This website has been designed for use by children at KS2. Each section contains an on-screen activity and extension work in the form of pdfs to download, print off and use in the classroom. Information is supplemented by Did You Know? pop-up windows for children to explore and enjoy. Subject areas covered are English, Mathematics, Science, Art, RE and D&T.

The website will assist teachers and children in responding to the Government’s drive for Healthy Schools which aims to promote the importance of diet, nutrition and exercise in schools.




The on-screen activity invites children to label a cross-section of an egg. The downloadable worksheets are:

a) What is in an egg?

Children are given the correct labelling of the egg and fill in a cloze passage from the words provided.

b) Testing for egg freshness.

This is a practical experiment for the classroom to see whether an egg is fresh or not, involving placing two eggs, one fresh and one stale, in a bowl of water. The stale egg will float, because as an egg gets older the air sac gets bigger and the air makes it float. To ensure that the eggs used are stale, leave them in their box in a heated airing cupboard for two weeks. Make sure the children are warned not to eat them.

Although most eggs have one yolk, some can have more than one. The highest number of reported yolks in a hen’s egg is nine, though this, of course is very rare. Children may be interested to know that the heaviest hen’s egg ever laid weighed 454g and was laid in 1956. It had a double yolk and two shells.

The on-screen activity involves looking at advertisements for eggs. The use of the Lion as a quality symbol carries connotations of strength, pride, ‘ top of the range’ and so forth. The questions focus attention on the slogans and provides opportunity for discussion of punctuation, rhyme, alliteration and puns. Children may also like to comment on the images and how these are photographed to encourage the eating of eggs.

The downloadable worksheet provides space for children to design their own poster.

The on-screen activity looks at the different ways in which eggs can be eaten and invites children to match the term to the cooking description. In addition to traditional stove methods of cooking, eggs can of course be scrambled in the microwave or even poached if you have a special microwaveable poaching set. Fried eggs need not be a less desirable health option as only a small amount of oil is actually needed to prevent the egg from sticking to the pan.

The downloadable worksheet is a practical classroom experiment in which children whisk egg white using different tools, from a fork to an electric whisk. Volume is measured and recorded before and after whisking. An important feature of egg cookery is aeration, used to effect in cakes, soufflés, sorbets and meringues. One whole egg will aerate its own weight in flour and sugar combined.

The on-screen information here provides information and pictures about different customs and traditions associated with eggs.

The practice of giving eggs at Easter time is pre-Christian and began as a celebration of the new life that comes with Spring - hence the symbolism of eggs. Christians took over the festival and it became a celebration of Christ’s resurrection. The date is moveable and is usually celebrated on the Sunday following the first full moon after the first day of Spring in the northern hemisphere.

The Hindu festival of Holi is also a celebration of the arrival of Spring. It falls at the time of the full moon towards the end of February or the beginning of March. Large bonfires are lit and the festival lasts from three to five days. Bright clothes are worn and people spray one another with coloured water or powder.

Sikhs celebrate a festival called Hola or Hola-Mohalla at about the same time of year. It includes feats of strength and courage as well as fun and games. There is a Chinese festival of Spring called Ch’ing Ming, about a month after the Chinese New Year, though it is not widely celebrated.

For further information on celebrating with eggs, visit the Easter Spread topic focus on this site.

The classroom worksheet gives children instructions on how to blow an egg. Blown eggs can be decorated in a variety of different ways. Cut out and stick shapes on the eggs, or draw patterns on them in wax, then dye using commercial or home-made dyes such as beetroot juice, ink or coffee. Alternatively, decorate the eggs Fabergé-style with sequins, feathers, tissue paper, stuck on with either glue or the white of the egg itself. Younger children might find blown eggs too fragile to work with – boiled eggs can be substituted instead.

NB Children should be reminded that it is illegal to collect and blow the eggs of wild birds.

The on-screen activity invites children to establish which of the meals they see contain eggs – in fact they all do with the exception of the salmon dish and yoghurt.

Here are some ways in which eggs are used during cooking:

Binding and Coating

Eggs are used as the glue in a recipe, to help bind other ingredients together. This helps chefs make burgers, rissoles and croquettes. Eggs are regularly used as a coating for fried food, either on their own or together with flour or breadcrumbs. They are also used as a glaze. Beaten egg is brushed over bread and pastries such as sausage rolls, before they are put in the oven, to produce a golden, shiny glaze during baking.

Thickening

Eggs are also used to thicken a whole variety of foods such as custards, sauces and soups. They are also used to make a mixture from ingredients that would not mix on their own. A mixture like this is called an emulsion. For example, oil and water on their own will not mix. However, when egg white is added, they can combine to make mayonnaise. So, mayonnaise is an emulsion.

Trapping air

One quality which eggs possess is the ability to trap air when they are whisked. This is important in cake-making. Eggs are used to raise the mixture. Trapping air is also essential for lightening mousses, soufflés and meringues.

The classroom worksheet focuses on the nutritional content of eggs and why they are good for you, including examining the nutritional information table found on every box of eggs. This discussion could be opened up to include other sources of vitamins and minerals such as calcium in milk and vitamin C in citrus fruit and activity extended to examining other food packaging for nutritional values.

Eggs are an important part of a balanced diet. The body gets its energy from three of the main nutrients in food: fat, carbohydrate and protein. Eggs contain about 11% fat and 12% protein, thus making them a good source of energy. The nutritional labelling of eggs usually shows the amount of energy available, either in kilojoules(kJ) or kilocalories (kcal). Quantities of some nutrients and dietary fibre are given in grams (g). Minerals are generally given in milligrams (mg). Vitamins and trace minerals are often measured in micrograms (ug). Eggs are also a good source of protein, being high in ‘complete’ proteins, ie those that contain all the important amino acids.