Curriculum

Today, less than two percent of Americans live or work on farms, and mainstream education provides little information about the links between food production and its connection to population, soil, water, energy, and habitat preservation. Food, Land & People’s curriculum, Resources for Learning, is filling this critical educational gap.

FLP's interdisciplinary curriculum currently serves PreK-12 grade students in twenty-three states. The fifty-five hands-on lessons are objective in content and emphasize the development of critical thinking skills needed to balance an understanding of the complex interdependence of food systems and environmental conservation. In California, Resources for Learning lessons are correlated to Content Standards for California Public Schools.

You can view and print a fact sheet on Resources for Learning [factsheet.pdf] that describes the extensive scope of the curriculum. You can also download a sample lesson here [lesson.pdf].

(What's a ".pdf" file?)

Read what California teachers and other educators are saying about FLP's Resources for Learning, including an evaluation by the North American Association for Environmental Education (NAAEE).

Teacher and facilitator workshops are offered throughout the year in California to facilitate the use of Resources for Learning.

To purchase a Resources for Learning, download an order form or email us directly for more information.

What California Educators are saying about Resources for Learning:

"We hope children all over America can have as much fun learning as we did! Food, Land & People’s Resources for Learning is a wealth of valuable lessons and ideas to promote learning as well as higher order thinking skills. I have only begun to explore the multitude of lesson possibilities." -- Diane Garfield, 5th grade teacher in San Francisco, California, and faculty member at San Francisco State University, Department of Education

"Food, Land & People is successfully engaging at-risk youth in agro-environmental literacy through a rich program of supplementary curriculum activities suitable for both formal and non-formal educators. I recall a third grader from Cesar Chavez Elementary School in Richmond, California, who quite authoritatively told me that water pollution and the conservation of wetlands were no longer issues because factories could produce all the clean bottled water we need. The idea that a third grader would think that we can actually manufacture water was astonishing." -- Stephen Andrews, Environmental Science Teaching Program, University of California, Berkeley

"The FLP curriculum is excellent and a valuable asset in telling the story about the interdependence of people, agriculture, and the environment. This story, told in an unbiased and passionate way, is the most important action that can be taken to insure a sustainable and abundant future. We can have the most technically advanced agriculture in the world, and wonderful open spaces, however, if the urban citizens do not understand and value these treasures they will disappear into strip malls and fast track residential developments." -- Dan Desmond, 4-H Youth Development Advisor, Cooperative Extension, El Dorado County

Review of Resources for Learning from the North American Association for Environmental Education (NAAEE):

Under the supervision of Dr. Bora Simmons, project director for the National Project for Excellence in Environmental Education, Resources for Learning was analyzed by seven independent, trained reviewers using the process outlined in the NAAEE's Environmental Education Materials: Guidelines for Excellence. The report summarized that FLP materials followed the guidelines for excellence "very well."

Specific reviewer comments regarding six key characteristics of quality material included:

• "Fresh point of view, fresh perspective"
• "Especially good for rural students in fast-growing areas overtaken by development."
• "Uses all the best tools for curriculum supplements, but offers detailed and comprehensive content and background information as well."

The analysis of the report showed that FLP exceeded in six areas, with the following comments:

Fairness and Accuracy - "Variety of activities that include counter-ideas; not afraid to tackles difficult 'ag' subjects."

Depth - "Excellent conceptual framework. Focus is on concepts rather than too many facts. Good multi-community efforts. Deals with social and economic, as well as ecological, concepts."

Emphasis on Skills Building - "Lots of activity options for multiple learning styles. Almost all activities have a component of critical thinking. Good why or why not questions."

Action Oriented - "Very good. Some of the skill areas actually address responsibility and cause and effect."

Instructional Soundness - "Incorporates a good model for cooperative learning, using process skills, different learning styles, etc. Is learner-centered and allows students to construct knowledge. Examples reflect real-world experiences. Is interdisciplinary."

Usability - "So much to choose from. User-friendly. Teachers can do a suitable job without undue prep time. Claims seem substantiated. Materials are easy to obtain and inexpensive. Fits with national, state standards."