Unit 3 WebQuest Project

A Well Planned Diet

Introduction | Task | Process | Guidance | Resources | Conclusion

Introduction
You are what you eat! So are you ice cream or broccoli? You're on a mission to find out! Along the way, you'll collect and analyze data about what you eat over a period of five days. You'll take into account serving sizes, Calories, and fat grams. You'll also take on the roll of a nutritionist, researching the Food Pyramid and creating a healthy meal plan. So bring a hearty appetite and your math tool kit. This adventure will tantalize your taste buds!

Nutritional Challenge 1:
First, keep a record of all the food that you eat for five straight days, keeping a record of the amount you eat as well as the different characteristics of the foods.

Nutritional Challenge 2:
Second, research the Food Pyramid and create the healthiest meal from a selection of food choices.

Nutritional Challenge 3:
Third, create a presentation that includes your nutritional analysis of what you currently eat and of what you feel is a well-balanced meal.

The Process
Below is a detailed description of each nutritional challenge.

Nutritional Challenge 1:

1. Create a chart and record everything that you eat for five consecutive days. Your chart should include the following information for each item consumed:
   • the name of the food,
   • the number of servings consumed,
   • the number of Calories per serving,
   • the total number of Calories consumed,
   • the amount of fat per serving, and
   • the total amount of fat consumed.
     
     Do not round your numbers. Use decimals where necessary.
2. Create a second chart that contains the same information as the first. For this chart, convert all of your data from decimal to fraction form. Do not, however, write whole numbers as fractions.
   
   
3. Now that you have charted your food intake, it is time to analyze your diet. Printout and answer the questions found on the food analysis worksheet.

Food Analysis Worksheet

NAME:_______________________________ DATE:_________________

Below are your analysis questions. Print this page out, and be sure to show all of your work in the provided space.

1. What was your mean Calorie intake for the five days charted? Write your answer as a fraction in simplest form.
   
   
   
   
2. What was your mean fat intake in grams for the five days charted? Write your answer as a decimal.
   
   
   
   
3. What was the median and mode for your Calorie intake for the five days charted? Write your answer as a decimal.
   
   
   
   
4. What was the median and mode for your fat intake in grams for the five days charted? Write your answer as a fraction in simplest form.
   
   
   
   
5. Find the mean of your total breakfast Calorie intake. Write your answer as a decimal.
   
   
   
   
6. Find the median of your total fat intake in grams for your lunches. Write your answer as a fraction in simplest form.
   
   
   
   
7. Find the mean of your total dinner Calorie intake. Write your answer as a decimal.
   
   
   
   
8. Find the mean number of servings of food you ate per day.
   
   
   
   
9. Looking at your charted food, what category of food did you consume the most of? Find the mean number of servings from that category you consumed.
   
   
   
   
10. What category of food did you consume the least of? Find the mean number of servings from that category you consumed.

Nutritional Challenge 2:
Next, you are going to take on the role of a nutritionist.

1. Use the Internet to locate an explanation and diagram of the Food Pyramid. Print out or draw a diagram of the pyramid.
   
   
2. Now research the different foods listed below. Record what amount makes one serving, the number of Calories in one serving, and the number of fat grams in one serving of each item.
   
   
   
Drink

2% Milk	Grape Juice	Apple Juice	Orange Juice
Soft Drink	Lemonade	Tea	Water



Main Dish

Hamburger Patty	Steak	Hotdogs	Chicken
Cheese Macaroni	Plain Spaghetti	Pork chop	Tuna
Eggs	Cheese	White Rice	Black Beans



Vegetable

Carrots	Green Beans	Peas	Broccoli
Corn	Green Peppers	Spinach	Garden Salad



Fruit

Bananas	Apples	Peaches	Pears
Oranges	Pineapple	Plums	Raisins



Condiment/Sauces

Ketchup	Mustard	Mayonnaise	Relish
Italian Dressing	Ranch Dressing	Thousand Island Dressing	Oil and Vinegar
Marinara Sauce	Alfredo Sauce	Stir-Fry Sauce	Barbeque Sauce



