Less than 15% of children eat the minimum
daily recommended servings of fruit, and 35%
eat no fruit on a given day...
Only 17% of children consume the minimum
daily recommended servings of vegetables, and 20%
eat no vegetables on a given day!
Grades K-3 | Grades 4-6 | Grades 7-8 | Grades 9-12
Recommended Curricula and Grant Resources
As teachers, our primary concern is to provide students the tools they need for a successful life. We at CHOICE believe that knowledge of proper nutrition is as essential as other academic building blocks. For without good health, how will your students be able to pursue their future lives and careers?
Children today are inundated with messages to eat fast food, junk food and foods high in saturated fats, like meat and dairy. As a result, our nation faces an obesity epidemic, diabetes is on the rise, and over 1/4th of our young children -- children as young as 5-10 years -- already have high cholesterol, high blood pressure, or other early warning signs for heart disease!
A healthy diet, based on whole, unrefined grains, fresh fruits and vegetables helps a child grow, do well in school, and avoid chronic illness. And, research shows that children will eat up to 20 times more low-fat, high fiber foods if they first learn about them through hands-on experience in the classroom.
It is our hope that the lesson plans included on this website will help open the door to new foods, and provide the foundation for good health and plant-based eating habits. By building a partnership between parents, educators and food service personnel, we can reverse the poor dietary choices of our children, and help guarantee them a healthier, more satisfying future.
PS We are currently building a student's section for this website. To visit, click here.
Recommended Curricula and Grant Resources
Kid's Gardening.com
If you have a school garden, or would like to, this is the site for you. Grants, School Garden Listings, Resources,Success Stories and Teacher's Classes, are just some of the listings you'll find on this site.
A Hands-on Curriculum for Young Students by Antonia Demas, Ph.D. This curriculum is comprised of 28 sequential (and 8 supplemental) lessons with age-appropriate lesson plans for pre-K through 2nd grade and 3rd grade through 8th grade. The USDA food pyramid and basic nutritional principles are featured. Academic disciplines including art, geography, history, language arts, mathematics, science, and writing are integrated into lessons. All lessons are participatory: students and parents use all five senses to study whole foods, cook, create art, plant seeds, and write in journals.5 A Day Curricula
Eat at least 5 servings of fruits and vegetables a day. 5 a day provides an almost unending resource of educational materials for children. And many are provided free of charge.
Teachers
Grades K-3 | Grades 4-6 | Grades 7-12
