Throughout Meade County the number of youth going home to an empty house is increasing. In Meade County, 33% of children are living in single parent homes. (Lincoln Trail Health Dept.) Therefore, the single parent is out working when their children get off the school bus. The average child is hungry when they get home from school and have a lack of knowledge when it comes to fixing themselves something healthy to eat.

In an effort to educate the children on healthy eating and how to follow directions of recipes, the Meade County EFNEP (Expanded Food and Nutrition Education Program) assistant partnered with Ekron Elementary School. A five-week program was conducted with all fifth and sixth grade classes. One of the sixth grade classes consisted of 26 youth, 12 female and 14 males. At each session, the program included a nutrition lesson and then the students would break into four teams to adjust the recipe for the proper number of servings. At that time, they would make the healthy recipe and sample what they had created.

By the end of the program, 69% of the youth improved their intake of low-fat foods. Eighty-eight percent improved their confidence of using measuring cups and spoons. One hundred percent were more confident following directions of a recipe. Several students reported back to the assistant that they had made the recipe at home and were proud that they made it all by themselves!