What's on My Plate?

Gr 1—4—The Food Pyramid has been replaced by the ChooseMyPlate nutrition guidelines released by the federal government in June, 2011. The hope is to simplify good nutrition by showing what a serving of food should look like, percentage-wise, on a plate. Slim Goodbody is back to explain this concept to children. He defines nutrients and then examines each part of a healthy diet—fruits, vegetables, grains, protein, and dairy—through example and song. Vitamins and minerals are highlighted and viewers are told that variety is the key to good health. What's especially nice is that examples are shown of a typical serving size to make it easier to understand how to apply the concept to an actual menu. Label-reading is encouraged. Slim Goodbody presents the information with his usual energy. A multiethnic cast of children adds to the fun. Oddly, some of the video footage seems as though it has been recycled from an older program because it lacks crispness and the children's clothing and hairstyles are rather out of date. Still, that's a minor quibble. There's not much out there currently on the new guidelines, and this program presents the information in an easy-to-understand format. Use it to replace older nutrition programs.—Teresa Bateman, Brigadoon Elementary, Federal Way, WA