Local Wellness Policy Toolkit
Wellness Policy Implementation Toolkit
Data gathered through the Triennial Assessment allows school districts to identify priority areas for improving school-level wellness practices. District personnel and Local School Health Councils should work together to provide consistent support to schools in targeted areas.
The tools below will help you communicate to schools about the policy area, and why it’s important to student wellness; support implementation of practices that support health and well-being; and create accountability systems that track adherence to the policy.
Alignment with Smart Snacks Guidelines (vending, a la carte, fundraisers, etc)
| Tool name | Audience | Notes |
| Communication Tools | ||
| Healthy Choices Start Here! flyer | Vending machine users (teachers, staff, visitors, students) | A flyer for promoting Smart Snacks–compliant vending options. It encourages healthier choices, highlights key nutrition features, and invites feedback to engage the school community in supporting wellness goals. Consider including a photo of your vending machine or healthy snack items in the flyer. |
| Marketing Food Smartly: Aligning with Wellness Policy guide | Staff or volunteers involved in food marketing activities (coaches, club advisors, booster oOrganizers) | An informational guide to food and beverage marketing in compliance with USDA and the district wellness policies. It clarifies what counts as food marketing, outlines allowed and prohibited practices, and provides tips to reinforce healthy choices consistently across the school environment. |
| Smart Snacks in School: A Practical Guide (Alliance for a Healthier Generation) | School staff responsible for food sales (e.g., school stores, snack carts, student-run vending) | A guide to ensuring all foods and beverages sold on campus during the school day meet USDA Smart Snacks standards. Includes allowed and prohibited items, compliance tips, and resources to help staff maintain a healthy, policy-aligned school store. |
| Smart Snacks in School: A Practical Guide (Alliance for a Healthier Generation) | School or district staff responsible for food sales decision making (administrators, food service staff, club advisors, district wellness lead, Local School Health Council members) | A guide to help apply Smart Snacks standards in day-to-day food sales. Useful as a reference and training tool for both school staff and district teams providing support. |
| A Guide to Smart Snacks in Schools (USDA) | School or district staff responsible for food sales decision making (administrators, food service staff, club advisors, district wellness lead, Local School Health Council members) | This official USDA guide provides clear, actionable information on meeting Smart Snacks standards. It’s designed for anyone involved in selling foods or beverages to students during the school day, including overseeing vending contracts and managing snack bar operations. |
| Implementation Tools | ||
| Smart Snacks – Fundraisers and Foods Not Intended for Consumption at School (USDA) | School fundraising decision-makers (administrators, parent-teacher organizations, student groups and their advisors) | A guide for food-related fundraisers during the school day, ensuring only Smart Snacks–compliant items are sold, and encouraging non-food or after-school alternatives. |
| Smart Snacks Calculator (Alliance for a Healthier Generation) | School staff or volunteers involved in food sales, including fundraising, vending, and school stores (club advisors, booster organizations, food service managers) | A web-based calculator for evaluating whether a specific food product complies with USDA Smart Snacks standards. |
| Accountability Tools (see Audience Note) | ||
| Food Fundraising/Smart Snack Audit Tool |
Completed by school-level fundraising authority (principal, Wellness Team chair, PTO lead)
Submitted to district-level wellness lead or Local School Health Council |
An annual checklist evaluating fundraising practices for alignment with Smart Snacks standards and district wellness policies. Encourages transparency, tracks compliance, and highlights areas for improvement in creating a healthier school environment. |
| Vending Policy Compliance Checklist |
Completed by school-level vending machine authority (Wellness Team chair, food service staff, Administrators)
Submitted to district-level wellness lead or Local School Health Council |
A checklist for schools to monitor and maintain compliance with vending policies and Smart Snacks standards. Supports regular reviews of machine access, product content, and communication to promote healthier options. |
Audience Note: Accountability Tools are intended to be disseminated by school district wellness leaders to be completed at individual schools by responsible persons, ideally submitted to the district for monitoring purposes. This provides both an opportunity for self-assessment by the site, and a process for the district to aggregate data and monitor progress on wellness policy compliance.
