Skip to content

Course Description — Grade 5

This is the Grade 5 section of the Health Education intelligent textbook. It is one of 8 parallel grade-band sections (see the site-wide Course Description); each band has its own concept list, learning graph, chapters, quizzes, MicroSims, and infographics at a matching reading level. Source: 2025 Minnesota K-12 Health Academic Standards, Commissioner Approved (see references.md). Benchmark codes below (e.g. 5.1.1.1) are <grade>.<strand>.<anchor>.<seq>. This is the last individually-graded band before the standards shift to grade bands (6-8, 9-12).

Reading Level & Cognitive Demand

Upper elementary, transitioning toward middle-school-style comparison and application. Benchmarks emphasize compare, use, apply, evaluate, and demonstrate — e.g., comparing nutrition labels between two foods, evaluating strategies for recognizing unhealthy relationships.

Audience

Grade 5 students (age ~10-11) and their teachers.

Prerequisites

Grade 4 benchmarks across all 5 content strands, plus the Grade 4 skill benchmarks (explaining influences, describing information validity, demonstrating refusal skills, goal planning with barriers/supports).

Bridging Concepts for Students New to This Band

A student arriving directly at Grade 5 without the K-4 sections should be briefly introduced to these ideas first:

  • Nutrition labels and food groups guide meal choices; caffeinated/sugary drinks and unsafe food handling carry health risks.
  • Puberty involves physical/emotional change, and family/peer relationships influence feelings, behavior, and decisions.
  • Mental health can be supported through self-regulation and cultural practices, and it's normal and healthy to ask a trusted adult for help.
  • Bullying, exclusion, and unfair treatment harm mental health and belonging regardless of ability.
  • Regular physical activity, allergy awareness, and disease-prevention habits (hygiene, safe food/water) support long-term health.
  • Refusal skills, setting/respecting boundaries, and recognizing warning signs of unsafe situations are learnable skills, not just instincts.
  • A health-related goal can be planned with actions, resources, and known barriers, then tracked over time.

Topics

Food and Nutrition

  • Comparing cultural approaches to meeting daily nutrient/energy needs (5.1.1.1)
  • Using nutrition labels to compare two similar foods and choose the healthier one (5.1.1.2)
  • Comparing water to other drinks and how choosing water supports health (5.1.1.3)
  • Applying nutritious eating strategies to plan and choose meals/snacks (5.1.1.4)
  • How unsafe food practices cause foodborne illness (5.1.1.5)

Human Growth and Development

  • How family and peer relationships influence feelings, behavior, and decision-making (5.2.1.1)
  • Effectively telling a trusted adult about a health concern or question, for yourself or someone else (5.2.1.2)

Mental and Emotional Health

  • Healthy/restorative strategies for managing personal growth and relationships (5.3.1.1)
  • Supporting a peer in a difficult situation while respecting boundaries and guiding them to seek help (5.3.1.2)
  • Including and supporting others to promote equity and belonging (5.3.1.3)
  • Situations, people, and experiences that influence emotions, and how emotions influence behavior (5.3.1.4)
  • How individual actions and bystander behaviors can prevent or reduce bullying, fighting, and violence (5.3.1.5)
  • How treating people of all abilities with kindness supports an inclusive, welcoming environment (5.3.1.6)

Personal Health and Wellness

  • Why adequate sleep and rest matter for growth, learning, and wellbeing (5.4.1.1)
  • How different physical activities support different fitness components; identifying one activity per component (5.4.1.2)
  • Signs of allergic reactions and how to respond (5.4.1.3)
  • Symptoms of common illnesses/chronic conditions, when to seek help, and how personal behaviors affect long-term health (5.4.1.4)

Personal Safety and Violence Prevention

  • How technology and social media can cause harm; prevention/reporting strategies (5.5.1.1)
  • Recognizing unhealthy/harmful relationships, setting boundaries, seeking support, and safely exiting when needed (5.5.1.2)
  • Individual, peer, and school-staff actions that reduce risk during an emergency (5.5.1.3)
  • The difference between consent and coercion; situations that feel unsafe and how to report to a trusted adult (5.5.1.4)

