Elementary School
Nutrition education is an important way to encourage healthy eating, build good lifelong habits, and combat our State, and our country’s, childhood obesity epidemic. Ideally, Nutrition Education should link what children are eating at school and in out-of-school time programming, with what they are learning about in the classroom.
Best practice Nutrition Education links research, theory and practice; and focuses on behavior change. Below is a list of high quality nutrition education resources that have been reviewed and recommended by a State team of experts. This is not an all-inclusive list, but includes many of the best free and low-cost Nutrition Education resources offered in Michigan and nationally. Use these resources to provide and improve Nutrition Education and to create an implementation plan for the Nutrition Education portion of your local Wellness Policy.
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Catch (Coordinated Approach to Child Health) After School/Summer Program
Format: Hard copy
Audience: PreK-8th grade
Cost: $225
A physical activity and nutrition education program designed for elementary and middle school aged children in an after-school/summer setting. It is composed of nutrition education materials (including snack activities) and a physical activity component. The program offers an easy-to-use format that both children and staff enjoy and is ready to implement in the after-school and summer settings.Available at: http://catchinfo.org
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Choose Health: Food, Fun, and Fitness Youth Curriculum
Format: PDF
Audience: 3rd-6th Grades
Cost: Free to download or $149 to order
CHFFF is a nutrition and physical activity curriculum that is experiential and research-based, and is intended for use by Cooperative Extension educators and others with a background in nutrition and experience working with youth. A unique and exciting characteristic of CHFFF is that it was also designed to be co-taught, after in-depth training, by teens participating in the partner program Choose Health Action Teens (CHAT).Available at: https://fnec.cornell.edu/Our_Initiatives/CHFFF.cfm
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Dig In! Standards Based Nutrition Education from the Ground Up
Format: PDF
Audience: 5th-6th Grades
Cost: Free
CHFFF is a nutrition and physical activity curriculum that is experiential and research-based, and is intended for use by Cooperative Extension educators and others with a background in nutrition and experience working with youth. A unique and exciting characteristic of CHFFF is that it was also designed to be co-taught, after in-depth training, by teens participating in the partner program Choose Health Action Teens (CHAT).Available at: http://www.fns.usda.gov/tn/dig-standards-based-nutrition-education-ground
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Discover MyPlate Nutrition Education for Kindergarten
Format: PDF
Audience: Kindergarten
Cost: Free
Fun, inquiry-based nutrition education that fosters the development of healthy food choices and physically active lifestyles during a critical developmental and learning period for children — kindergarten. Program teaches core content for kindergarten and includes four downloadable, emergent reader mini books.Materials include a teacher kit and training guide.
Available at: http://www.fns.usda.gov/discover-myplate-nutrition-education-kindergarten
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Five Food Groups Poster for Children
Format: PDF
Audience: Elementary Students
Cost: Free
Download this poster that features USDA’s MyPlate, with pictures of food in each food group section for non-readers. This poster is included with the Discover MyPlate (above) curriculum.Available at: http://www.fns.usda.gov/sites/default/files/dmp_poster.pdf
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Fuel Up to Play 60
Format: Multiple formats
Audience: Kindergarten - 12th Grade
Cost: Free
Fuel Up to Play 60 is a program founded by the National Dairy Council and NFL, in collaboration with USDA, that empowers students to take charge in making small, everyday changes at school. Students can win cool prizes, like an NFL player visit or Super Bowl tickets, for choosing good-for-you foods and getting active for at least 60 minutes every day. There are six steps to be active in FUTP 60: Join, gather a team, hold a kick off, conduct a School Wellness Investigation, engage in Nutrition and physical activity “plays” and share your story. Learn more about each component at www.fueluptoplay60.com and check out the online playbook to get ideas for fun nutrition and physical activity promoting initiatives that will improve students’ food choices and increase movement at your school! Available at: www.fueluptoplay60.com
Access the FUTP 60 Playbook at: https://school.fueluptoplay60.com/playbook/
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Game On!