Employee Wellness Activities
| Tool name | Audience | Notes |
| Coming soon | ||
Established School Wellness Teams
| Tool name | Audience | Notes |
| Communication Tools | ||
| Start a School Wellness Team guide | Wellness Team members (teachers, staff, parents, students, administrators, partners) | A handout for existing and potential wellness team members explaining why wellness teams matter and how they bring policy into practice. Customized fields for district-specific information and is best used at the launch stage, like in staff meetings or newsletters, to spark interest and build buy-in. |
| Wellness Team FAQs | Wellness Team members (teachers, staff, parents, students, administrators, partners) | A list of FAQ supporting the function of school wellness teams. Questions address roles, meeting frequency, and priorities, onboarding. The editable contact section also connects schools back to district support. |
| Implementation Tools | ||
| Building a Successful School Wellness Committee (Alliance for a Healthier Generation) | Wellness Team members (teachers, staff, parents, students, administrators, partners) | A practical guide with strategies for structuring the team, clarifying roles, and setting goals. It helps schools move from simply meeting to working effectively and sustainably. |
| Working Toward Wellness training presentation | Wellness Team members (teachers, staff, parents, students, administrators, partners) | A ready-to-use presentation for new or existing wellness teams. It explains why wellness teams matter, builds buy-in, and starts the conversation about how to operate an effective team. |
| Accountability Tools (see Audience Note) | ||
| Annual Wellness Team Self-Check |
Completed by school-level Wellness Team members (Teachers, Staff, Parents, Students, Administrators, Partners) Submitted to district-level wellness lead or Local School Health Council |
A questionnaire to help wellness teams reflect on their functioning, membership, and progress at both the beginning and end of the school year. It guides teams to set action plans, track alignment with district policy, and report back to the district wellness contact on a bi-annual basis. |
| School Wellness Team Meeting Tracker and Action Log |
Completed by school-level Wellness Team members (Teachers, Staff, Parents, Students, Administrators, Partners) Submitted to district-level wellness lead or Local School Health Council |
A wellness team meeting log sheet to document discussions, action steps, and progress. It helps assign responsibilities, track deadlines, and ensure accountability. By keeping a consistent record, teams maintain continuity across meetings and can easily show how their work aligns with the Local Wellness Policy. |
Audience Note: Accountability Tools are intended to be disseminated by school district wellness leaders to be completed at individual schools by responsible persons, ideally submitted to the district for monitoring purposes. This provides both an opportunity for self-assessment by the site, and a process for the district to aggregate data and monitor progress on wellness policy compliance.
Food Prohibited as Student Rewards
| Tool name | Audience | Notes |
| Communication Tools | ||
| Example Family Letter – Rewards | Families | A sample letter to families communicating the school’s shift to non-food rewards and providing actionable ways families can support healthy habits at home. |
| Why We Don’t Use Food Rewards | Teachers, classroom staff, and student incentive planners (e.g., Parent-Teacher Organization members, grade-level coordinators, classroom volunteers) | Explains why non-food rewards are preferred, highlighting health, equity, and policy alignment. Offers practical alternatives to food-based rewards and supports consistent implementation of wellness policies in classrooms and celebrations. (Site-level tool) |
| Implementation Tools | ||
| Classroom Coupons | Teachers | A simple, non-food reward system that teachers can use to recognize positive behavior or achievements. Coupons can be exchanged for privileges, activities, or small items, supporting healthy reinforcement strategies. |
| Reward Punch Card | Teachers and classroom staff implementing positive behavior systems (teachers, instructional aides, or behavior specialists) | A visual, engaging tool for students to track and earn non-food rewards. Supports reinforcement of positive behavior, encourages participation, and aligns with wellness policies promoting non-food incentives. |
| Rewards Done Right training presentation | Teachers |
A training presentation providing guidance on using non-food rewards effectively in the classroom. Highlights strategies for recognizing positive behavior and achievement while supporting student health. |
| Top Ten Non-Food Rewards List for Young Students | Teachers and classroom staff implementing positive behavior strategies (teachers, instructional aides, or behavior specialists) | Provides a quick-reference list of engaging, non-food rewards to recognize student behavior and achievements. Supports classroom implementation of wellness policies while promoting equitable, healthy reinforcement strategies. |
| Accountability Tools (see Audience Note) | ||
| Non-Food Reward Questions for Inclusion in Staff Performance Review |
Completed by school-level administrators (principals, assistant principals, instructional supervisors, HR evaluators) Submitted to district-level supervisors overseeing staff evaluations and wellness lead |
Questions to incorporate into formal or informal teacher performance processes (may require collaboration with Teaching and Learning office). Encourages reflection and accountability around non-food reward practices during staff reviews. Promotes alignment with wellness policy goals and provides an opportunity to identify support needs. |
| Non-Food Reward Questions for Inclusion in Teaching Observations |
Completed by school-level administrators (principals, assistant principals, instructional supervisors, HR evaluators) Submitted to district-level supervisors overseeing staff evaluations and wellness lead |
Questions incorporating wellness policy monitoring into teacher observation processes tracking food and non-food reward use (may require collaboration with Teaching and Learning office). Supports compliance and reinforces best practices for positive behavior reinforcement. |
Audience Note: Accountability Tools are intended to be disseminated by school district wellness leaders to be completed at individual schools by responsible persons, ideally submitted to the district for monitoring purposes. This provides both an opportunity for self-assessment by the site, and a process for the district to aggregate data and monitor progress on wellness policy compliance.
