SCHOOL-BASED PROGRAMS
*Note: Our usual school programs are on hold due to COVID-19. We are supporting school food distribution and exploring opportunities for outdoor, small, COVID-safe programming.
School-Based Food Education gives students the opportunity to learn about and fall in love with life-long healthy food choices from an early age at school. Common Threads provides coordinated leadership and support for school-based food education through our trained Food Educators.
Is Common Threads not at your school yet? Contact us to learn how to get us there!
If you’re a like-minded organization interested in joining our statewide team, click here.
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SCHOOL GARDENS · COOKING IN THE CLASSROOM · AFTER SCHOOL PROGRAMS · TEACHER RESOURCES
SCHOOL GARDENS & GARDEN LESSONS
Every school that we partner with has a school garden – which is where AmeriCorps Food Educators lead garden lessons during the school day in the fall and spring. Kids help care for their school gardens as part of each school garden lesson. Each class typically meets every other week during garden season for a total of 3 fall garden lessons and 5 spring garden lessons.
Gardens provide endless possibilities for curriculum connections, from science and math to writing and art! We encourage teachers to use the garden outside of Common Threads garden lesson time too.
Learn about the different school gardens at each of our current partner schools
Volunteer with garden lessons or garden care
Read about the spring garden lessons in this blog post series
COOKING IN THE CLASSROOM
Cooking in the classroom is such a fun way to spend the winter months, when school gardens are at rest! Kids work together to prepare simple, healthy, vegetable-based recipes – and learn about hygiene, safety, nutrition, and teamwork along the way. We meet with each class on a monthly basis between early November to early March, for a total of 4 winter cooking lessons.
The recipes we select are simple, cost-effective and tasty so that they can be replicated at home – we send recipe cards home with kids after each cooking lesson.
We work closely with the Bellingham Food Service and Wellness Departments and are proud supporters of the Good Food Promise.
Try some of our recipes at home!
Volunteer with cooking lessons
TEACHER RESOURCES
Welcome teachers! You will find links and information here to help make the most out of your students’ gardening and cooking food education experience.
NGSS VIRTUAL LESSONS DEVELOPED DURING COVID
- 3rd Grade Lesson 1: Rainfall Representations
- 3rd Grade Lesson 2: Using Nature Journals
- 4th Grade Lesson 1: Virtual Waste Relay
- 4th Grade Lesson 2: Soil Science
- 5th Grade Lesson 1: Food Webs
- 5th Grade Lesson 2: Speeding Up Decomposition
GARDEN CURRICULUM
- Kindergarten Fall Garden Lessons
- Kindergarten Spring Garden Lessons
- First Grade Fall Garden Lessons
- First Grade Spring Garden Lessons
- Second Grade Fall Garden Lessons
- Second Grade Spring Garden Lessons
- Third Grade Fall Garden Lessons
- Third Grade Spring Garden Lessons
- Fourth Grade Fall Garden Lessons
- Fourth Grade Spring Garden Lessons
- Fifth Grade Fall Garden Lessons
- Fifth Grade Spring Garden Lessons
RECIPES FOR WINTER COOKING
2019-2020
Hummus in a Blanket (Kale Hummus Wraps)
Confetti Slaw
Chickpea Curry
Rainbow Rice
2018-2019
Three Sisters Stew
Borscht
Applesauce
Kale Salad
OTHER
Teacher and Food Educator expectations for gardening in schools
Teacher and Food Educator expectations for cooking in the classroom
Summer Garden Care sign up
AFTER SCHOOL PROGRAMS
We offer after school programs at schools throughout the year by request. We typically follow our in-school curriculum cycle and run gardening after school clubs in the fall and spring, and cooking after school clubs in the winter (though we can be flexible!). To learn more about after school programs, visit this page.