What's inside Nourishing Choices Chapter 1. Getting Started Building a School Food Committee Assessing the Scene Shaping a Plan Obtaining Funds Spreading the Word Chapter 2. Nurturing a Schoolwide Food and Nutrition Message Best Practices Nourishing Schools: Core Components Chapter 3. Connecting Food Education to the Curriculum Planning Best Practices Teacher Support Ideas for Enhancing the Core Curriculum Chapter 4. Transforming the Lunchroom Experience A Menu for Change Healthful Liaisons: Working with the Foodservice Hooking Students and Tantalizing Taste Buds Farm to Cafeteria: The Promise and Challenge of Fresh Foods Chapter 5. Project Profiles 12 programs, including excerpts at right Chapter 6. Resources

In communities across the country, teachers, parents, community organizations, foodservice leaders, chefs, “lunch ladies,” and farmers are bringing healthful foods and food education into classrooms, schoolyards, and cafeterias. These reformers contend that isolated nutrition lessons pack little punch when a child’s environment sends conflicting messages, and that shifting eating behaviors takes more than knowing food facts.

Students are moving beyond memorizing minerals: They grow, cook, taste, and share plant-based foods and healthful dishes. Once hooked, youngsters become passionate advocates who help spread the word to others. As they savor the flavors and “life stories” of fresh local fare, they just might develop an enduring appreciation for what sustains us.

Many school-based food and nutrition projects are small-scale ventures initiated by teachers or parents: an indoor salad garden or weekly snacks made by students, for example. Others are multifaceted, involving a variety of school and community stakeholders who collaborate to hatch a sustainable plan for reforming the school food scene.

We invite you to a sneak peek inside Nourishing Choices. The following profiles give you a sense of what successful programs look like:

Harvest of Dreams
Good Things Cooking in North Carolina
Shifting School Food Culture

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Nourishing Choices: Implementing Food Education in Classrooms, Cafeterias draws on a wealth of collective experience, offering a roadmap for developing a food education program and getting kids excited about healthful eating. It features details on ensuring sustainability, profiles of winning school- and district-based initiatives, and an extensive resource list. Click here to learn more or order.