Educator Resources

Nutrition Educators are on the front lines with students and have a wonderful opportunity to make a difference every single day.  Our Nutrition Education Committee has scoured hundreds of educational offerings and have come up with some vetted recommendations for your own resource library.  We hope you find these resources easy to use and that they will become a key part of your overall nutrition curricula.  

Preschool

Grow It, Try It, Like It!…Preschool Fun with Fruits and Vegetables is a garden-themed nutrition education kit for child care center staff that introduces children to: three fruits – peaches, strawberries, and cantaloupe, and three vegetables – spinach, sweet potatoes, and crookneck squash. Seven booklets are included and feature three fruits and vegetables and a supplemental CD’s with additional resources. Lessons provide hands-on activities, planting, cooking and nutrition education directed for preschoolers. This curriculum is free upon request.  Grow It, Try It, Like It

Nibbles for Health: Nutrition Newsletters for Parents of Young Children was developed for child care center staff and parents of young children enrolled in child care centers and is available at no cost. Nibbles has been updated and the CD offers child care center staff guidance on conducting discussions with parents in four sharing sessions. It also has 40 reproducible newsletters that staff can give to parents to address many of the challenges they face. Four posters and packages of two mini-posters come with the CD.  Nibbles for Health

School Age

Harvest of the Month provides opportunity to bring together the classroom, cafeteria, home and community to promote a common goal and healthier habits for students, especially those in low resource schools. Harvest of the Month is comprised of four key monthly elements: Educator Newsletters, Family Newsletters, Menu Slicks and Press Release Templates. In addition, Harvest of the Month posters may be ordered. Workbooks, study sheets and handouts are also available to integrate into the classroom. Materials are free upon request.  Harvest of the Month

Dairy Council of California Programs are research-based and align with California state standards in Language Arts, Math, Science and the newly adopted Health Education standards. They are free to California teachers and are available (one classroom set per year) for Kindergarten through high school. Teacher training is also available to California teachers.  Dairy Council

Ag in the Classroom is engaging students and educators in meaningful ways: developing and sharing unique classroom curriculum, supporting school garden efforts, spreading our message at local Ag Days, honoring outstanding educators, rewarding students who learn and write stories about agriculture and so much more. Lessons, newsletters, handouts and activity sheets are available at no cost.  Ag in the Classroom

Food Day Curriculum-Helping Youth Eat Real, Classroom Lessons to Tranforms Youth and Their Communities. These lessons are appropriate for students in upper elementary and middle school grades and can be adapted for younger and older students. The Food Day Lessons are adapted from the Linking Food and the Environment (LiFE) Curriculum Series, developed by the Center for Food & Environment, Columbia University. These lessons are designed to be taught as part of Food Day (October 24, 2011) events in your community, but they can be used at any time. Your students will be motivated to follow the Food Day Eating Goals of “Eat Real,” “Mostly Plants,” and “Not Too Much.” Your students will learn how to navigate through the food environment to find real food. And, you and your students will work together to become advocates who change the food environment and make it easier for everyone in your community to follow the Food Day Eating Goals. This curriculum may be download at no cost at Food Day Curriculum.