Bread Sandwich Bread

White Sandwich Bread

Whole Wheat Sandwich Bread

Yeast Rolls

Whole Wheat Rolls



Dessert/Snack

Chocolate Chip Cookies	Graham Crackers	Brownies	Oatmeal Cookies
Sandwich cookies	Corn Chips	Potato Chips	Pretzels




3. Using the nutritional facts about each food and the Food Pyramid, design what you believe to be the healthiest meal. It is important that you take into account the amount of fat and the number of Calories that will be consumed. Write 1 to 2 paragraphs explaining why your meal is the healthiest.
   
   
4. Make the following calculations based on your chosen meal. Be sure to show all of your work.
   
   1. Calculations
      Write your answers as fractions in simplest form.
      1. Total number of servings of carbohydrates out of suggested number of daily servings of carbohydrates
      2. Total number of servings of fruits and vegetables out of suggested number of daily servings of fruits and vegetables
      3. Total number of servings of meat out of suggested number of daily servings of meat
      4. Total number of servings of dairy products out of suggested number of daily servings of dairy products
      5. Total grams of fat out of suggested daily number of fat grams
      6. Total grams of saturated fat out of suggested daily number of saturated fat grams
      7. Total grams of unsaturated fat out of suggested daily number of unsaturated fat grams
      8. Total number of Calories consumed out of suggested daily allowance of Calories
         
         
   2. Calculations
      Your answers in decimal form.
      9. Percent of meal that is saturated fat
      10. Percent of meal that is unsaturated fat
      11. Percent of daily intake of fat consumed in the meal
      12. Percent of daily intake of Calories consumed in the meal
      13. What percent of your meal's Calories is from carbohydrates?
      14. What percent of your meal's Calories is from fruits and vegetables?
      15. What percent of your meal's Calories is from meat?
      16. What percent of your meal's Calories is from dairy?
          

Nutritional Challenge 3:
Now it's time to put all of your findings together and create a presentation. Your presentation should include:

• both charts showing your nutritional intake for 5 consecutive days;
• the analysis of your nutritional intake;
• your explanation and diagram of the Food Pyramid;
• your analysis of the foods you had to select from to create your "healthiest meal;"
• pictures of some of the foods you chose for your meal;
• the paragraphs you wrote which explain your reasoning for choosing the foods you did; and
• your calculations based on the meal you created.

Guidance
Do you have some questions rumbling within you? Well, if so you have come to the right place! Below are some guiding questions or helpful hints for each Nutritional Challenge.

Nutritional Challenge 1:
Below is an example of a chart that you could use for this activity. Remember, you will have more rows than is shown below.

When completing the Food Analysis Worksheet, you will run across words like mean, median, and mode. Refer to Lesson 2-4 in your textbook for examples and explanations of these terms.

Nutritional Challenge 2:
On average, males need to consume 2,200 Calories a day, and females need to consume 2,000 Calories a day. Also, males need to consume about 50 grams of fat a day, and females need to consume about 40. Thus, you should keep this in mind when you are planning out your meal!

Nutritional Challenge 3:
Some of the presentations that you could create are:

• a Web page,
• a poster, or
• a newspaper/magazine article.
  

Resources
In need of some helpful Web sites? Below are some fantastic sites that you are advised to use throughout the duration of this quest!
Keep Kids Healthy
Food Guide Pyramid
NetGrocer
Yahooligans

Conclusion
Congratulations! You have successfully completed your nutritionist tasks! Using your mathematical tools, you have witnessed the power and importance of mathematics even in something as simple as food. Yes indeed, fractions, decimals, and percents are all around us in all that we do! Your diet is filled with mathematics, and it is imperative for you to be able to successfully analyze different products that are available to you. Keep up the good work!