Updated 09/11/09

EDUCATION RESOURCES FOR
SCHOOL GARDENS AND
FOOD AND FARMING EDUCATION

Food, farming, gardens, health, culture and environment related:
These are educational programs and materials designed to make the links between food, farming, gardens, health, culture and the environment may provide some good lesson plans, handouts or entire curricula for use n your schools. Most are free.

How to Make a Farm a Classroom for a Day (pdf)
Organizing a school field trip to a local farm is a great way to expose kids to the local food system, learn, and have fun at the same time. This fact sheet provides tips and guidelines to assist with planning a successful farm field trip.

Selected Essential Academic Learning Requirements (EALRs) that Can Be Met through Farm Field Trips: Science and Health & Fitness (pdf)
Curriculum Resources

The following resources are a sampling of materials available to teach food, farming, healthy eating and gardening to kids. Some of the resources in the All Ages category contain lists of further resources. Please contact Tricia Sexton at the Washington State Department of Agriculture if you are looking for something to teach specific skills you don't see listed here.

Preschool and Kindergarten

The Kindergarten Initiative The Food Trust program that promotes healthy eating through education, snacks from local farms, parent involvement, and community support.

Growing a Green Generation A curriculum of gardening activities for preschool and kindergarten children. Created at U of New Hampshire Sustainable Horticulture Program by a team that included plant professionals and early childhood education experts.

Gardening for Kids with Disabilities University of Missouri Extension

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Elementary and Middle School

Food$ense CHANGE Curriculum WSU King County Extension. CHANGE integrates nutrition education with reading, writing, math and science studies, while providing hands-on learning in cooking and gardening for elementary aged children. CHANGE lessons are aligned to the Washington Essential Academic Learning Requirements (EALR's) and Grade Level Expectations (GLE's). For Grades 1-5.

Linking Food and the Environment Center for Food and Environment, Teacher's College, Columbia University. The LIFE curriculum uses investigations of food and food systems and their interactions in the biological world to address many of the national standards for scientific literacy as well as some of the federal guidelines for encouraging healthful eating through school health education. LiFE curriculum is currently comprised of four modules, with each module containing 20-30 lessons, geared to students in grades 4-8.

The Great Plant Escape University of Illinois Extension.
Each of the lessons in this program for 4th and 5th graders is interdisciplinary and designed to introduce students to plant science and increase their understanding of how foods grow. This interactive program includes a teacher guide, a variety of activities for independent and group work, and is available in English and Spanish.

Ask the Answer Worm A USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service program. Answers lots of questions about soil. Complete with a soil-saving diploma!

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High School

Toward a Sustainable Agriculture (Grades 9-12). A free curriculum for high school students that addresses the social, environmental and economic impacts of agriculture. The curriculum provides a critical analysis of agricultural and food systems and helps students understand new concepts through hands-on examples. The curriculum was developed by the UW-Madison Center for Integrated Agricultural Systems, with financial support from the North Central Sustainable Research and Education Program.

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All Ages/K-12

Big Ideas: Linking Food, Culture, Health, and the Environment. This book provides a great conceptual framework for looking at big interrelated issues raised by farm-to-school programs. The book is organized by age-group, and each section includes key ideas, key concepts based on national AAAS Benchmarks for Science Literacy, and open-ended sample activities. Recently published by the Center for Ecoliteracy. Will soon be followed by a companion book of further activities. This book can be ordered from Acornnaturalists.com for $16.95.

Sustainable Agriculture Resources and Programs for K-12 Youth ( online pdf) A resource list from ATTRA: Appropriate Technology Transfer for Rural Areas.

Agriculture in the Classroom Includes a teacher resource page and student's pages, as well as links to state programs.

Washington Ag in the Classroom (WAIC) A school-based education program aimed at enhancing agricultural literacy in K-12 students and educators. It is not a vocational agriculture program and does not promote products or political points of view. WAIC's goal is helping teachers, especially those with little knowledge of agriculture, integrate the study of this vast industry into existing curriculum. (includes lessons tied to EALRs)

French Fries and the Food System: A Year Round Curriculum Connecting Youth with Farming and Food The Food Project in Massachusetts. Organized by season, the material teaches youth how to develop a deep understanding of and appreciation for the land and local food systems. Lessons can be done both indoors and outdoors and can be easily adapted by instructors working in school-based plots, urban food lots, and environmental education programs. (Cost: $24.95)

Healthy Meals Resource System -Cooking with Kids (a USDA site listing resources)

Healthy Meals Resource System - Nutrition Education (USDA resources site) Includes gardening with kids

Action for Healthy Kids Resources Search Search for a wide range of materials, including lesson plans, toolkits, guides, fact sheets and more.

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