Education and Training Resources for School Nutrition Programs
ICN’s research-based education and training resources are designed to help district school nutrition directors/supervisors, managers, and nutrition assistants/technicians meet the challenges of the day to day operations of successful school nutrition programs.
Popular Resources for School Nutrition Programs
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This colorful 17″ X 22″ poster offers “at a glance” information on recipe abbreviations, measurement conversions, portioning tools, and steamtable pan capacity.
Post it in the kitchen for quick reference. Also available from ICN. Call 800-321-3054 for more information.
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Basics at a Glance
| Title | Date added | Download |
|---|---|---|
| Basics At A Glance - Print | April 03, 2019 | Download |
| Lo esencial a la mirada (Spanish)-Print | April 03, 2019 | Download |
| Basics At A Glance - Full Poster | January 18, 2018 | Download |
| Basics At A Glance Part 1 of Four Parts | January 18, 2018 | Download |
| Basics At A Glance Part 2 of Four Parts | January 18, 2018 | Download |
| Basics At A Glance Part 3 of Four Parts | January 18, 2018 | Download |
| Basics At A Glance Part 4 of Four Parts | January 18, 2018 | Download |
| Lo esencial a la mirada (Spanish)- Full Poster | January 18, 2018 | Download |
| Lo esencial a la mirada (Spanish)Part 1 of Four Parts - Spanish version | January 18, 2018 | Download |
| Lo esencial a la mirada Part 2 of Four Parts - Spanish Version | January 18, 2018 | Download |
| Lo esencial a la mirada Part 3 of Four Parts - Spanish Version | January 18, 2018 | Download |
| Lo esencial a la mirada Part 4 of Four Parts - Spanish Version | January 18, 2018 | Download |
Face-to-face training resource that provides participants the opportunity to review and practice basic culinary math skills. Published 2016. Revised 2017.
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Basic Culinary Math for School Nutrition Professionals
| Title | Date added | Download |
|---|---|---|
| Basic Culinary Math - Instructors Manual | April 09, 2018 | Download |
| Basic Culinary Math - Participant's Workbook | April 09, 2018 | Download |
| Basic Culinary Math - Presentation | April 09, 2018 | Download |
| Basic Culinary Math - Flashcards | April 09, 2018 | Download |
| Basic Culinary Math - Pre and Post Assessments with Answer Key | May 28, 2021 | Download |
Cashier’s Training: Reimbursable Meals is a two-hour face-to-face training designed to assist cashiers in understanding a lunch and breakfast reimbursable meal under the National School Lunch Program and National School Breakfast Program. It provides short skill-building activities for cashiers to recognize reimbursable meals. The training can be taught in short intervals or as a 2-hour session. The resource includes a trainer’s manual, participants’ workbook, and PowerPoint presentation. Revised 2017.
Culinary Techniques for Healthy School Meals is a series of lessons designed to help school nutrition teams prepare healthier school meals that appeal to the taste of today’s students. Team members will learn information about nutrition, food production and culinary techniques that will improve their school nutrition programs.
Emergencies happen when they are least expected. Having an emergency preparedness plan in place can help save lives and provide employees with a sense of security when an emergency takes place. ICN has developed templates, fact sheets, and an online course to help you prepare for emergencies that may come your way.
Reopening Your School Kitchen After a Flood
Salvaging Food After a Flood
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Designing an Emergency Preparedness Templates
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Steps for Emergency Preparedness
| Title | Date added | Download |
|---|---|---|
| Steps for Emergency Preparedness | May 15, 2020 | Download |
| Step One | May 15, 2020 | Download |
| Step Two | May 15, 2020 | Download |
| Step Three | May 15, 2020 | Download |
| Step Four | May 15, 2020 | Download |
| Step Five | May 15, 2020 | Download |
| Step Six | May 15, 2020 | Download |
A series of fact sheets that provide an overview of food allergies, the top 8 food allergies, how to manage food allergies, and common questions regarding food allergies in child nutrition programs. Revised 2014.