Format: Online
Audience: K-12 School Health/Wellness Teams- Students, Teachers, Parents, Administrators, Foodservice Workers, Community Members, Coaches
Cost: Free
Game On challenges America’s schools, staff, students, and the families they serve to get healthy, inside and out. Game On provides all the information and resources you need to host a successful school wellness program in your school, including an interactive school blueprint that allows you to search for fun Eat Better and Move More Challenges for every aspect of your school building. Explore the Game On website and the 6 steps they offer to help you improve student health, while reaching your schools needs. Don't forget to check out step 4: Find Activities to engage everyone on the team, including students!
Available at: http://www.actionforhealthykids.org/tools-for-schools/game-on
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Grow it, Try It, Like It!
Format: PDF
Audience: Preschool and Kindergarten
Cost: Free
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.Available at: http://www.fns.usda.gov/tn/grow-it-try-it-it
Or upon request from Team Nutrition- Team Nutrition offers materials for free to schools and child care centers that participate in Federal Child Nutrition Programs.
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Healthy Classrooms, Healthy Schools
Format: Print Copies
Audience: Kindergarten - 5th Grade
Cost: $$- For pricing and ordering, contact resources@michiganfitness.org
Healthy Classrooms, Healthy Schools helps teachers transform first their classroom, and ultimately, their school into environments promoting healthy eating and physical activity. Healthy Classrooms, Healthy Schools includes two sets of supplemental lessons, one for Kindergarten through second grades and one for third through fifth grades.Available at: http://www.michiganfitness.org/healthy-classrooms-healthy-schools
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Health Through Literacy
Format: Hard copy, includes books
Audience: Kindergarten - 5th Grade
Cost: $$- For pricing and ordering, contact resources@michiganfitness.org
Health Through Literacy is a book set of five to six books, age-appropriate for each grade K – 5. Each set includes books with nutrition or physical activity themes. Every book comes with a tip sheet to enhance the health messages in the books. The tip sheets help teachers discuss the books with their classes, incorporate physical activity into the reading, provide ideas for a food tasting for students, and integrate health messages with other areas of the curriculum.Available at: http://www.michiganfitness.org/health-through-literacy
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Make Today a Try Day Stickers
Format: PDF
Audience: Pre- and Elementary School
Cost: Free
Use these stickers to encourage students to try new foods and to reward them when they do!Available at: http://www.fns.usda.gov/make-today-try-day-stickers
Available for free upon request while supplies last.
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Michigan Model for Health
Format: Print Copies
Audience: Kindergarten - 12th Grade
Cost: $$- Prices are indicated on website order form
The Michigan Model for Health®, also used in 32 other states, is a nationally acclaimed sequential K-12 health curriculum that has provided comprehensive school health education for school-aged children since 1984. The program facilitates skills-based learning through lessons that include a variety of teaching and learning techniques, skill development and practice, and building positive lifestyle behaviors in students and families. Classroom instruction using the Michigan Model addresses the most serious health challenges students face, including social and emotional health; nutrition and physical activity; alcohol, tobacco and other drugs; and safety. The major goal of this program is to motivate and assist students to maintain and improve their health, prevent disease, and reduce health-related risk behaviors while creating a partnership between homes, schools, community groups and government. Available at: http://www.emc.cmich.edu/EMC_Orchard/michigan-model-for-health
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MyPlate Kids Place
Format: Multiple formats
Audience: Elementary Students
Cost: Free
Find information on how to build a healthy plate, appropriate serving sizes for children, ideas to encourage trying new foods, and physical activity recommendations. Download or access games, activity sheets, videos, songs and more. Available at: www.choosemyplate.gov/kids/
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Recipes for Healthy Kids: Cookbook for Childcare Centers and Schools
Format: PDF and/or hard copy
Audience: Child Care Providers, Parents, Teachers, Foodservice Staff
Cost: Free
