Atwater schools give parents nutrition instruction

In Atwater schools, nutrition awareness extends beyond the classroom into the home.

A “Parent Nutrition Night” was held Jan. 14 at Mitchell Elementary School and similar sessions are planned at other campuses during the current school year. The first target is beverages loaded with sugar.

“Parent Nutrition Night” is a two-part nutrition awareness presentation for parents that consists of “Rethink your Drink” and “Healthy Snacks.”

The “Healthy Snacks” portion was presented using the Alliance Product Calculator, which is used in schools to determine healthy a la carte snacks. Members of the audience were shown how to access the calculator and how the district uses it to assess and change food offerings.

Those leading the healthy eating charge include Lisa Ludwig, district food service supervisor, and Sandra Sanchez, consultant for Sodexo Food Services, which serves the district. Ludwig and Sanchez are planning a “Parent Nutrition Night” next month at Shaffer School and other campuses in the next few months.

“ ‘Parent Nutrition Night’ was our first attempt to reach out to our parents on the importance of raising awareness about sugar content in beverages and its impact on health-related issues,” Ludwig said. “In addition to the display of sugary drinks, we shared various recipes that featured flavored waters with fresh fruits.

“The cooking exhibition showed three- to four-step recipes that parents could do with their children at home such as fruit leather, trail mix, fruity yogurt dip and pretzels with cheese,” Ludwig said. “The ingredients for these recipes are simple pantry items you have at home. We also discussed the importance of portion size and how you can prepackage many healthy snack items.”

Sandy Schiber, Atwater Elementary School District superintendent, said the district’s goal is to heighten the emphasis on nutrition, physical education and health to promote the health and safety of young people and help them establish lifelong healthy behaviors.

“Healthy, well-nutritioned children are more prepared for high expectations in the classroom,” Schiber said.

The Mitchell School program was the second parent outreach on health and nutrition. District nurses, administrators and food service staff were present at the Atwater Fall Festival, giving information and healthy recipe cooking demonstrations.

“We have also partnered with the Produce Truck,” Schiber said. “The truck visits our schools on a regular basis to provide fresh produce at a reasonable cost for our children and their families.”

This story was originally published January 26, 2015 at 4:05 PM with the headline "Atwater schools give parents nutrition instruction."