Part of learning about healthy oils is learning to classify foods based on what oils they contain. Start by telling students that plant-based oils, such as olive and canola, are healthy, while trans fats in baking tend to be bad. Bring in food catalogs or magazines and have your students cut out pictures of foods. Have them put their cut-outs into two piles, healthy and unhealthy, with a special focus on oils. Go through each student's or group's pile and discuss each food and the oils it is likely to contain.
Learning how to plan a healthy meal is an important aspect of healthy living. Discuss foods that contain healthy fats and oils, such as salmon and other fatty fish, nuts, seeds and avocado. Break the class into groups and have them come up with a meal idea for breakfast, lunch and dinner. Encourage them to be creative in their meal planning. Reassemble the class and discuss each group's ideas.
Asking students to be creative can help reinforce lessons they might not otherwise remember. Have students make skits about good and bad oils. They might cast one group of students to play trans fats and another to play omega-3 fatty acids. The good and bad oils can both proclaim their effects on the human heart. Have students present their skits in front of the class.
For older kids, research can help teach food facts while enabling them to learn where to find resources for healthy eating in the future. Assign each student a food item, such as butter, pork chops or a turkey sandwich. Have students research online and in books to find healthy alternatives to their food items containing good oils. For example, a student assigned butter might discover the existence of a trans fat-free margarine. Have students make posters showing their healthy food alternatives and present them to the class.