Skill Standards

  • Strategies and resources to manage influences that impact health practices/behaviors (5.7.2.1)
  • Determining which trusted adults/individuals/resources are needed for various situations (5.7.3.1)
  • Demonstrating conflict-resolution skills to prevent/manage/resolve conflict (5.7.4.1)
  • Demonstrating boundary-setting skills for self and others (5.7.4.2)
  • Examining options and consequences affecting health-related outcomes (5.7.5.1)
  • Reflecting on the results and impact of a health-related decision (5.7.5.2)
  • Tracking progress and reflecting on a personal health goal (5.7.6.1)
  • Analyzing the impact of health practices/behaviors and taking ownership of personal health (5.7.7.1)
  • Delivering messages to various audiences and examining outcomes (5.7.8.1)

Key Vocabulary

nutrition label comparison, foodborne illness, bystander, equity, belonging, fitness component, allergic reaction, chronic condition, social media harm, consent, coercion, boundary-setting, conflict resolution, decision reflection

Learning Outcomes

Outcomes below are grouped by Bloom's Taxonomy level and traced to their source benchmark codes.

1. Remember

By the end of Grade 5, the student will be able to:

  1. Recognize signs of allergic reactions (5.4.1.3).

2. Understand

  1. Explain how unsafe food practices can cause foodborne illness (5.1.1.5).
  2. Explain how family and peer relationships influence feelings, behavior, and decision-making (5.2.1.1).
  3. Describe healthy, restorative strategies for managing personal growth and relationships (5.3.1.1).
  4. Identify situations, people, and experiences that influence emotions, and explain how emotions influence behavior (5.3.1.4).
  5. Explain how treating people of all abilities with kindness supports an inclusive, welcoming environment (5.3.1.6).
  6. Explain why adequate sleep and rest are important for healthy growth and learning (5.4.1.1).
  7. Describe how different types of physical activity support different fitness components (5.4.1.2).
  8. Describe symptoms of common illnesses and chronic conditions and explain when to seek help (5.4.1.4).
  9. Explain individual, peer, and school-staff actions that reduce risk during an emergency (5.5.1.3).
  10. Explain the difference between consent and coercion (5.5.1.4).

3. Apply

  1. Demonstrate how to effectively tell a trusted adult about a health concern or question (5.2.1.2).
  2. Demonstrate supporting a peer in a difficult situation while respecting boundaries and guiding them to seek help (5.3.1.2).
  3. Demonstrate ways to include and support others to promote equity and belonging (5.3.1.3).
  4. Respond appropriately to a recognized allergic reaction (5.4.1.3).
  5. Demonstrate conflict-resolution skills to prevent, manage, or resolve conflict (5.7.4.1).
  6. Demonstrate boundary-setting skills for self and others (5.7.4.2).
  7. Deliver a message to a chosen audience about a health topic (5.7.8.1).

4. Analyze

  1. Compare cultural approaches to meeting daily nutrient and energy needs (5.1.1.1).
  2. Use nutrition labels to compare two similar foods and determine which is healthier (5.1.1.2).
  3. Compare water to other drinks and explain how choosing water supports health (5.1.1.3).
  4. Analyze how individual actions and bystander behaviors can prevent or reduce bullying, fighting, and violence (5.3.1.5).
  5. Identify strategies and resources to manage influences that impact health practices and behaviors (5.7.2.1).
  6. Examine options and consider consequences that may affect health-related outcomes (5.7.5.1).
  7. Analyze the impact of health practices and behaviors and explain the importance of taking ownership of personal health (5.7.7.1).

5. Evaluate

  1. Evaluate ways technology and social media can cause harm and identify strategies for prevention and reporting (5.5.1.1).
  2. Evaluate strategies for recognizing unhealthy or harmful relationships, setting boundaries, seeking support, and safely exiting when needed (5.5.1.2).
  3. Determine which trusted adults, other individuals, and health resources are needed for various situations (5.7.3.1).
  4. Reflect on the results of a health-related decision and its impact (5.7.5.2).
  5. Track progress and reflect on achieving a personal health goal (5.7.6.1).

6. Create

  1. Apply nutritious eating strategies to plan and choose meals and snacks (5.1.1.4).