Implementation of ‘Do You Like Fruit and Vegetables?’ (SOI-PL-213)

This is an online implementation of the learning scenario “Do you like fruit and vegetables?“ (LS-PL-256) which was carried out with twenty-one students in a rural primary school in Poland. During the online lesson, students practised the vocabulary of fruit and vegetables and learned new ones. They not only did the first entertaining activity of the scenario but also did some more creative activities. Thanks to the additional tasks, the students broadened their knowledge related to the nutritional values ​​of vegetables and fruit, developed their creativity, looked at art from a different perspective and became more interested in art.

The implementation context

The learning scenario was used during an English language lesson I taught online to the 6th-grade students of the Primary School in Krośnica, Poland. Since my students have been learning remotely for almost a year, I decided to encourage them to have a healthy lifestyle by eating vegetables and fruit every day. Everyone should eat vegetables and fruit several times a day as part of the main meals and snacks. The variety of vegetables and fruit consumed provide all the valuable nutrients, especially when sitting in front of a computer screen.

The narrative

The aim of the lesson was to revise vocabulary about fruit and vegetables in English, get students interested in art and encourage them to eat healthily. As an introduction to the lesson, I used the learninagapps game suggested by the author of the scenario, in which the given words were divided into two categories: vegetables and fruit. As a result, we got the Vertumnus painting. My students were very surprised because they had never seen such a picture before. Then, I showed the resources and possibilities of Europeana. The students got to know the work of Giuseppe Arcimboldo and they learnt that his portraits and figural compositions consisted of still-life elements arranged in an image of a face or a scene.

After that, the students wrote out the vegetables and fruit they had noticed in the famous painting. I asked them about their favourite fruit and vegetable as well.

It turned out that they eat apples, oranges, bananas, tomatoes and carrots the most willingly. They wrote sentences: I like…but I don’t like…

I did not do the suggested activity using Kahoot and instead, the students looked for information on the nutritional value of vegetables and fruit on the Internet. They found out what valuable minerals and vitamins fruit and vegetables have.

As the students became very interested in the subject, I offered them additional tasks. Each of them chose 1 fruit and 1 vegetable, which they described in the form of a poster, taking into account nutritional values, minerals and vitamins. Additionally, they could prepare a picture of vegetables and fruit as well as salads and cocktails.

Learning outcomes

This lesson showed lots of emotions and it is especially important during the pandemic period. We learn much more effectively thanks to emotions. There are many mnemonics that use funny associations, funny drawings or rhymes that allow remembering even the most complicated material. Why? Because emotions are at stake.

The students could play the Vertumnus game and discovered a picture that caused a lot of emotion. The work of Giuseppe Arcimboldo evokes laughter, disgust and admiration. This fascinated my students and inspired them to look for more information about this artist. They were very interested in the lesson.

The students talked about fruit and vegetables they like and dislike in English, they chose the fruit and vegetables they wanted to describe and, what’s more, they wanted to do additional tasks in the form of paintings, posters, salads, smoothies and juices. In other words, I encouraged them to eat healthily.

Teaching outcomes

By choosing this lesson scenario I paid attention to simple elements, the image that was used and the vocabulary. I discovered the advantages and possibilities of Europeana, easy access to materials and lots of interesting ideas. Thanks to Europeana, I was able to choose images that can be used for free. Moreover, it is easy to check the licence and respect copyright.

I wanted to surprise my students and encourage them to eat healthily during the coronavirus pandemic. I also wanted to evoke various emotions, especially the positive ones, which help to remember large amounts of material much more effectively. The students were interested, motivated and they suggested what additional tasks could be performed. It is the sensational and amazing effect of one painting.

This LS is a good choice, especially if you want to surprise and interest your students in art and encourage them to follow a healthy diet. I especially recommend it for the pandemic and springtime, as it brings hope and new challenges.

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Do You Like Fruit and Vegetables? created by Barbara Legutko

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Do you want to discover more stories of implementation? Click here.

Public Domain Mark 1.0: the featured image used to illustrate this article has been found on Europeana and has been provided by the Rijksmuseum.