Recipes feature foods both children and adults should eat more of: dark green and orange vegetables, dry beans and peas, and whole grains. All of the recipes are low in total fat, saturated fat, sugar and sodium. With fun names like Porcupine Sliders, Smokin' Powerhouse Chili, and Squish Squash Lasagna, these kid-tested, kid-approved recipes are sure to please children and be an instant hit.Available at: http://www.fns.usda.gov/tn/recipes-healthy-kids-cookbook-child-care-centers-0
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Serving Up MyPlate – A Yummy Curriculum
Format: PDF
Audience: 1st - 6th Grades
Cost: Free
Serving Up MyPlate is a collection of classroom materials that helps elementary school teachers integrate nutrition education into Math, Science, English Language Arts, and Health. This yummy curriculum introduces the importance of eating from all five food groups using the MyPlate icon and a variety of hands–on activities. Students also learn the importance of physical activity to staying healthy.Available at: http://www.fns.usda.gov/tn/serving-myplate-yummy-curriculum
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The Two Bite Club
Format: PDF and/or hard copy
Audience: Pre- and Elementary School
Cost: Free
A storybook to introduce MyPlate to young children. Children are encouraged to try foods from each food group by eating just two bites, just like the characters in the story. The back of the book contains a MyPlate coloring page, a blank certificate for the Two Bite Club, fun activity pages for kids, and Tips for Growing Healthy Eaters. The Two Bite Club is available in English and SpanishAvailable at: http://www.fns.usda.gov/tn/two-bite-club
Or upon request from Team Nutrition- Team Nutrition offers materials for free to schools and child care centers that participate in Federal Child Nutrition Programs.
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The We Like to Eat Book Series
Format: paperback books
Audience: PreK to Grade 5, Families
Cost: $$- For pricing and ordering, contact resources@michiganfitness.org
The We Like to Eat!TM book series engage children and their families to learn about the food groups with a focus on fruits and vegetables that include tips for gardening, harvesting, preparing, and eating fruits and vegetables. Two of the books are bilingual with English and Spanish text and contain recipes, recipe cards, and activities.
Available at: Review a sample or order at www.michiganfitness.org.
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SPARK – Afterschool Curriculum
Format: Print Copies
Audience: Kindergarten - 8th grade
Cost: $199-$399
An easy to use 3-ring binder (simply pull out a lesson, place it on a clipboard, and take it to class) with over 400 pages of cooperative, cultural and aerobic games, dances from around the world, and enjoyable skill and sport activities written in scope and sequence. There are also instructional units on jump rope, parachute play, jogging games, fitness circuits, and beanbag activities. Activities are more inclusive, active, and enjoyable because they’ve been highly modified by our team of experts, and tested for effectiveness in hundreds of after school programs nationwide.Available at: http://www.sparkpe.org/after-school/curriculum
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Show Me Nutrition
Format: Direct Education Program
Audience: PreK-8th grade
Cost: Free to schools with at least 50% participation in free or reduced lunch through the National School Lunch Program
Show Me Nutrition (SMN) is a six-week program for youth from Pre-K through eighth grade. Participants will have the opportunity to engage in age appropriate, interactive, hands-on activities that promote good eating habits, positive body image, physical activity and food safety. Through each interesting and fun nutrition class, students will gain the skills necessary to make healthy lifestyle choices. This six series program covers eight different lessons throughout the school year, and is taught in your schools classroom.This program is offered for free in the classroom from Michigan State University Extension. For more information, find your local MSU Extension office at http://msue.anr.msu.edu/county.
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Snack Sleuths
Format: Multiple
Audience: Grades 3-5
Cost: Free
Introduce students to the exciting world of healthy snacking! Six “discoveries” that teach students why snacks are important; what a healthy snack is; new ideas for healthy snacking; and how to accept responsibility for their own snack choices. Healthy snack recipes and a chart that connects the discoveries to the Common core are included.
Call the United Dairy Industry of Michigan at 800-241-MILK to order print copies (available while supplies last).
Available at: www.milkmeansmore.org/schools
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