·       Cut the two attached documents into individual squares.

·       Place all the squares in a cap or basket and mix them. If you have more than 32 students, ask some of them to help you by distributing and collecting squares, or working together as an observation team. Observation teams can monitor progress, keep time, and generally act as referees.

·       Walk from one wall of your classroom to the other, counting your steps to determine how many it takes to cross the room. Decide which side of the room you want students to line up on.

Goal: Students identify how diet, sleep, and exercise affect their efforts to achieve a goal.

Explain that the goal of the game is for students to reach the wall on the other side of the room. Tell students to line up against a wall in the classroom. 

1.     Ask them to choose a square from the hat or basket, read the square out loud, and take the number of steps indicated.

2.     After each student has drawn and read a square, provide the following instructions:

• Raise your hand if you have a square that says you ate cookies or a candy bar, or drank soda or coffee. Everyone with their hands up must now take 5 steps back.
• Raise your hand if you had a square that said you stayed up late for any reason. Everyone with their hands up must now take 3 steps back.

3.     Ask students to choose another square. When the squares are gone, collect them from the cap and continue the game.

4.     Once all students have had a second turn, repeat the instructions for taking steps back.

5.     Continue doing this until some or most of the students have reached the other side of the room.

Students make observations about the game. Ask questions such as the following to help students generate observations about the game:

·       What types of things helped people get across the room quickly? (They were helped by eating good food, getting a full night's sleep, and exercising.)

·       What types of things slowed people down? (They were slowed down by eating cookies and candy, drinking soda and coffee, staying up late, and sitting around watching TV.)

·       Why do you think these behaviors might prevent people from getting ahead in real life? Explain that foods high in sugar (like cookies, candy, and soda) or caffeine (like soda and coffee) provide a burst of energy, which the body uses quickly. When this happens, the person experiences a drop in energy – they end up feeling tired and lethargic.

·       Ask students to give examples of how sleep and exercise can affect a person's energy level, mood, and performance. Explain that eating well and sleeping well, as well as physical activity, are what make people look and feel better because these things create energy.