Chef Girl

Massachusetts
Children's Access to Meals Planned Smart

Training Manual

Click to download the
Growing Healthy Habits Training Guide

Growing Healthy Habits Training Guide

Strategies for Teaching Nutrition and Gardening in Early Education

This manual was created as a resource for CACFP Sponsors to provide training to their providers. It’s divided into two modules containing four lessons each, including activity sheets, handouts, and quizzes. The active, hands-on design of these lessons ensures that participants will feel confident incorporating these concepts into their day. The overall goals of the manual are to provide participants with:

  • Behavioral strategies to improve the nutrition of young children in their early education programs.
  • Techniques to incorporate gardens, agriculture education, and local food into early education programs.

The manual was used in five regional face-to-face trainings in which CACFP sponsors leaned how to best use the manual to train providers.

Here's what Sponsors are saying about Growing Healthy Habits Training Guide:

"Thank you! This will make a great resource for my organization."

"So glad to have these tools to share with my staff!"

"Great book - easy lesson plans to make eating healthy fun (and educational), thank you."

"Motivated me to plan staff training next staff meeting."

New Meal Pattern Training Materials: Posters and Print-Outs

The materials below were created as supplementary visual elements for the culinary demonstration exhibition that took place at two of the 'New Child Care Meal Pattern Standards' training days in early 2017. Materials were designed to highlight new CACFP standards and best practices. They can be used as visual aids when teaching early education professionals about the changes to the CACFP meal pattern. Topics include tofu, healthy cooking methods, meat/meat alternates, and whole grains.

Click on a poster below to download materials.

  • Increasing Fruit and Vegetable
  • Serving Whole Grains
  • Meat/Meat Alternates
  • Infant Feeding
  • CACFP Meal Patterns
  • Menu Planning

Online Trainings Updates Coming!

Planning Smart Meals for Healthy Children

This FREE online training was created as an interactive, engaging, and fun professional development opportunity for CACFP sponsors and providers. The course offers six modules to enhance knowledge of planning healthy meals and snacks that meet new CACFP guidelines and best practices. Each module counts as 1 hour of professional development.

Online Course Technology Requirements: