FFVP is provided to over 16,500 school districts nationwide and is prioritized in areas with a high percentage of students who receive free or reduced lunch. FFVP schools receive a box of fresh fruit and vegetables twice a week through their district’s distributor. FFVP snacks are cut into samples and individually packaged for easy classroom distribution. To find out if your school receives these produce boxes and to coordinate distribution to your SnackTime Explorers classroom, please contact your district’s school nutrition and cafeteria managers.

These plug-and-play lessons are designed to complement all curriculum areas by featuring CASEL skills and real-time applications in other subjects. Teachers are encouraged to customize SnackTime Explorers lessons and connect tasting experiences to their classrooms’ individual needs: SnackTime Explorers lessons can be utilized in conjunction with vocabulary, math, social sciences, and more.

SnackTime Explorers is a way to maximize the effectiveness of FFVP classroom snack time by adding Food Education elements to the classroom in a fun, flexible way.

SnackTime Explorers is a robust educational toolkit including lessons, videos, and supporting materials from Pilot Light. Lead Teachers participate in professional development workshops through Pilot Light, build a peer learning community with other SnackTime Explorers educators, receive a $500 stipend, and can earn continuing education credits where available. Please reach out to snacktimeexplorers@pilotlightchefs.org for more information.

We understand the importance of equipping educators with the tools they need to seamlessly integrate our program into their curriculum. During the 9-week program, teachers will be actively implementing lessons in their classrooms, attending two professional development workshops facilitated by Pilot Light, and engaging in both virtual and in-person check-ins with our team. Additionally, Lead Teachers will oversee the participation of two other teachers at their school. To ensure the long-term success of SnackTime Explorers, all participating teachers will be required to complete pre- and post-program surveys and utilize additional supporting materials provided by Pilot Light. Our commitment to teacher success and support is at the core of our program, and we strive to make it as welcoming and user-friendly as possible.