In the News

Children To Parents: “What ‘New(tritious)’ Things Did YOU Learn at School Today?”

The Issue: The Central Unified School District recognized the importance of the parent’s role in student learning. Parents requested training sessions on balanced nutrition, recipes, meal planning and purchasing. When schools work together with families to support learning, children tend to succeed not just in school, but throughout life.  That’s much the same vision for Fresno County EFNEP.

What EFNEP Has Done:  Marta Acosta and Sua Vang taught eight weeks of Eating Smart Being Active to more than 36 families at Teague Elementary School in Fresno.  Teaching classes in both English and Spanish, educators used cultural sensitivity to push for positive outcomes. 

Educator Marta Acosta described a somewhat reluctant class at Lesson #1, but before long, they were “very eager to learn and excited to do physical activity exercises.”  One class made a Whole Wheat Pasta & Veggie Salad while they sipped orange and mint-infused water to encourage healthier hydration than soda.  This made such an impact that some participants gave up soda altogether.

The Pay Off: 
Prior to classes, only 3% of parents read nutrition labels and 29% compared prices at the grocery store.  Upon graduation, a valedictory 77% improvement in reading labels and 55% improvement in comparing prices ensued. 

An impressive 87% of parents showed improvement in one or more of these “core” food practices: meal planning, comparing prices, using grocery lists, and no longer running out of food at the end of the month. In making healthy food choices, preparing foods without adding salt, reading nutrition labels or having children eat breakfast, 97% of parents showed improvement.

Food safety practices improved upon completion: 45% of parents more often avoided thawing food at room temperature.  Overall, data collected before and after completion indicates that 100% of parents made positive changes in food choices, and 100% have begun eating three or more meals a day. If indeed “apples don’t fall far from the tree,” we hope the food for thought planted by EFNEP in these parent classes takes root and grows into well-fed children who perform well in school.