Newswise — Belmont, MA., September. 3, 2020. – ChopChop Family, The Kids Cook Monday, and University of Florida Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences are partnering together to produce a series of webinars, through the Community of Practice Healthy Food Choices in Schools eXtension, for educators to help support families in making healthful and cost-effective food choices.
Access to technology, healthcare and food, among other inequities, have become center stage during the pandemic. This calls for thoughtful resources that are fundamental to improving the lives of communities across the country. With September full of events such as Fruit and Vegetable Month, Family Meals Month, and National Obesity Month, now is the perfect time to deliver this important, actionable content. The collective goal is to inspire and inform educators to best serve their communities.
The five-part webinar series will feature experts addressing a range of key topics for educators including:
- Why Teach Kids to Cook? – Sep 21, 2020. 1pm EST
- How to Teach Kids to Prepare Healthy, Fun Snacks – Oct 5, 2020. 1pm EST
- Simple Changes to Improve Meal Health – Oct 19, 2020. 1pm EST
- Simple Tips to Lower the Cost of Meals – Nov 2, 2020. 1pm EST
- Feeding Picky Eaters – Nov 16, 2020. 1pm EST
Register for free. Visit https://healthy-food-choices-in-schools.extension.org/why-teach-kids-to-cook/ and sign up.
“We believe that teaching kids and their families to cook and eat together is fundamental to every family’s health and happiness. When children learn healthy eating habits early, they maintain healthy lifestyles into their teenage and adult years. We aim to counteract today’s rampant “kitchen illiteracy” by empowering families and communities with our positive message and common-sense, innovative, and fun solutions” says ChopChop Family Founder, Sally Sampson.
”The best way to encourage families, educators, and staff to support change in youth and their eating habits is to provide the tools to invoke behavior change. Oftentimes we are aware of what should be done, but not always the best at finding the ways to make change happen.” Vanessa Spero, UF/IFAS Extension 4-H Youth Development.
“Teaching kids about nutrition and how to cook from a young age equips them with skills and knowledge they need to live a healthy life. Time constraints often limit families’ ability to prepare and eat nutritious meals together. This series of brief webinars with experts can help address this time issue. Research conducted by Johns Hopkins School of Public Health for The Monday Campaigns shows that people are more open to starting healthy habits on a Monday. We aim to provide resources to help families and communities use Monday as a day to get on a healthier track. Cooking and eating meals together is an effective way to do this,” says Nara Sandberg, partnerships associate for the Kids Cook Monday initiative.
ChopChop Family https://www.chopchopfamily.org/
Endorsed by the American Academy of Pediatrics and winner of the prestigious James Beard Foundation Award for Publication of the Year, ChopChop Family’s mission is to inspire and teach families to cook and eat real food together, providing tools for building essential life skills through the lens of cooking. ChopChop Family includes a diverse and inclusive collection of products for children, families, and older adults. In addition to our magazines, ChopChop (children/families), and Seasoned (older adults), and cookbooks, the ChopChop Family brand includes Eatable Alphabet (kitchen activity cards) digital content and newsletters, cooking curricula, and cooking classes, reaching over three million families worldwide.
The University of Florida’s Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences (UF/IFAS) https://ifas.ufl.edu/
The Mission of UF/IFAS is to develop knowledge in agricultural, human, and natural resources, and to make that knowledge accessible to sustain and enhance the quality of human life. UF/IFAS is a federal-state-county partnership dedicated to developing knowledge in agriculture, human and natural resources, and the life sciences. UF/IFAS fulfills the university’s land grant mission, working to enhance and sustain the quality of human life through research and extension services.
The Monday Campaigns https://www.mondaycampaigns.org/
The Kids Cook Monday is an initiative of The Monday Campaigns. The Monday Campaigns is associated with leading health institutions that seeks to reduce the incidence of preventable diseases by dedicating every Monday to health. Research shows that healthy thinking and behavior are synchronized with the week, with Monday being the day people are most open to positive changes. We offer free evidence-based health promotions that leverage this Monday “fresh start” mindset and weekly cue to provide sustainable motivation that can help create life-long healthy habits.
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