1. Lesson Three: Healthy Starts at Home
Lesson 3 encourages families to prepare food at home and teaches them the skills they need to navigate food choices when eating outside the home.
Goal: Encourage families to prepare more meals and snacks at home.

2. Introduction Facilitator Review
Open discussion to see what they remember
After hearing comments, sum up last week’s theme
Ask how the weekly challenge went
Introduce the new lesson
Start with questions to
get the families involved
Share theme
Explain flow of class
Just as with previous lessons, the teaching team should meet prior to class to prepare.
Once the participants arrive, the facilitator should follow the established pattern of reviewing the previous lesson, inviting the families to share their challenge experiences, and introducing the new lesson.

3. Nutrition Nutrition Instructor
Objective: Practice reading food labels;
Practice identifying healthy snacks that include at least two food groups
Introduce the food label
Ask what the families already know and use
Practice reading labels
Use “Reading Food
Labels” handout for key
points
Discuss Smart Snacking
At least 2 food groups
Make your own or read the label
During this lesson the nutrition instructor will introduce food labels and how to read them. The nutrition instructor should ask what the families already know about the label, and what portions of it they typically use in order to see where the class stands on existing knowledge and what misconceptions might need to be corrected.
Teaching this lesson in a hands-on manner will keep it from becoming too technical and leave participants more likely to use the skills they learn. The coordinator should arrange to bring a variety of common snacks to display to the group during this lesson. Be sure to pick items that represent a variety of types of snacks, high and low calorie items, and items that include more than one serving in a package so the nutrition instructor can talk about these points.
After discussing what the families know about the food label, the nutrition instructor should invite them all to grab a snack- but be sure to mention this food is a demonstration and not to eat. Use the “Reading Food Labels” handout on page 20 to highlight key information on nutrition labels. Invite the families to look at the snack they have chosen and see how it measures up on each category mentioned. Give the families time to share with each other, and invite any participants who are surprised about certain facts to share with the class.
After looking at the nutrition facts for convenience snacks, participants might be discouraged that many common items seem to be so unhealthy. Transition into a time of talking about smart snacking options that include at least two food groups, and refer the families to the resources listed in their Cooking Matters book, including the “Smart Snacking” handout and recipes like “Make Your Own Trail Mix” on page 22.

4. Nutrition Nutrition Instructor
Objective: Practice identifying healthier choices when eating away from home
Discuss Eating Away From Home
Discuss eating out as outlined in instructor guide
Incorporate hands-on activity
Talk about healthy substitutions
Now that you’ve covered snacks, the nutrition instructor should move the conversation towards eating meals away from home. This lesson has a fair amount of nutrition material to cover, so be sure to review the instructor guide before and during the class. Even though there is a lot of ground to cover, the nutrition instructor should still use facilitated dialogue and be careful not to criticize specific participants’ choices during the discussion.
One activity that has proven very effective in teaching about the fat content of fast food is the Blubber Burger activity on page I-14 in your instructor guide. If you have younger children in your class, consider including time for the children to draw a fast food meal they like, while parents and the nutrition instructor discuss the different types of fat on the handout on page 25. After the children are done drawing, have the families look up the nutrition information for their meals using fast food menus, and complete the Blubber Burger activity. Many restaurants have their nutrition information posted online, and the class facilitator can print out a selection of menus before class if you choose to use them for this activity.
The nutrition instructor should be sure to always bring the conversation back to steps the families can use to make healthier choices. Instead simply telling participants not to eat french fries, for example, ask them what ideas they have for ways to make a healthier choice for their side. Refer to the “Eating Smart When Eating Out” handout on page 24 for helpful tips and tricks, and be sure to discuss how families can find information about the food they are offered when eating out. While talking about healthy substitutions, the nutrition instructor can mention alternative forms of protein, such as fish, beans, nuts, and seeds.

5. Cooking & Food Safety Culinary Instructor
Objective: Prepare healthier versions of popular convenience foods
Discuss substitutions
Choosing healthier cooking techniques
Swapping ingredients: high fat protein for lean, types of oil etc.
Creating Connections
How could this be applied at home?
How can you use adapt familiar recipes?
Refer back to MyPlate, whole grains, balanced meals
Before jumping into cooking, the culinary instructor should use the talking points in the instructor guide to discuss healthy cooking techniques and food substitutions that can be used for creating meals with less fat and calories that are still full of flavor. Be sure to apply this discussion to the families’ everyday lives by asking questions such as, “How could you use this idea of healthy cooking techniques to adapt a recipe your family typically makes?”
After your discussion, transition into the normal routine of washing hands, reading over the recipe, and talking about how the main points of the lesson can be seen in what you will be preparing. Assign roles and prepare the recipe, using time during the cooking process to continue talking about ideas related to the lesson. Ideas for this conversation could include how the current recipe could be adapted to use different types of protein, include other vegetables, or be prepared ahead for meals on busy nights. The culinary instructor could also review with the participants, asking them what information they’ve learned in the past about MyPlate, fruits, vegetables, and whole grains that could be applied to help them make healthy choices when eating away from home.

6. Eating Together Facilitator
Discussion on motivations and tradeoffs for eating convenience foods
Ask what participants learned
Encourage participants select a weekly challenge
After cooking and setting up for the group meal, the culinary instructor should invite the family to serve their plates, using MyPlate as a reference.
While the families are eating, the facilitator should engage them in conversation about what they learned today, what surprised them, and what they want to apply at home. Use the instructor guide’s talking points to discuss eating away from home, acknowledging why families choose to eat out, and the tradeoffs that come with those choices.
Summarize the key messages of the class and follow the established pattern for discussing and selecting goals as a family.
After the families have chosen and shared their goals, invite them to help you clean up, delegating age appropriate tasks as necessary.
Pass out the take home groceries and say good bye to the families. The facilitator should then finish up the day by guiding the teaching team in a short debrief session.