Food, environment and health : a guide for primary school teachers /

This book for primary school teachers provides a practical collection of facts, advice, projects, games, stories, and sample questions for use in teaching children the importance of healthy habits. Food, personal hygiene, and the home environment are areas of particular concern. Details range from advice on ways to start a school garden or design a class growth chart to instructions for a game of "germ warfare" that illustrates how pathogens invade the human body. Throughout, the work emphasizes simple, imaginative tools for correcting errors of food safety, nutrition, and personal hygiene commonly found in developing countries. The book consists of seven self-contained teaching units which can be used in any sequence. Units deal with: (1) food and the body; (2) keeping food safe; (3) a safe water supply; (4) safe collection and disposal of waste; (5) personal hygiene; (6) the role of insects, pests, and domestic animals in spreading disease; and (7) a healthy home environment. Teachers are given guidance for explaining to children the body's need for water, the types of food the body needs to stay healthy, and the means by which disease can be spread through a community. The liberally illustrated book contains numerous suggestions for involving children in practical activities that will reinforce what they learn and help them appreciate the relevance of their new knowledge to their lives outside the school. (Author/RH)