Let's Make a Meal!

The Seattle OFL staff would like to introduce a brand new exciting cooperative nutrition game! Unlike the traditional jeopardy game used with the curriculum, the new “Let’s Make a Meal” game encourages class participants to work together instead of competing with each other. The purpose of the game is to teach class participants where different foods fit on the food pyramid and how to create well balanced meals.


The game begins by separating the class into small groups. Each group is given a turn to roll on the game board and answer a question. The game board colors correspond to questions about the different food groups. If a team answers correctly they can then choose a food (such as a banana, piece of chicken, tortilla, etc.) and place it on the breakfast, lunch, dinner, or snack plate. There are three spots open on each plate and the only rule is that each plate must have at least three different food groups on it to make a complete meal. The objective of the game is to make three complete healthy meals and two complete healthy snacks.

We found that the game to be quite a success after piloting it with seniors and teens. Many of the participants really enjoyed seeing the different food combinations they might not have thought of on their own. Others gained a lot from analyzing the meals for nutrition content after they were completed. We are very excited to keep using the non-competitive game as a cooking and nutrition education tool!