultures
- Balanced Meal Builder: check 6 meals, fix 2, build your own on a meal tray
- Plan a Day of Meals for one of 4 teens with different needs (vegetarian, lactose intolerant, sesame allergy, halal)
- Practice Grocery Store price list (25 items) + 6 unit-price comparisons
- Budget Meal Plan: price 3 dinners for a family of 4 on $30, cost per serving, and swap in a family favorite
- Sugary Drink Math: 6 drink labels (including a dual-column label), grams to teaspoons and %DV
- Swaps Without Shame: 6 scenarios that respect culture, budget and dietary needs
- 16 task cards + recording sheet
- 15-question quiz and 4 exit tickets
- Complete answer keys, with sample answers and "look for" notes for every open-ended question
How to use it
Use it in health, FCS, culinary, life skills, special education or consumer math. Run the whole 5-day unit, or use Days 1-2 as a food-label mini-unit and Day 4 as a meal-planning and budgeting lesson. Low prep: print, then cut apart the task cards and exit tickets. Students plan for fictional teens and families, so nobody has to share what they eat at home. Calculators are recommended for the %DV, unit price and budget pages.
Skills practiced
Reading Nutrition Facts labelsserving size math% Daily Valuetotal vs. added sugarsingredient liststhe 9 major food allergensfood groupsbalanced mealsmeal planning for different needsunit pricesbudgetinggrams to teaspoons
