Guide to Using Refresh.ED

Refresh.ED provides Kindergarten to Year 10 teachers with a variety of curriculum materials to help introduce food and nutrition in their classrooms. Here’s how to use Refresh.ED in your planning, teaching and professional learning.

Curriculum planning

Refresh.ED can be taught in a number of different learning areas, with opportunities for cross-curricular teaching.  The Refresh.ED scope and sequence defines key food and nutrition focus areas, messages and content descriptions from kindergarten to year 10. These are aligned with specific learning areas and general capabilities of the Western Australian and Australian Curriculum.

Programming

At each year level, Refresh.ED provides units which fit into one of four food and drink focus areas; SOURCE, CHOICE, EXPERIENCE AND HEALTH. These four focus areas can be taught in different learning areas to provide a cross-curricular approach to nutrition education at each year level.

Programming of Refresh.ED units is flexible. Teachers can choose to teach one or more units and in any order depending on teacher and student needs, interests and/or prior learning.

There is also no prescribed duration for each unit, one unit may be taught over a week (one learning task a day) or over half a term (one learning task a week).  Four units may be taught in different learning areas over a year.

Unit plans

Each Refresh.ED unit follows a similar format with 3-6 learning tasks per unit. Learning tasks are structured under the headings INTRODUCING, DEVELOPING and REFLECTING Key Messages. Teaching in this sequence is recommended to help progressively build student learning.

Watch the video for a step by step guide to using Refresh.ED units.

Lesson plans

Refresh.ED makes lesson planning easy. Teaching steps are provided along with background information, a resource list, activity sheets and suggested time allocation.  Times are a guide only depending on factors such as prior learning and depth of exploration.

Teacher professional learning

Refresh.ED provides online professional learning in three different ways:

• Nutrition information directly relevant to a specific unit is provided in the Teacher Information section of the unit.
• Detailed information about core food and nutrition concepts common to all Refresh.ED units is provided in Teacher information sheets and short Teacher information videos.
• Short Teacher practice videos show how to use Refresh.ED units to achieve essential dimensions of classroom pedagogy such as a quality learning environment, intellectual quality and significance.