New toolkit designed to help children understand relationship between food and mood

A free toolkit for educators and families, The Good Mood Food Special, has been introduced by Hort Innovation’s Phenomenom project, designed to give children the right tools to learn how to boost their mood and have a positive mindset.

 

“The digital resources, with Australian curriculum-aligned lesson plans across numeracy, literacy, humanities, and health, make it easy for teachers to engage kids in learning through videos, podcasts and activities, whether in the classroom or in a remote learning environment,” Hort Innovation General Manager Research and Development Dr Alison Anderson said. 

 

The resources will help children to learn more about how their mood can be impacted by food, and what else they can do to boost their well-being including spending time in green spaces and gardening. 

 

The package includes:

 

• A fully animated video episode called a ‘webisode’ (voiced by comedian Matt Okine and Little Lunch star Madison Lu) with a specially composed song to gain kids’ hearts and minds;

 

• Three animated ‘Nomcast’ audio podcast episodes;

 

• Four PDF resources including lesson plans designed for teachers to pick up and run with in the classroom or set for the remote learning environment;

 

• Posters, classroom prompt cards and quiz questions designed for the Kahoot platform; and, 

 

• A Good Mood Moves wheel encourages teachers to provide regular mood breaks, using movement in line with current research to help boost engagement. It features a specially designed interactive wheel that gamifies fruit and vegetables into exercises that children benefit from doing regularly. 

 

“Contemporary research is highlighting how important it is to honour all of our childrens’ feelings, not just the good ones, and we’re trying to give them the tools to learn to put themselves in a positive mindset, despite whatever obstacles might come their way,” Phenomenom creator Alice Zaslavsky said.

 

”There is a strong body of evidence supporting whole foods for a good mood. These resources will help educators explain the science of good mood foods and the impact of green space on mood in a fun and engaging way,” Accredited Practising Dietitian and Hort Innovation Research and Development Manager Jemma O’Hanlon said.

 

The package, wheel and all resources are available for free online at Phenomenom.com.au.