Set up a pretend grocery store in the classroom. Bring in empty food boxes and containers, along with a cash register and play money. If you don't have a cash register, put cardboard dividers into a box to make your own. Line the food containers up on shelves and put price stickers on each shelf. Ask children to make a shopping list, then go shopping. Some children can play the shoppers and others can play cashiers. Switch roles so each child gets to play each part.
Cut out pictures of food from magazines or take pictures of food you have at home. Post a large piece of paper in front of the class. Ask children to help you come up with different sections of the grocery store, then draw a map of a store. Your map should include sections for frozen food, fruits and vegetables, dry food and cold food like dairy products. Hold up a picture of a food and ask for a volunteer to tape the food into the right section.
Cut out pictures of pretend money. Let children decorate the money with crayons and markers, giving each child $10 worth of pretend bills and coins. Laminate each piece for sturdiness. Explain how much each piece of money is worth. Show children pictures of several different foods that have been labeled with a price tag. Ask each child to pick a healthy meal from the foods without spending more than his ten dollars. Add up the price of his meal and help him count the amount out of his money.
Talk about the five food groups, giving examples of each one. Show children the food pyramid and explain how many servings of each food group are recommended each day. Give each child a blank shopping list, broken up into sections by food group. Ask each child to fill in the shopping list by writing or drawing pictures of foods that she likes into each section. Make a drawing of your local grocery store and ask each child to locate each food on her list in the store.