Life Skills Nutrition Series

Our March Life Skills Series focused on numerous aspects of nutrition, taught by volunteers Courtney Toya, RD, and Morgan Moiloo, Marina High School Culinary Instructor.

In our first class, Courtney facilitated a conversation between students about how society and social media skew our view of food and the relationship we have with eating, what happens to our body when we skip meals, and how to include multiple food groups into our meals, along with many other discussion points. The students then enjoyed a delicious meal made by volunteer Ginny Glaser where they got to implement many of the concepts they discussed.

Next, Morgan taught our students about food safety, covering topics including (though not limited to): Portion control; table manners & appropriate table conversation; proper food storage before and after cooking; safe cooking methods for chicken and beef; preventing cross-contamination; tips for effectively cleaning dishes (the students helped clean up); and, understanding portion sizes and healthy food groups.

Students were then provided with the opportunity to go grocery shopping with Morgan and our student care team coordinator, Breana Vanini to learn and implement key shopping strategies, while focusing on their budget and dietary needs Key concepts included: Avoiding shopping while hungry to make better purchasing decisions; planning before shopping by taking time to identify food needs and organize grocery list; and, useing unit prices on shelf labels for effective cost comparisons. Students applied these skills while shopping, and reviewed their selections before checking out.

Nutrition is another vital component of personal wellbeing. Providing concepts, strategies, and skills for developing healthy and cost effective eating habits is another tool for our students to add to their Life Skills toolboxes.