Aug. 30-Sept. 5, 2012, Current Events Lesson Plan
Current Event:
After reviewing more than 200 studies of the content and associated health gains of organic and nonorganic foods, researchers at Stanford University reported recently that there was no real difference in nutritional content.
Objective:
Shoppers buy organic food for various reasons. Consumers may buy organic meat and dairy products because of their concerns about the treatment of livestock on large commercial farms. Some people buy organic food because they believe modern agriculture leads to environmental and health problems. The Behind the Headlines news story and related World Book articles take a deeper look at the scientists’ conclusions.
Words to Know:
Discussion Topics:
1. Organic food is grown or raised using environmentally and animal-friendly farming methods. Ask your students if they can name any of these types of farming methods. (They might say the application of little or no synthetic fertilizer, pesticide, or other artificial chemical to plants, or the ability of farm animals to roam freely instead of being confined to cages.)
2. The scientists concluded there was no real difference in nutritional content between organic and nonorganic food. However, they found that organic food was 30 percent less likely to contain pesticides. Ask your students if they know if their parents purchase organic foods, and if so, which foods?