Purpose
Fairfax Kids Cooking is an Office of Food and Nutrition Service/ Chef partnership. It is designed to introduce students to healthy snacks and Give Me 5!, our national award winning nutrition education promotion to help students learn the importance of eating five fruits and vegetables every day. Students will be introduced to a variety of new fruits and vegetables, which make healthy, easy to prepare snacks.
Families are a child's primary educational resource. However, with the increase of one-parent families, families with two working parents, and the variety of easy-to-prepare convenience foods, children are assuming more responsibility for their own food choices. Although people may not completely believe the phrase “You are what you eat,” good nutrition does have a significant impact on how well and how long people live. Poor nutrition may promote the onset of diseases, such as certain cancers, heart disease, hypertension and diabetes.
Research clearly indicates that students perform better in school when their parents or other significant adults know about and support their studies. Fairfax Kids Cooking attempts to involve families through interesting at-home activities and by sharing current nutrition information with parents during these nutrition education activities. Parents, teachers and the school food service professionals need to ensure that children are developing good food habits by teaching nutrition and encouraging behavior that will form the foundation of healthy eating habits for a lifetime.
MyPyramid For Kids
Eat Right, Exercise, Have Fun
- Choose Healthier Foods From Each Group
- Every Color Every Day
- Make Choices That Are Right for You
- Eat More From Some Food Groups Than Others
- Be Physically Active Every Day
- Take One Step at a Time
MyPyramid Poster (pdf - 1.8 MB)
10 Tips To Healthy Eating For Kids
- Eat lots of different kinds of foods each day.
- Eat more whole-grain breads and cereals, fruits and vegetables.
- Keep moving to stay in shape.
- Start your day with breakfast.
- Snack smart.
- Balance your food choices so you don't eat too much of any one food.
- Be adventurous.
- Set healthy eating goals.
- Remember, foods are not good or bad.
- Make healthy eating fun.
Source: Food Education Foundation and The American Dietetic Association
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Getting
Started!
- Always wash hands with warm water and soap.
- Read recipes or package directions carefully.
- Collect all ingredients and tools needed.
- Keep food preparation area tidy.
- Have oven mitts handy to use with toaster oven or microwave.
Safety
First!
- When cooking, remember that safety always comes first.
- Don't use knives, appliances, the oven, or the microwave without
an adult.
- Pull long hair away from your face and tie it back.
- Use oven mitts when handling hot foods in the toaster oven
or microwave.
- Unplug all appliances when they're not in use.
- Never plug in an appliance with wet hands.
- Wipe up all spills immediately.
- Keep pot handles turned away from you when cooking on the
stove.
Keeping Food Safe to Eat
- Wash hands before preparing food and after each visit to the bathroom.
- Tie back long hair and avoid touching hair while preparing and serving food.
- Don't lick your fingers.
- Avoid coughing and sneezing around food.
- Cover and refrigerate food promptly.
- Keep cold foods cold and hot foods hot.
- Keep work areas clean.
- Throw away all trash.
- Wipe up spills immediately.
When
You're Finished!
- Make sure the toaster, oven, or microwave is turned off.
- Clean up the food preparation areas.
- Sit down and enjoy the foods you have made.
Recipes
Disclaimer: This web page contains links to web pages that are outside the FCPS network. FCPS does not control the content or relevancy of these pages.