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Food Allergy Fact Sheets
| Title | Date added | Download |
|---|---|---|
| Overview of Food Allergies Fact Sheet | June 24, 2020 | Download |
| Common Questions: School Nutrition Staff | June 24, 2020 | Download |
| Common Questions: School Nutrition Directors | June 24, 2020 | Download |
| Managing Food Allergies School Nutrition Directors Fact Sheet | June 24, 2020 | Download |
| Managing Food Allergies School Nutrition Staff Fact Sheet | June 24, 2020 | Download |
| Alergias a los Alimentos | April 10, 2018 | Download |
| Egg Allergies Fact Sheet | June 24, 2020 | Download |
| Fish Allergies Fact Sheet | June 24, 2020 | Download |
| Milk Allergies Fact Sheet | June 24, 2020 | Download |
| Peanut Allergies | June 25, 2020 | Download |
| Shellfish Allergies | June 25, 2020 | Download |
| Soy Allergies | June 25, 2020 | Download |
| Tree Nut Allergies | June 25, 2020 | Download |
| Wheat Allergies | June 25, 2020 | Download |
| Serving Safe Food to Students with Food Allergies | February 14, 2018 | Download |
Food Allergies for School Nutrition Directors is an in-depth training on managing food allergies in school nutrition programs. Directors and food allergy management personnel who take this course will create an outline of a food allergy management plan or have an opportunity to strengthen their existing plan. This course includes information about food allergies, food intolerance, reading food labels, avoiding cross contact, accommodating students with food allergies, laws regarding food allergies, and educating the school community about food allergies. Published 2014, revised 2018.
The Managing Food Allergies in School Nutrition Programs online course is a 4-hour training course that can be found on ICN’s New eLearning Portal.
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Food Allergies for School Nutrition Managers and Staff
| Title | Date added | Download |
|---|---|---|
| Caitlin Remembered Video | October 26, 2018 | Download |
| Food Allergies for School Nutrition Managers & Staff - Instructor's Manual | December 03, 2019 | Download |
| Food Allergies for School Nutrition Managers & Staff - Participant Workbook | December 03, 2019 | Download |
| Food Allergies for School Nutrition Managers & Staff _PPT Presentation | December 03, 2019 | Download |
| Food Allergies for School Nutrition Managers & Staff_ Pre-Assessment | December 03, 2019 | Download |
| Food Allergies for School Nutrition Managers & Staff _Post-Assessment | December 03, 2019 | Download |
| Food Allergies for School Nutrition Managers and Staff_Pre and Post Assessment Answers | December 03, 2019 | Download |
Food Safety Basics is a 4-hour training for new school nutrition managers and employees to provide a basic understanding of food safety. This training enables them to begin the job using safe food handling practices including good personal hygiene practices, important food temperatures, methods of preventing food contamination, and steps for developing a food safety program. Published 2017.
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Food Safety Basics
| Title | Date added | Download |
|---|---|---|
| Video Clip Using Thermometers | February 16, 2018 | Download |
| School Employee Health and Personal Hygiene Video Mini-Series Part 1- Reporting Illness | April 13, 2018 | Download |
| School Employee Health and Personal Hygiene Video Mini-Series Part 2- Handling Illness | April 13, 2018 | Download |
| School Employee Health and Personal Hygiene Video Mini-Series Part 3- Preventing Illness | April 13, 2018 | Download |
| Food Safety Basics - Instructor's Manual | April 10, 2018 | Download |
| Food Safety Basics - Participant's Workbook | April 10, 2018 | Download |
| Food Safety Basics - Presentation | April 10, 2018 | Download |
| Food Safety Basics - Pre-Assessment | April 10, 2018 | Download |
| Food Safety Basics - Post-Assessment | April 10, 2018 | Download |
| Food Safety Basics - Pre-Post Assessment Answers | April 10, 2018 | Download |
| ICN Handwashing Short | August 06, 2018 | Download |
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Food Safety Fact Sheets
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Financial Management: A Course for School Nutrition Directors 2nd Edition
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Financial Management: A Course for School Nutrition Managers
| Title | Date added | Download |
|---|---|---|
| Financial Management Managers - Instructors Manual | October 23, 2017 | Download |
| Financial Management Managers - Participants Workbook | October 23, 2017 | Download |
| Financial Management Managers - Presentation | October 23, 2017 | Download |
| Financial Management Managers - Pre-Post-Assestment | October 23, 2017 | Download |
| Financial Management Managers - Assessment Answer Key | October 23, 2017 | Download |
Colorful 8 ½” x 11″ mini-posters provide information at a glance on current food safety topics. Designed for use in the food preparation and service areas.