Frequency/Length of Activity Breaks
| Tool name | Audience | Notes |
| Communication Tools | ||
| Physical Activity Morning Announcements | Students | A set of slides and accompanying scripts for promoting physical activity on the morning announcements. Can be used as a complement to physical activity policies and systems being implemented at the school or district level. |
| Sample Recess Policy Letter to Parents | Families | A sample, customizable letter to families communicating the school or district’s recess policy, and actions parents can take to ensure students are prepared for outdoor recess. |
| Implementation Tools | ||
| Learning in Motion training presentation | Teachers and instructional aides | A training presentation providing motivation and methods for integrating physical activity into instructional time. |
| Power Up Your Recess training presentation | Teachers and staff | A training presentation providing motivation and problem-solving for ensuring students are able to have active recess on a daily basis, including on bad weather days. |
| Screen Smart Schools training presentation | Teachers and staff | A training presentation providing background and problem-solving to address excessive use of screens for non-instructional purposes, including during indoor recess. |
| Accountability Tools (see Audience Note) | ||
| Quarterly Classroom Physical Activity (PA) Monitoring Tool |
Completed by school-level teachers and staff implementing PA in the classroom (teachers, instructional aides)
Submitted to district-level wellness lead or Local School Health Council |
Collects classroom-level PA data quarterly to track implementation, identify challenges, and highlight successful practices. Supports both site-level reflection and district-wide planning for promoting student wellness. |
Audience Note: Accountability Tools are intended to be disseminated by school district wellness leaders to be completed at individual schools by responsible persons, ideally submitted to the district for monitoring purposes. This provides both an opportunity for self-assessment by the site, and a process for the district to aggregate data and monitor progress on wellness policy compliance.
Guidelines for Food in Classroom Parties
| Tool name | Audience | Notes |
| Communication Tools | ||
| Classroom Celebration Policy Letter | Families | A customizable letter schools can send home to explain classroom celebration policies. It helps communicate expectations clearly, provides healthy alternatives, and invites parents to support by contributing snacks, games, or activities. This tool reinforces wellness policies while keeping families engaged in positive celebrations. |
| Healthy Parties = Healthy Kids flyer | Class party planners (teachers, staff, classroom parents, Parent-Teacher Organization) | A customizable flyer that promotes healthy celebrations and explains why nutrition and physical activity support student success. Schools can add district-specific policy language and resources. It encourages families and staff to use healthy foods and active games when celebrating, reinforcing wellness policy expectations in a positive way. |
| Implementation Tools | ||
| Re-imagining Classroom Celebrations training presentation | Class party planners (teachers, staff, classroom parents, Parent-Teacher Organization) | A training presentation providing background, ideas, and strategies to ensure classroom celebrations reflect healthy behaviors and align with the wellness policy.. |
| Healthy Snack List | Class party planners (teachers, staff, classroom parents, Parent-Teacher Organization) | A list of ideas for snacks that can be provided for classroom celebrations. Schools may choose to use this or similar lists as an approved list of party snacks. |
| Accountability Tools (see Audience Note) | ||
| Classroom Party Food Checklist |
Completed by school-level class party planners (teachers, staff, classroom parents, Parent-Teacher Organization) Submitted to district-level wellness lead or Local School Health Council |
A checklist to ensure classroom parties follow Local Wellness Policy guidelines. It prompts staff to review healthy snack lists, consider allergies, contact food services if needed, and include non-food celebration options. This tool makes it simple to plan inclusive, policy-aligned parties while keeping families informed. |
| Parent-Staff Agreement Letter | Parents, Guardians, and School Staff | A letter for informing parents and staff about the school’s wellness policy for classroom celebrations. It ensures healthy food options, allergy safety, and coordination with teachers, while also encouraging non-food celebration ideas. |
Audience Note: Accountability Tools are intended to be disseminated by school district wellness leaders to be completed at individual schools by responsible persons, ideally submitted to the district for monitoring purposes. This provides both an opportunity for self-assessment by the site, and a process for the district to aggregate data and monitor progress on wellness policy compliance.
