A California Department of Education survey indicated that 87 percent of fourth to eighth graders said that they cook and make some of their meals or snacks. However, youth who lack healthy cooking knowledge may rely on packaged foods or prepared foods containing questionable nutrition value.  Teaching youth food preparation skills promote important life skills development. Research published in the Journal of the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics noted that children who engaged in handling foods, have less fear of food and greater acceptance of eating a variety of foods. Children ate more fruits and vegetables after participating in culinary classes according to some research studies.  Further, youth who cook at home have a greater sense of self-confidence, and feeling of contributing to their families. They spend time cooking instead of engaged in screen time.

Recent research indicates that nutrition knowledge may be incomplete without the experiential learning or hands-on activities associated with food preparation that involves handling food and cooking equipment. Children learn lifetime skills through practicing basic math skills such as counting, weighing, measuring, tracking time; they also gain social skills by working together and communicating in the kitchen. Teaching cooking to youth is an opportunity to teach nutrition education such as planning meals and make smarter food choices. Cooking can aid children in acceptance of responsibility.

To address these concerns, the Nutrition Education Program collaborated with local county Extension agents for family and consumer sciences to create the Recipes for Life curriculum.  The curriculum includes a logic model, facilitation guide, volunteer guide, student handbook, marketing and partnership resources, and evaluation tools.

Recipes for Life uses an experiential learning model to teach food preparation, food safety, nutrition, and physical activity to fifth grade youth audiences. As the curriculum is implemented, groups of students attend a day of learning where they are divided into small teams and work with an adult volunteer to learn.  During the educational experience, they will engage in learning activities, prepare a healthy recipe, and have a shared meal with peers and adult volunteers.  

After being piloted for several years, the curriculum materials were introduced statewide during the current program year.  Training was provided to approximately 100 county extension agents for family and consumer sciences and 4-H youth development, as well as, county volunteers.  As a result of these efforts, the curriculum is being implemented across the state of Kentucky.  Pre-test/post-test evaluation analyses are being used to determine outcomes. The results of the county programs will be reported in agent success stories. Further, the curriculum continues to be part of a research study project to develop it as an evidence-base resource.