At Ashburn Community Elementary School in Chicago, educator Rita Leary incorporates food into her science curriculum to engage students and deepen their understanding of scientific concepts. Recently, Leary’s mixed class of sixth through eighth graders explored the properties and varieties of honey native to Illinois, conducting sensory tests that linked science lessons with real-world food experiences.
Leary’s approach is inspired by Pilot Light, a nonprofit organization founded in 2010 that develops food-based educational curricula designed to integrate lessons about food, nutrition, and food systems across subjects like math, science, and reading. The program emphasizes student agency and connects food to broader environmental and social contexts, rather than simply promoting nutrition facts.
During a recent lesson, Leary’s students examined different types of honey—pumpkin, apple blossom, blueberry, and clover—learning about viscosity, color, and aroma as they related to bee foraging and nectar sources. Students used flashlights to study honey shades in a darkened classroom and observed the flow rate of honey from vials to understand thickness, linking the concept of viscosity to later science topics such as lava flow. The lesson also included smelling and tasting activities to explore flavor profiles, with students noting surprising differences between varieties.
Leary, a former Pilot Light Fellow with over three decades in education, credits the organization with inspiring her food-centric teaching methods. She points to the particular benefit of food as a universal engagement tool in education, stating that while not all students gravitate toward robotics, coding, or art, all respond positively to food-based learning. She also emphasizes the social aspect, noting how food brings her students together in ways that might otherwise be rare.
Pilot Light has expanded from its beginnings in a single Chicago classroom, initially involving local chefs responding to a call from former First Lady Michelle Obama’s “Let’s Move!” campaign, to a nationwide network partnering with teachers and schools in 26 states. This fall, the organization will launch its first chapter in New York City. The nonprofit’s Food Education Center now offers over 200 free lesson plans developed with input from chefs, farmers, medical experts, and psychologists. Topics extend beyond nutrition to encompass ecosystems, history, geometry, sustainability, and food insecurity.
The program also encourages students to engage in advocacy related to food systems, health, and community well-being. For example, initiatives include a community cooking event to stock a Love Fridge with homemade meals and a school chicken coop project where students learn agricultural responsibility and STEM skills while responding to real-life challenges.
At Ashburn Elementary, Leary complements her classroom food lessons with practical projects such as a beehive initiative supported by the Roof Crop Foundation, providing hands-on learning about urban farming and pollination.
Pilot Light’s executive director, Alexandra DeSorbo-Quinn, emphasizes that food serves as a common language and a powerful pedagogical tool capable of connecting diverse subjects and communities. The program continues to seek wider adoption across public school systems, advocating for the integration of food education as an essential component of student learning and empowerment.