The Rainbow Plate Challenge

Our bodies need different nutrients to grow, repair themselves, stay active and function properly. No single food provides everything we need, which is why variety matters. The Nutrition Challenge highlights carbohydrates, proteins, fats, vitamins, minerals and water as key nutrients and encourages young people to explore balanced eating without focusing on restriction or perfection.

This activity adapts the manual's Healthy Plate Craft, which asks young people to create balanced meals using different food groups.

Give everyone a paper plate or draw a large circle on a sheet of paper. Your challenge is to create a colourful meal using pictures cut from magazines or food packaging, drawings, or pieces of coloured paper. 

Try to include a variety of foods representing different groups, such as fruit and vegetables, grains or tubers, protein sources, dairy or alternatives, healthy fats and water. 

When everyone has finished, put all the plates together and explore them as a group. 

For every plate, try to identify: What foods are represented? What nutrients might they provide? What gives you energy? What supports growth and repair? Where might you get vitamins and minerals? 

Then give yourselves one final challenge: Can you add one more colour or food group to your plate? 

The important message is not that there is one “correct” plate. The Nutrition Challenge stresses variety, context and the fact that healthy eating can look different for different people.

https://sdgs.scout.org/activity-type/diy-healthy-snack-workshop