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Food Safety Mini-Posters
Food Safety Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) are written practices and procedures that are critical to producing safe food. It is essential to have these SOPs in place and to train foodservice employees to use them. Published 2005. Updated 2016. ET63-05.
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Food Safety Standard Operating Procedures
The Inventory Management and Tracking Reference Guide presents information about inventory management and tracking that may be new to school nutrition operators and updates information about traditional inventory management in light of new traceability expectations. Published 2012.
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| Title | Date added | Download |
|---|---|---|
| Inventory Management and Tracking Instructor's Manual | September 16, 2022 | Download |
| Inventory Management and Tracking Participant's Workbook | September 16, 2022 | Download |
| Inventory Management and Tracking Powerpoint | July 02, 2020 | Download |
| Inventory Management and Tracking Pre-Post-Assessment | July 02, 2020 | Download |
| Inventory Management and Tracking Pre-Post-AssessmentAnswer Key | July 02, 2020 | Download |
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Norovirus for Schools
The Breakfast Lunch Training (BLT) Module, Nutrition 101: A Taste of Food and Fitness, 4th Edition provides a basic overview of nutrition. The module incorporates a variety of learning activities to engage participants on a personal level. The learning objectives for each lesson are achieved through completion of all lesson components. Nutrition 101 consists of an Instructor’s Manual, a Participant’s Workbook, and PowerPoint presentations. Published 2018.
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Nutrition 101: A Taste of Food and Fitness - 4th Edition
| Title | Date added | Download |
|---|---|---|
| Nutrition 101 Instructor's Manual | April 10, 2018 | Download |
| Nutrition 101 Participant's Workbook | April 10, 2018 | Download |
| Nutrition 101 Pre-/Post - Assessment | April 10, 2018 | Download |
| Nutrition 101 Pre-/Post Assessment Answer Key | April 10, 2018 | Download |
| Nutrition 101 Presentation | April 10, 2018 | Download |
These training materials are used in the five-day Orientation to School Nutrition Management training seminar targeted to new and aspiring school nutrition program directors with five years or less experience. Lessons provide an overview of school nutrition programs, define the role and responsibilities of a director, and review the relationship between local policies and state/federal regulations.
Management topics include:
- Meal Pattern/HealthierUS School Challenge
- Food Production and Operation Management
- Program Accountability and the Role of the School Nutrition Director
- Procurement and Inventory Management
- Special Needs
- Work Place Safety and Emergency Preparedness
- Human Resource Management
- Marketing and Communication
- Financial Management
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Orientation to School Nutrition Management
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Produce Safety
| Title | Date added | Download |
|---|---|---|
| Handling Fresh Produce in Classrooms Fact Sheet | March 06, 2018 | Download |
| Handling Fresh Produce on Salad Bars Fact Sheet | March 06, 2018 | Download |
| Handling Leafy Greens Fact Sheet | March 06, 2018 | Download |
| Handling Produce Safely | March 06, 2018 | Download |
| Produce Storage Chart | March 06, 2018 | Download |
| School Garden Scenarios - Activity | March 06, 2018 | Download |
| Traceability Fact Sheet | March 06, 2018 | Download |
| Verifying On-Farm Food Safety Fact Sheet | March 06, 2018 | Download |
Recipes for Healthy Kids – The 30 winning recipes from the Recipes for Healthy Kids (R4HK) competition are credited to support the whole grain-rich, red/orange, dark green, and beans/peas (legumes) vegetable subgroups for the meal patterns as part of the Nutrition Standards in School Meal Programs. Find these recipes in the Team Nutrition Resource Library: