Mr. Shane wins Golden Apple Award

Are you what you eat?

That's what Noblesville High School's second-year chemistry class set out to learn in a project that focused on the chemistry of nutrition.

The project earned a "Golden Apple Award" for teacher Joe Shane. IPL gives the awards each year to recognize teachers who excel in the areas of math, science, and technology.

The purpose of the "Are You What You Eat?" project is to understand the food pyramid on three levels, Mr. Shane said.

At the most basic level, students determine why the nutrients in each block of the food pyramid are medically necessary. At the next level, they determine why specific nutrients are needed in the body. At the most fundamental level, they identify and describe three molecules or ions in each block of the food pyramid.

To begin the project this year, students were assigned to a specific block of the food pyramid to research in detail and each group was given three or four nutrients to study. They determined the chemical structure, biochemical functions, and physiological effects of too much or too little of each nutrient.

To organize the information, each group constructed a web page connected to a home page that Mr. Shane designed that used the blocks of the food pyramid as links. Students downloaded or generated pictures of the molecular structures of the nutrients and con-structed tables or outlines to describe the biochemical and physiological effects.

"The technology part I had to learn along with kids," Mr. Shane said.

The chemistry of nutrition project has evolved from a study of the chemistry of fat which Mr. Shane initiated seven years ago during his first year of teaching in Noblesville. It was a simple experiment in which students measured the number of calories in easily combustible foods such as nuts, crackers, and marshmallows.

During the lab, students asked many questions about why foods have varying amounts of calories. They inquired about the healthfulness of common foods and about the validity of dietary advice they had received from friends.

"It was obvious that I had to capitalize on this building momentum," Mr. Shane said.

He has developed the project further each year since.

"Not only has nutritional chemistry been an effective instructional tool, I have learned more during the evolution of this project than I thought possible as a teacher," Mr. Shane said.

"I learned vast amounts of chemistry and several technological skills such as computer-integrated data collection and web page design. Perhaps most importantly, I learned how student interest can drive a curriculum. Developing this unit has been one of the most rewarding experiences of my career."

Mr. Shane joins a list of Noblesville teachers who have won the award in past years. Marc Slain, a Spanish teacher at NHS, and Susan Julian, a kindergarten teacher at Hazel Dell Elementary School, won Golden Apples a year ago. High school teachers Carolyn Beardshear, Bruce Hitchcock, Gail Anderson, and Lorie Homan also are past winners.