Veggiecation is a nutrition curriculum that promotes the eating of vegetables. I found this link on the Internet very easily. The site was originally founded in 2009 by Lisa Suriano with programs focused for teachers; however, over the years it has expanded its focus outside of the classrooms and to a larger community. As a young child, Suriano learned to love her vegetables from her mother and grandparents who helped her grow and pick vegetables from their garden and worked as a family in the intergenerational kitchen.
Today, the Veggiecation website is mainly focused towards children and how to introduce and encourage them to eat more vegetables. The Veggiecation Curriculum uses adults like teachers or any other person who has an interest to advocate and teach the Veggiecation lesson. Those individuals who teach the curriculum are called Veggiecator Educators and they help to get the Veggiecation message out to children. Any adult can become a Veggiecator Educator by enrolling in and completing a three-hour online training course about the basics of utilizing Veggiecation. I think by calling the teachers Veggiecator Educators, it helps children feel like they are not learning from a teacher, like in school. It opens them up more to the Veggiecation experience in a more relaxed setting. If a teacher wants to use this program, it is great because Veggiecation provides a complete Veggiecation Education Kit with teaching tools, lesson plans, student achievement and incentive awards – stickers, posters and a cooking kit – which an interested teacher can introduce in a classroom lesson. When one becomes a Veggiecator Educator, personal web pages and access to new Veggiecation recipes, blogs, nutritional tips, and activity sheets for children are made available to fellow educators. There is a cost to become a Veggiecator Educator, but I feel with everything that it includes, it is a good investment.
If a parent and a child wants to learn and experience the Veggiecation Education curriculum, there is a place on its website to locate the ‘nearest Veggiecator Educator’. When I searched my hometown, Lansdale, PA, two Veggiecator Educators’ names and contact information popped up! So, the Veggiecation Nutrition Curriculum website is not just focused on classroom teachers, but interested parents may also utilize the resources the Veggiecation website provides. Parents or non-Veggiecator Educators, may also access the blog and the recipe-of-the-month on its website. The Veggiecator Educators website also offers different nutritional materials which can be purchased to enhance their lessons or their individual needs. This can be great for parents because they can buy some incentive or teaching tools for their children without having to pay for the entire training package.
Getting children to eat their vegetables can be difficult but getting them to love their vegetables is even harder. Lisa Suriano is teaching children to love their vegetables as much as she learned to love them as a child. She offers a free lesson on how to grow fresh vegetables with recipes to turn them into a delicious meal. Suriano’s website offers life changing information using what she loves, is familiar with, and what worked before on her. Veggiecation is a great curriculum program for children, parents, and educators. All learn to love their vegetables without realizing it.