Resources

No Kid Hungry is committed to ensuring that program sponsors, community organizations, and advocates have the resources and tools they need to ensure all kids have the food they need to thrive. We’ve highlighted several current resources below, including resources specifically for Maryland schools and families.

To access our full national resource library, visit our Center for Best Practices website. 

Center for Best Practices

Did you know that No Kid Hungry also hosts webinars on various topics around child nutrition? Click here to access webinars (both upcoming and recordings)!

  • Breakfast After the Bell Myths
    Schools that offer a Breakfast After the Bell (BAB) program by implementing models such as Breakfast in the Classroom (BIC), Grab and Go to the Classroom, and Second Chance Breakfast, are able to increase access to school breakfast and provide more kids with the healthy food they need to learn and grow. Despite the successes of BAB, such as improved academic performance and reduced disciplinary problems, some myths still persist.
  • Breakfast After the Bell Pre-Implementation Checklist
    This resource is a mapped out list of action steps schools can take to prepare for BAB implementation, from creating a school breakfast team, to connecting with schools that have already implemented BAB to learn from their experiences.
  • Breakfast After the Bell Equipment Tips
    This resource is designed to help guide school nutrition staff in choosing what equipment would be useful for whichever Breakfast After the Bell model they choose.
  • Understanding Afterschool Snacks and Meals
    Confused about the different options and rules for afterschool nutrition programs? Read this!
  • How Afterschool Meals Reach Kids
    Afterschool meals are essential for millions of children across the nation. They provide the energy kids need to do homework and enjoy sports and other afterschool activities.
    The At-Risk Afterschool Meals component of the Child and Adult Care Food Program (CACFP), also known as the Afterschool Meals Program, makes this possible. Here’s the path that the funding takes from Congress to kids’ plates.
  • Starting Afterschool Meals FAQs Resource
    This short one-pager explains why afterschool programs should offer meals, provides a quick overview of the CACFP At-Risk Afterschool Meals Program requirements, and gives you easy next steps to help you get started.
  • Summer Hunger is Too Expensive to Ignore
    A report from Deloitte Consulting, “Summer Nutrition Program Social Impact Analysis,” analyzes available research on the long-term impacts of childhood hunger during the summer months. The study, conducted on behalf of No Kid Hungry (with support from the Arby’s Foundation) shows that providing children with access to nutritious food beyond the school year and into the summer months has clear health, education and economic benefits.
  • Summer Food Service Program Overview
    Key facts about the Summer Food Service Program for school districts and community stakeholders considering program sponsorship or other direct involvement in delivery of the program.
  • Summer Meals Fact Sheet
    An overview of the need for summer meals, basic facts about the program, and ways both individuals and organizations can get involved.
  • Strategies for Sponsor Retention
    This resource provides a timeline with specific actions to help you retain strong summer meals sponsors.
  • Summer Meals in your Community – Engagement Toolkit for Mayors
    Mayors are uniquely positioned to support the adoption, implementation, and expansion of summer meals in their communities. This toolkit explains three key ways that mayors can engage with the summer meals program.
  • Summer Meals Outreach Kit
    Includes a range of ready-made promotional materials to help publicize summer meals in your community.
  • Maryland SNAP One-Pager
    The Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) is a powerful tool for ending hunger in Maryland. SNAP
    benefits are provided on an Electronic Benefit Transfer (EBT) card and can only be used to purchase food items from grocery stores, farmers’ markets and other authorized food retailers.
  • SNAP Outreach in Schools Toolkit
    This toolkit helps get the word out about SNAP in school settings. It features customizable scripts, website blurbs, webpage buttons, outreach materials, social media posts and graphics in English, Spanish, Chinese (Simplified and Traditional), Tagalog, and Vietnamese.
  • Recent Changes to SNAP Benefit Amounts
    The temporary boost to SNAP benefits put in place during the COVID-19 pandemic, known as emergency allotments, ended nationwide after the February 2023 issuance. More details can be found in the Recent Changes to SNAP Benefits infographic.
  • The Role of WIC in Early Childhood
    This research brief highlights the importance of WIC and parents’ experiences with the program. The findings are from a national survey of parents with young children (ages 0-5), conducted by No Kid Hungry in partnership with APCO Insight.
  • A Breakfast Story From Maryland
    This story highlights a Universal Breakfast Program at Gaithersburg High School in Montgomery County, MD that helped to double participation.
  • Ending Child Hunger: A Mayor’s Checklist
    Mayors are in a strong position to help end childhood hunger in their communities. Mayors can help raise awareness about the issue and about available programs; convene stakeholders across sectors to tackle the problem; and ensure that schools, city agencies and community organizations are implementing effective programs that expand access to nutritious food for kids. Use this checklist to learn about the actions that you can take as a mayor to end childhood hunger.
  • School Meals Design Guide
    This online guide from No Kid Hungry features ready-to-use activities and tools to help make school meal programs more student-centered. Within it are assets like a survey question library, QR code generator, customizable logos and more to help you engage students and caregivers.
  • Student Feedback Toolkit for School Meals
    This toolkit identifies ways to gather student input and recommendations to help increase student engagement in school meals and improve program participation.