Nutrition Fitness and Personal Wellness Cheat Sheet

A printable reference covering MyPlate portions, food labels, hydration, activity minutes, heart rate, sleep, and wellness habits for grades 4-6.

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This cheat sheet covers nutrition, fitness, and personal wellness skills that help students make healthy daily choices. Students in grades 4 to 6 are learning how food, movement, sleep, and hygiene affect energy, growth, mood, and focus. A clear reference helps them compare foods, plan balanced meals, and build routines that support long-term health. The most important ideas include eating a variety of foods, using simple food math, moving for at least 60 minutes each day, and caring for the body with sleep and hygiene. Useful formulas include total calories per container = calories per serving x servings per container and water goal = body needs + activity + hot weather. Wellness also includes mental and social habits, such as asking for help, managing stress, and treating others with respect.

Key Facts

A balanced plate can be planned as 1/2 fruits and vegetables, 1/4 grains, and 1/4 protein, with dairy or a calcium-rich food on the side.
Total calories per container = calories per serving x servings per container.
Total sugar in teaspoons = grams of sugar ÷ 4, because about 4 grams of sugar equals 1 teaspoon.
Daily physical activity goal for children is at least 60 minutes of moderate to vigorous movement each day.
Heart rate increase = active heart rate - resting heart rate, and a higher active heart rate usually shows the body is working harder.
Sleep goal for many children ages 9 to 12 is about 9 to 12 hours per night.
Water needs increase with exercise, heat, sweating, illness, and time spent outdoors.
Wellness includes physical health, mental health, social health, safety habits, and personal hygiene.

Vocabulary

Nutrient: A substance in food, such as protein, carbohydrate, fat, vitamin, mineral, or water, that helps the body work and grow.
Serving Size: The measured amount of food used on a nutrition label to show calories and nutrients.
Balanced Meal: A meal that includes a healthy mix of food groups to give the body energy, building materials, and important nutrients.
Physical Activity: Any body movement, such as walking, running, playing, dancing, or biking, that uses energy.
Heart Rate: The number of times the heart beats in one minute.
Personal Wellness: The overall care of the body and mind through healthy habits, safety, relationships, rest, and stress management.

Common Mistakes to Avoid

Ignoring the serving size on a food label is wrong because the calories, sugar, and nutrients are listed for one serving, not always the whole package.
Choosing foods only by calories is wrong because the body also needs nutrients like protein, fiber, vitamins, minerals, and healthy fats.
Counting only sports as exercise is wrong because walking, active play, dancing, chores, and biking can also count toward daily physical activity.
Skipping water until feeling very thirsty is wrong because thirst can be a late sign that the body needs fluids, especially during exercise or hot weather.
Treating wellness as only physical health is wrong because mood, stress, sleep, friendships, safety, and hygiene are also important parts of being well.

Practice Questions

1 A snack label says 140 calories per serving and the package has 3 servings. How many calories are in the whole package?
2 A drink has 24 grams of sugar. Using 4 grams of sugar = 1 teaspoon, how many teaspoons of sugar are in the drink?
3 Maya was active for 25 minutes at recess and 20 minutes after school. How many more minutes does she need to reach a 60-minute daily activity goal?
4 Explain why a meal with fruit, vegetables, grains, protein, and dairy or a calcium-rich food is usually healthier than a meal with only one food group.