Learning Good Habits Through Nutrition Education Lesson Overview Lesson Participants: CACFP personnel and other child care staff. Type of Lesson: Short face-to-face training session Time Needed to Conduct the Lesson: 10 minutes Lesson Description: This lesson explains the benefits of offering nutrition education in the preschool setting and ways to make activities successful. Lesson Objectives At the completion of the lesson the participant will be able to 1. Offer nutrition education in the preschool setting. 2. Make nutrition activities successful with preschool age children.
Get Ready to Train The format for the CARE Connection lesson plans include an overview, preparation checklist, lesson-at-a-glance with timeline for conducting the lesson, script, and lists of references and other resources. The instructor will use the script to present the lesson to the participants. Each script gives directions to the instructor—DO, SAY, ASK—to deliver the lesson. The lesson can be presented in the child care center or family day care home, media center, or classroom.
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Learning Good Habits Through Nutrition Education
Alternate Approaches to Lesson 1. Instead of following the lesson plan, show the CARE Connection video, Nutrition Education. The video is approximately 13 minutes; allow 10 minutes for follow-up discussion after the video. 2. The video may be used as a substitute lesson for an employee who was not present for the face-to-face training or to review material for an employee needing additional information. 3. The face-to-face training may be extended with the use of the video.
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Learning Good Habits Through Nutrition Education
Preparation Checklist Directions: Use the Preparation Checklist to get ready for the training session. Keep track of your progress by checking off tasks as they are completed. Done ;
Lesson Tasks Gather Materials
Materials Needed: • Instructor’s Script • Handout 1: Section 8 Nutrition Education, Grab and Go Lesson 1, How to Plan a Nutrition Education Activity. Click on the title to access the link. • Consider offering a nutrition activity as a role-play with participants. Gather materials you might need for that activity. • Pens or pencils (one for each participant) • Session Evaluation/Feedback Form (one for each participant) Prepare for Lesson
Before the Training: • Make enough copies of Handout 1 for each participant. • Make copies of Session Evaluation/Feedback Form (one for each participant). You may use the sample NFSMI evaluation form linked here or develop your own. • If using the video, make arrangements for video equipment.
On Training Day: • Place pens or pencils on tables (one for each participant). Download from the NFSMI Web site. • Distribute Handout 1 to each participant.
On the Instructor’s Table: • Instructor’s Script • Instructor’s copy of Handout 1 • Session Evaluation/Feedback Forms
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Learning Good Habits Through Nutrition Education
Lesson at a Glance (10 minutes) Time 1 minute 1 minute
5 minutes
1 minute 2 minutes
Topic Introduction and Overview Objective 1: Offer nutrition education in the preschool setting. Demonstration/Role Play
Task Introduce topic
Materials • Instructor’s Script
Review reasons to offer nutrition education.
• Instructor’s Script
Optional How “not to” conduct a nutrition activity. Participant review and discussion
Objective 2: Make nutrition activities successful with preschool age children. Summary and Close Review Key Points Session Conduct a short evaluation of evaluation/feedback the lesson.
• Handout 1
• Instructor’s Script • Sample evaluation/ feedback form or standard form used in your child nutrition program
References National Food Service Management Institute. (2008). CARE Connection Curriculum. University, MS: Author. U.S. Department of Agriculture. (2005). USDA Recipes for Child Care. Internet Resources http://www.fns.usda.gov http://www.health.gov/dietaryguidelines/ http://www.healthymeals.nal.usda.gov/ http://www.nfsmi.org/
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Learning Good Habits Through Nutrition Education
Instructor’s Script SAY: Childhood is the time we learn habits that will last a lifetime. This includes how we eat. Nutrition education is learning about foods and how foods are important to health. It should be part of child care because it helps children o Feel good about food and eating o Enjoy a wide variety of foods o Learn healthful eating habits early in life o Share and socialize at mealtime We know that activities with children require planning to make them work. DO: Optional Activity: Consider offering a nutrition activity as a role-play with participants. If you do this, begin the activity but intentionally make some mistakes in how you present it. For example, rush through the instructions, forget some of the materials needed, act confused about what should happen next, or tell them halfway through the instructions that you will need to do it another time. Ask participants how this made them feel and how they think children would react to this type of instruction. Tell participants you know this is an extreme example but that thinking through an activity goes a long way toward making it a success. DO: Distribute copies of Handout 1: How to Plan a Nutrition Education Activity to each participant. Hold up your copy for participants to see. Divide the participants into groups. Assign each group a tip to read and discuss. SAY: In your group read through the tip and discuss it. Think about what you think the tip means and how you could apply it in your child care setting. Then be ready to explain the tip to our whole group. DO: Provide time for review and reporting.
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Learning Good Habits Through Nutrition Education
Review Key Points to Close Lesson SAY: As we plan our nutrition education activities for the year, we want to do the best job we can. Keep in mind the suggestions we talked about today, such as taking advantage of teachable moments and planning activities that match with children’s interests. Remember that the nutrition education activities we do can have a lifelong impact on our children. DO: Distribute the session evaluation/feedback form. SAY: Thank you for participating in the lesson today. Please take a couple of minutes to complete the session evaluation/feedback form. Thank you for your input.
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