School Wellness Activities and Events
| Tool name | Audience | Notes |
| Communication Tools | ||
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Wellness Team members, other event committees |
A brief explanation of school wellness and how to plan events that incorporate wellness practices, promote healthy behaviors, and improve understanding of the wellness policy. |
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| Implementation Tools | ||
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Event committee members (teachers, staff, Community School Coordinators, Parent-Teacher Organization, Wellness Team) |
A training presentation providing background and strategies for ensuring family events reinforce healthy behaviors in alignment with the wellness policy. |
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Family Physical Activity at Your School training presentation |
Staff and volunteers involved in family engagement (administrators, Title I Coordinator, Community School Coordinators, Wellness Team members, Parent-Teacher Organization) |
A training presentation highlighting ways to provide physical activity opportunities to families on the school campus. |
| Accountability Tools (see Audience Note) | ||
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Completed by school-level event committee members (teachers, staff, Community School Coordinators, Parent-Teacher Organization, Wellness Team) Submitted to district-level wellness lead or Local School Health Council |
This tool is for planning, tracking, and reflecting on school wellness events throughout the year. It helps ensure events align with wellness goals, promotes consistency, and provides documentation for accountability to the district wellness lead. |
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School staff and wellness committee members responsible for planning and evaluating wellness events (Wellness Team chair, teachers, event leads) Submitted to district-level wellness lead or Local School Health Council |
Used to capture reflections on wellness events, including successes, challenges, and outcomes. Supports continuous improvement, informs future planning, and ensures alignment with school or district wellness goals. |
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Audience Note: Accountability Tools are intended to be disseminated by school district wellness leaders to be completed at individual schools by responsible persons, ideally submitted to the district for monitoring purposes. This provides both an opportunity for self-assessment by the site, and a process for the district to aggregate data and monitor progress on wellness policy compliance.
Clear Roles and Responsibilities for Policy Compliance
| Tool name | Audience | Notes |
| Communication Tools | ||
| School Wellness Policy Role Communication Template | District and school wellness leads (district wellness lead, principals, or school Wellness Team chairs) | Used to clarify who oversees each area of the Local Wellness Policy and to strengthen communication between district and school staff. Helps ensure accountability and smooth coordination by defining reporting responsibilities and points of contact. |
| Implementation Tools | ||
| Local Wellness Policy Roles Onboarding Guide Template | District and school wellness leaders responsible for LWP compliance (district wellness lead, Local School Health Council chairs, school Wellness Team chairs, food service managers, PE teachers) | Designed to onboard staff with wellness policy responsibilities by outlining expectations, reporting timelines, and support contacts. Ensures consistent understanding of LWP roles across schools and promotes coordinated implementation from district to site level. |
| Accountability Tools | ||
| LWP Compliance Responsibility SOP Template | District leaders responsible for LWP compliance (district wellness leads, district Local School Health Council chairs) | Provides a standard process for assigning and managing LWP compliance roles across schools. Supports accountability, consistent onboarding, and tracking of responsibilities year over year. |
| District LWP Compliance Tracker | District wellness leaders responsible for LWP compliance (district wellness leads, district Local School Health Council chairs) | Used to maintain an up-to-date record of LWP contacts and compliance leads at each school. Supports district-level monitoring, communication, and accountability for wellness policy implementation. |
Tools for Improving Your Local Wellness Policy
School districts and Local School Health Councils can better address school wellness if their Local Wellness Policy comprehensively addresses wellness topics using strong language.
- Maryland School Wellness Policy Checklist
- Model School Wellness Policy (Rudd Center for Food Policy and Health)
- WellSAT3.0 (requires login)
- WellSAT 3.0 Policy Questions (Rudd Center for Food Policy and Health)
- WellSAT WSSC (Rudd Center for Food Policy and Health)