The Capital Area Food Bank team often uses the motto “CAFB is on the move” to keep the community abreast of food bank happenings. Well, the Food for Kids team is on the move, too! Food for Kids has made huge strides this year in reinforcing our goals to provide fresh produce as a key component in our after school, summer and weekend meals and we know that educating kids about the food they eat is equally important.
As a part of our new Empowerment Program, we have the opportunity to speak with many of our Kids Cafe sites to help them increase the numbers of kids they serve and expand their after school and summer programs. Many of the sites are interested in ways to both teach and demonstrate healthy eating habits to their kids.
We listened to the feedback and are extremely excited to present a new workshop, Promoting Healthy Foods to Kids and Parents, in conjunction with the University of Maryland Extension program. This is the latest workshop in the Empowerment Program series and will be led by LaTasha Coleman, a valuable community resource.
The workshop includes training for site leaders on “My Plate,” fun activities for kids, healthy food resources and tips for encouraging kids to try new foods. In addition, the University of Maryland Extension program has given us the opportunity to offer its program Read for Health as part of the training. This nutrition education curriculum uses language arts as a vehicle to teach nutrition and physical activity. Health messages are reinforced through activities, food tastings and a family newsletter. All site leaders who attend the training will receive materials on how to use Read for Health with their kids, as well as books to use at their sites.
We welcome anyone interested in learning more about promoting healthy foods, but we especially encourage our Kids Cafe site leaders to attend. Join us on January 17, 2013 from 10 am – 12 pm in the Mildred J. Brooks Learning Center at the Capital Area Food Bank for a fun and engaging workshop! RSVP to Stephanie Sneed at ssneed@capitalareafoodbank.org.