All Resources

Activating Students

Welcome students into meal program design

  • Use surveys and asynchronous methods to reach more students and to get honest feedback.

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  • Adding branded elements to program touch points can shift perspectives and help students see the food in a new light

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  • Asking students to interview each other can tap into a different type of energy and surface new possibilities.

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  • Connect with students' creative side and crowdsource ideas

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  • Connect with students' creative side and crowdsource ideas.

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  • Ethnography — observing and reflecting on peoples’ behavior — helps you understand your students better and make changes that meet their needs

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Engaging Caregivers

Make space for caregivers to share perspectives and passions

  • Bring students and caregivers together to compare and contrast favorite foods and meals.

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  • Shift the narrative on school food and gather valuable ideas about what to keep doing well, and what could change.

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  • Share updates on your program or ask for feedback with this versatile tool.

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Connecting with Community

Expand the story of school meals to build a network of allies

  • Introduce the post-pandemic meal program to administrators, board members and teachers and seek their input.

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  • Build your bench of external supporters and collaborate on issues that matter deeply to your community.

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  • Harness the kitchen team's unique connection with students to learn more about what kids like.

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  • Clarify your short-term goals to anchor design and ensure that you aren't taking on too much.

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  • Interviewing a student or other stakeholder is a way to gather deep insight about what they care about and to inspire new opportunities to make changes.

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  • Energize a school team or a group of students to help you come up with a staggering amount of ideas.

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  • Turn the inspiration, stories, feedback, research, or brainstorm ideas you gathered into useful design opportunities.

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  • The students you’re designing for can tell you plenty. But they can show you much more if you invite them in to build and imagine and design with you.

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  • Prototypes are small, scrappy ways to build new ideas, so that you can learn quickly before investing a lot of resources. 

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  • Measure the impact of your idea using common and uncommon measures.

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  • Sharing back what you discover over the course of your design journey can help inspire new and old allies, and increase the impact of your solution.

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Human-Centered Design 101

Explore basic tools used in the human-centered design process, from start to finish

For more general resources and tools for school food teams, visit No Kid Hungry's Center for Best Practices