Innovation in Nutrition Education

• Use posters and signage to encourage healthy eating and highlight school meals! Team Nutrition has a variety of posters available, including a Today’s Lunch E-Poster.
• Implement taste tests to introduce new menu items and get students excited to try healthy food choices. Check out the Taste-Testing Event Resources webpage for posters, stickers, graphics, ballots, and more!
• Promote school meals with Stronger with School Meals resources, designed to be used by teachers and other school staff, parents/guardians, and students. Resources include a fun activity booklet, colorful graphics, thank you cards, and more!

• Use Discover MyPlate, an inquiry-based resource to foster the development of healthy lifestyles among kindergarten-aged students. It contains six lessons, emergent reader mini books, food cards, workbooks, parent handouts, and recipes.
• Integrate Serving Up MyPlate: A Yummy Curriculum into math, science, English language arts, and health with this collection of elementary classroom materials that focus on the five food groups and using MyPlate with hands-on activities.
• Empower middle school students to make healthy food choices with Fueling My Healthy Life classroom lessons, digital interactives, informational text articles, and videos to emphasize the benefits of a balanced breakfast and reducing added sugars, saturated fat, and sodium.

• Refresh your Local School Wellness Policy by bringing your school community together to create strong school environments. For more information, visit Team Nutrition's Local School Wellness Policy Tools and Resources webpage. 
• Engage the community in farm to school activities like planting school gardens, farm visits, and local food days to increase exposure to new foods. Team Nutrition has a collection of School Garden Resources to explore.
• Hold special events to promote nutrition and physical activity. The Team Nutrition Popular Events Idea Booklet includes creative suggestions for elementary and middle schools.

• Build home-school connections by involving families in nutrition education activities. Let families know about nutrition education taking place in the classroom with communications (e.g., newsletter, weekly folder, classroom webpage).
• Explore Team Nutrition resources for activities for families to do together and share them with your school community. Below are a few examples:
  • Discover MyPlate Parent Handouts
  • MyPlate at Home Handouts
  • Local School Wellness Policy Parent Flyer
  • Dig In! At Home Parent Booklet

• Provide information on school meals, added sugars, sodium, and whole grains to families using the resources below:
• MyPlate Guide to School Breakfast for Families
• MyPlate Guide to School Lunch for Families
• MyPlate Cut Back on Added Sugars Tip Sheet
• MyPlate Be Salt Smart Tip Sheet

• Tailor your messages and marketing to engage each stakeholder in the school community. Team Nutrition’s Menu Planner for School Meals includes a Marketing School Meals for Success! chapter where you can learn more.
• Use your menus to communicate information to students, families, and teachers including upcoming promotions, taste testing events, new items, local foods, and more! 
• Share your program's success through social media and signage! Let the school community know about recent awards, grants, staff training, and any local or national recognition for serving healthy meals. 

The Healthy Meals Incentives Recognition Awards are designed to celebrate and share innovative practices in school meals taking place across the country! The Innovation in Nutrition Education Award recognizes the implementation of nutrition education activities that make classroom, cafeteria, community, and home connections for students and families. 

The award criteria include implementing at least two of the following five activities:  

• Including specific goals for nutrition education in the Local School Wellness Policy, including providing nutrition education at all grade levels.
• Providing nutrition education to parents/guardians on sodium, added sugars, and/or whole grain content of school meals.
• Ensuring collaboration between school wellness policy coordinators and school nutrition services to ensure nutrition education activities are incorporated into the school meal program and any farm to school activities.
• Engaging students in the development and delivery of school nutrition promotions and campaigns.
• Identifying local agricultural products on the school menu and/or in the cafeteria.

To learn more, visit the Healthy Meals Incentives Recognition Awards webpage.  

Weld County School District 6 in Greeley, Colorado recently received the Innovation in Nutrition Education Award for the implementation of Culinary Classroom and Culinary Life Skills programs in 14 schools reaching students in grades K-12. Utilizing funds from their USDA Team Nutrition Training Grant, the district’s Nutrition Education Specialist delivers lessons that allow students to participate in taste testing, cooking demonstrations, and other hands-on nutrition education activities. The district also partners with the local health department to provide these nutrition activities to families throughout the greater community.

In addition, the Nutrition Services Department leads the Student Healthy Advisory Committee (SHAC) which represents students from each high school. The SHAC’s mission is to work with district and school health leaders to contribute and improve district-wide health by representing the student body and their health concerns. Student members are engaged in the preparation and serving of school meals, menu development through the Menu Action Team, and peer to peer learning opportunities. 

Check out more awardee success stories on the Recognition Awards Spotlight webpage.

Share your activities with us on Twitter/X @TeamNutrition using the hashtag #TeamNutrition
or by emailing us at TeamNutrition@USDA.gov.

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