National Nutrition Month shines a light on the importance of eating real, healthy foods that nourish the body. With a few days left in March, it is not too late to share this critical message with your growing students. In last month’s newsletter, we focused on the nutrition field trips many grocery stores offer through Field Trip Factory. So much valuable information is shared through these fun, engaging experiences. They should not be missed, and are available throughout the year!
However if you can’t get out of the classroom this Nutrition Month, there are lots of fun activities that can be done with students of all ages. We’ve chosen to share a few of the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics’ favorite activities that appear on the eatright.org website.
- Vote for your favorite fruits and vegetables: Offer a selection of fruits and vegetables cut into bite-size pieces. Ask participants to vote for their favorite vegetable and fruit. Post a tally board to record votes.
- Ask children to carefully save empty food product labels and boxes. Spend some time reading labels and comparing information in the Nutrition Facts panels. Expand into a menu-planning opportunity, individually or in teams, using MyPlate as the guide to a healthy meal.
- Start a school vegetable garden by planting seeds indoors or in the ground.
- Assign a school group project that involves each group researching one of the food groups, allowing each child to explain a food from that food group and what nutrition it provides.
- Develop a school project that involves kids drawing and creating a meal based on MyPlate. Visit www.choosemyplate.gov for more information.
- Organize a sports nutrition education session after school or during gym class.
- Decorate the cafeteria with National Nutrition Month posters or banners, table tents and balloons. Create a “take one” display with NNM brochures, bookmarks, Eat Right Nutrition Tips, and recipe handouts.
- Conduct a formal taste testing of new healthier versions of recipes that are being considered for school or workplace menus.