Fresno County's UC CalFresh Nutrition Education Program has a long standing partnership with the Fresno State Dietetic Internship Program. This blog post is part of our Intern Reflections Series.

While I do not plan on working with children when I become a Registered Dietitian, my experience with the UC CalFresh Nutrition Education Program still proved to be a valuable learning opportunity. After observing nutrition coordinator, Brittanny Zweigle, conduct several nutrition education lessons and activities for elementary school students, I learned that all presented material has to be kept short and simple to engage the children and capture their attention throughout the entire lesson. Actions, word choices and lesson tools have to be appropriate for each age group in order to maintain the class' attention. For example, younger students needed a simple MyPlate with pictures to help the students learn which foods belong to which food groups, but a regular MyPlate was used with older students to allow for them to sort the foods without being prompted with visuals. I did notice, however, that even amongst the same grade levels, the children's abilities can also vary drastically from class to class; it is advisable to understand the level of your audience to best reach them. 

The curriculum used by the UC CalFresh team also gave me a sense of direction on where to start teaching nutrition education to children and the general population. First, start with a MyPlate and introduce the five food groups, including what each food group does for the body and which foods belong to each food group. After this introduction, the lesson can focus on a specific food group by providing depth on its background, importance, and function. Finally, I was glad to see that the UC CalFresh team always addresses the importance of exercise! Nutrition and physical activity are both required for a healthy lifestyle.

On September 19^th, the UC CalFresh team partnered with the UCSF Fresno Latino Center for Medical Education and Research at the Health Education and Leadership Conference held at California State University-Fresno. UC CalFresh presented a “Healthy Student=Smart Student: Eating Healthy on a Budget” workshop to encourage 11^th and 12^th grade students to begin making nutritious food choices before they start their college careers.

Nutrition Educator Javier Miramontes presents a MyPlate overview. 

Nutrition Educator Consuelo Cid demonstrates a mango salsa recipe, courtesy of the UCSF Fresno Latino Center for Medical Education and Research. 

Our mango salsa, ready to be served. 

The University of California Division of Agriculture and Natural Resources recently hosted a Programmatic Orientation for new Academics. UCCE Advisors from across the state attended along with the Vice President of UC ANR, Dr. Glenda Humiston, and the Associate Vice President, Dr. Bill Frost.

(From left to right) Dr. Bill Frost, Dr. Glenda Humiston, Jose Alvarado, and Dr. Shannon Mueller 

The Fresno/Madera MCP UC CalFresh Nutrition Education Program had the privilege of providing an overview of the work we are doing in schools and community centers with Associate Director of the Nutrition, Family and Consumer Sciences Program and Policy, Katie Panarella, and the Director of the UC CalFresh Nutrition Education Program, David Ginsburg. Fresno Unified Food Services Director, Jose Alvarado, presented on the district's partnership with UC CalFresh and provided the advisors with a tour of Fresno Unified's Nutrition Center with the help of District Supervisor, Morgan Terry, and District Nutritionist, Amanda Harvey. 

Check out the tour below: 

Presenters (from top left to right) Kristi Sharp, Nath Say, Katie Panarella, David Ginsburg, and Jose Alvarado

Everyone donned blue hair nets as they made their way through the facility. 

Nutrition Educator Angelica Perez had the pleasure of providing a curricula training for the Madera County Department of Public Health (MCDPH). In this training she discussed the purpose of the Eat Fit and Nutrition to Grow On curricula and she reviewed how to implement the lessons with the intended audience, 4^th-6^th grade students. The training covered all lessons in both curricula, including the materials and posters that are used as visuals for the lessons by the UC CalFresh team in the classroom. This allowed the MCDPH staff to determine which activities would be most successful when they implement the curricula with the 4^th-6^th grade students they will be working with at 4-6 school sites this year.

Nutrition Educator Angelica Perez discusses the lesson the UC CalFresh team calls,

"Food Label Shuffle" 

The MCDPH staff learn about plant parts while getting some physical activity too!