Every year, the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations marks October 16 as World Food Day in order to bring attention to hunger and malnutrition around the world. This year’s focus is “Sustainable Food Systems for Food Security and Nutrition.”
In order to help teachers teach the topic of hunger and food security in their classrooms, NewsHour Extra compiled these five handy resources and lesson plans in partnership with the United Nations World Food Programme (WFP).
1. Resources | Simple Tools to Help Teachers Introduce Students to Hunger Issues
This list of resources from WFP offers a fun, multimedia introduction to food shortage and hunger issues around the world. Use WFP’s hunger fact-sheets, interactive map, lesson plans and videos to bring the problem of hunger alive to your students.
2. Student Voice | Young Syrian Refugees Face Tough Conditions in Jordan’s Zaatari Camp
This photo slideshow from WFP shows conditions for children living in the Zaatari refugee camp for Syrians displaced by the civil war. It is paired with a NewsHour video that also talks to young people about the experience of leaving home and living in Zaatari.
3. Article | On Thanksgiving, a Look at Programs That Aim to Feed the Hungry
In November, millions of people across America sit down at a dinner table and enjoy a generous Thanksgiving Day meal, but this isn’t the case for everyone. In the U.S. alone, more than 14 percent of households struggle to put food on the table and more than one in four children are at risk of hunger.
4. Lesson Plan | World Food Day: Teaching the Power of School Meals
From WFP, this lesson plan addresses the problem of hunger in many developing nations, and the power of school meals to help kids achieve their potential.
5. Lesson Plan | Food Insecurity
Food Insecurity is a complex and rising problem. It takes many forms, from food scarcity to lack of nutritious food. In this lesson plan from the Pulitzer Center on Crisis Reporting, students will be introduced to the topic of food insecurity and how the problem has manifested in Nigeria, India and Guatemala.
6. Lesson Plan | Genetically Modified Foods: From The Lab to The Dinner Table
This lesson is designed to expose students to the various issues surrounding GMO foods and to help them understand the complexity of the issues surrounding the biotechnology movement.
