Topic hub: Active learning

Welcome to our first ‘topic hub’, designed to be a one-stop shop for teachers looking for inspiration, guidance or resources around a particular topic or theme. We will be publishing a number of different topic hubs over the next six months.

This first topic hub is around active learning. We will guide you through the benefits and purpose of active learning and provide you with practical classroom examples and ready to use resources.

What is active learning?

Active learning is, "Anything that involves students in doing things and thinking about things they are doing."

Charles C Bonwell and James A Eison

Active learning is based around a pupil-centred approach. It puts students at the heart of the learning experience. By becoming active participants in their learning, they can build on their knowledge and understanding through experiences.

How does active learning benefit your students? 

• Pupils are actively engaged in their own learning, rather than simply receiving information from a teacher.
• Pupils can apply what they are learning, think critically, and develop a deeper understanding of the material.
• Research has shown that active learning leads to better retention and understanding of the material, compared to passive learning.
• By actively engaging with the material, pupils are more likely to remember and understand what they are learning, and to be able to apply it in real-world situations.
• Helps pupils make more informed decisions.

Active learning resources

Try these active learning tasks suitable for both primary and secondary students in your classroom! 

Cooking and nutrition (food science)

Umami

Umami is often referred to as the fifth sense. It is a subtle taste and is often disguised by others. Get your students to explore their senses with this umami tasting session.

• Umami tasting instructions
• Umami tasting worksheet

Foams

Foams are formed when air or another gas is trapped within a sold or liquid. This is a principle of food science. Use our foam information sheet and guidance to allow your students to learn about foams through their experience.

• Making foams information sheet 
• Making foams worksheet 

Cheese or butter making

Cheese or butter making can demonstrate food science principles such as denaturation and coagulation to your students. Allow your students to gain experience and develop their understanding by making cheese or butter. 

• Cheese making PPT 
• Cheese making information sheet 
• Cheese making worksheet 
• Melting and making butter PPT
• Making butter instructions
• Making butter worksheet

Healthy eating

The Eatwell Guide

Consolidate your students’ knowledge around the Eatwell Guide through active learning tasks, such as sorting foods into the correct sections of the Eatwell Guide.  

• Eatwell Guide instructions 
• Blank Eatwell Guide 
• Eatwell Guide food cards 
• Healthy eating dominoes

Nutrients

Use the Nutrient cards to order and compare foods by the different types and amounts of nutrients they contain. This helps illustrate that we need a variety of different foods to get the nutrients we need in our diet. 

• Nutrient cards 

Fibre

Only 14% of primary school aged children and 4% of secondary school aged children have their recommended daily amount of fibre. Students can explore the amount of fibre in foods by ordering the cards from highest to lowest in fibre content (either by portion or by 100g). They can also be used for comparing the amount of fibre in fruit and vegetables, with that in cereals and grains. Use the cards to create a display, to keep the conversation going!

• Fibre cards 

Source: NDNS published 2025

Food labels

Encourage your students to analyse food labels using visual aids by measuring amounts of sugar and fat.

• Nutrient comparison instructions
• Nutrient comparison worksheet

Portion size

Students can discover portion sizes through weighing and measuring. This can provide them with a visual guide to compare their usual portion and the recommended portion size for different foods. For further information and examples of portion sizes, check out get portion wise!

• Estimating and weighing instructions  
• Estimating and weighing worksheet

Where food comes from 

Farm to fork

Introduce your students to the farm to fork process. Ask them to organise cards into the correct sequence of events and discover where food comes from. 

• Farm to fork instructions 
• Eggs - the journey cards
• Lamb- the journey cards
• Tomatoes- the journey cards 
• Cereals- the journey cards

Food waste

1/3 of all food produced globally is wasted and the UK wastes approximately 9.52 million tonnes of food every year! Food waste is a huge part of sustainability. Using our leftovers activity, your students can explore ways to prevent and reduce food waste.

• Leftovers instructions
• Store cupboard items
• Leftovers cards

Source: Food Waste Statistics 2025

For more active learning ideas, visit: click here