Nutrition Nuggets contains 12 lessons designed for after-school settings. Each lesson provides basic nutrition information as well as two activities that engage participants in a variety of food-related tasks. Every lesson includes food preparation and taste testing. These activities are designed to help students develop cooking skills, provide opportunities to experience new foods and ingredients, and to become more accepting of a wider variety of foods.
- Pilot Tested
The material was tested at Baltimore County PAL Centers prior to writing the curriculum. Nutrition Nuggets is currently being piloted by educators in the state of Maryland. An educator evaluation tool has been developed to get feedback from after school providers and FSNE educators who use the curriculum.
2012 update was piloted and revised based on comments from pilot educators.
Nutrition Nuggets is a set of mini nutrition lessons. Each lesson includes a list of objectives and teaching materials, including speaking notes, and food supplies. Each lesson except the final one consists of two basic activities. The first activity introduces the theme of the lesson, and the second activity reviews the key messages of the lesson. The author recommends lessons be taught in the order they are presented. Every lesson includes a short food preparation and tasting. Food supplies listed are based on approximately 20 participants. Lesson plans are interactive and include questions and discussions. Also, the curriculum includes “Food Picture Cards,” which feature black and white photographs of various foods, and several of the lessons include handouts.