fit for learning After School resources December:Celebrate! This month’s theme is about having appreciation for other individuals’ food and activity preferences, with an emphasis on the holidays and traditional foods. Students are encouraged to try new foods and explore healthy recipes. Students will also learn how to read, interpret, and compare nutrition facts from food labels. ~~Root Vegetables and Sweet Potatoes are the December Harvests of the Month~~ Suggested weekly Physical Activity and Nutrition Education: 60 minutes per week of nutrition and fitness education** p the u t to hang your Structured moderate-to-vigorous physical activity forge from on’t oster r! D ber p binde cem ning 150 minutes per week for elementary sites De lear fit for 225 minutes per week for middle school sites This packet has been compiled with lessons and activities related to the monthly ffl and Harvest of the Month themes. They were chosen to help you and your staff more easily implement nutrition education at your program sites. Additional lessons and activities are also in your ffl Afterschool binder. Please read the following page for an overview of the packet contents as well as some additional lesson requirements and suggestions. Questions? Contact Becca Barczykowski, fit for learning After School Project Director, YMCA of Silicon Valley [email protected] or 408.351.6418 fit for learning After School Nutrition and Fitness Education December: Celebrate! By the end of the month, students should: have an understanding of the different holidays that occur in December, as well as some of the basic customs, traditions, and foods associated with these holidays. be able to think critically about traditional holiday foods and think of ways to enjoy their favorite foods in a healthier way. Understand how to read nutrition information on food labels, including serving sizes, number of servings per package, nutrition facts, and the order in which ingredients are listed. Know how to compare information on food labels and know how to choose healthier options when presented with different options. Packet Sections: December Holidays ~ Traditions & Customs, Food & Recipes The first section in the packet contains basic information on winter holidays, including Christmas, Hanukkah, Kwanzaa, and New Year’s. Educators should highlight key points for each of these holidays and discuss them with the students. Traditional cuisine for the holidays should be of particular focus. Ask the kids what kinds of foods they eat with their families on the holidays. Have discussions about how healthy different holiday foods are, how they can be prepared healthier, or what other healthy options might be considered as alternatives. Get the kids thinking! Snack time is a great time to add additional discussions around holiday foods and traditions. **If possible, make one of the recipes included in this section with/for your students. They are all traditional holiday foods, but are healthier recipes. ** Theme-Based Lessons and Activities This section provides several lesson plans and activities around December holidays and food labels. December Holidays— There’s a Holiday Meal Planning Activity that is highly encouraged. This allows students to take what they’ve learned about traditional holiday foods and about the food groups (November: MyPyramid) and to apply that to creating a menu for a healthy holiday meal while having fun and working together in small groups and learning important life skills. Food Labels— You’ll find some basic information on how to read and interpret food labels. Some are even appropriate to distribute for student use. There are also worksheets and different lesson options included, as well as several sample food labels. To make these lessons more practical, have the kids bring in a label of a food or their favorite snack from home and have them use those for some of the activities. This is another great opportunity to have the students work together in small groups. Harvest of the Month/Sweet Potatoes and Root Vegetables Students in all grades should be given at least one lesson on the Harvest of the Month (any of them). Here’s an idea—Yams (root vegetable) are also a popular Kwanzaa food. Why not tie in a lesson about Yams to Kwanzaa and maybe even involve a preparing a recipe? Physical Activity There are some fun physical activity lessons with a holiday theme included in this section. Substitute these for some of your regular activities to add some variety and fun! Parent Handouts In addition to the parent handouts provided, you can also offer parents the recipes included in the first section of the packet. Have some copies of each recipe available for parents to take when they pick up their children, or have the kids create holiday recipe books out of them to give to their parents as a gift. Be creative! December Holidays ~ Traditions & Customs, Food & Recipes This section contains basic information on winter holidays, including Christmas, Hanukkah, Kwanzaa, and New Year’s. Educators should highlight key points for each of these holidays and discuss them with the students. Traditional cuisine for the holidays should be of particular focus. Ask the kids what kinds of foods they eat with their families on the holidays. Have discussions about how healthy different holiday foods are, how they can be prepared healthier, or what other healthy options might be considered as alternatives. Get the kids thinking! Snack time is a great time to add additional discussions around holiday foods and traditions. **If possible, make one of the recipes included in this section with/for your students. They are all traditional holiday foods, but are healthier recipes. ** How to Learn about December Holidays Learning about celebrations for Christmas, Hanukkah and Kwanzaa is a great way for secular kids and kids of different cultures and religions to feel connected to others during the December months. Educators and parents who wonder how to learn about December holidays can explore the traditions of other cultures to find the answers. Christmas, Kwanzaa and Hanukkah are the three major holidays of the season and there are resources online and in most communities for learning about each one. It's hard to ignore the holidays in December. Those who wish to teach children about Christmas, Hanukkah, Kwanzaa and other winter holidays in an informational manner without religious dogma, have a lot of resources at their disposal. Beginning with the History Channel's video series entitled History of the Holidays, families can find resources on the internet for teaching about the holidays. Christmas, Hanukkah, Kwanzaa Christmas is the Christian tradition of celebrating the birth of Jesus Christ. Christians believe that Jesus was born of a virgin birth and that he is the one and only son of God sent to save humans from eternal damnation from sin. In the U.S., Christian celebrations of Christmas are everywhere and secular families don't often need to research or create lesson plans or find activities for teaching about the meaning of Christmas. Hanukkah is the Jewish holiday celebrating the miracle of the oil that allowed the Jews to rebuild the Temple of Jerusalem after it was destroyed by Antiochus. Jewish folklore says that they only had enough oil for one day and it lasted for eight days. Websites for Jewish children, like Torah Tots are a great place for children to learn about Hanukkah with printable coloring pages and other learning activities. Kwanzaa is an African American holiday created in 1966 by Dr. Maulana Karenga, Professor of Africana Studies at California State University Long Beach. Beginning the day after Christmas and ending on New Year's Day, Kwanzaa has unique symbols and rituals designed to celebrate the seven principles of Kwanzaa and unite Africans all over the world. © Lisa Russell, November 5, 2008 Healthy Holiday Snacks Get your kids into a festive spirit this year, and give them some delicious, healthy treats with our easy-to-make holiday snacks. The three quick recipes below save time, help your children avoid extra fat and calories, and provide ample opportunities for creativity! So let the fun begin! The search for green and red fruits is all part of the fun. It can begin in your own pantry, or in the supermarket. Mix family favorites with something new. Some preserved fruits, such as dried cranberries or canned cherries may require a bit of supermarket sleuthing. Specialty stores and food catalogs are another good source for exotic additions. See what you can dig up! What you need: Green fruits: kiwis green grapes green apples gooseberries (canned) honeydew melon (fresh or frozen) Red fruits: strawberries cherries (canned or dried) red grapes cranberries (dried) pomegranates red apples Simple directions: Wash, peel, and cut fruits as needed. Arrange on a platter in the shape of a wreath. Tips for preschoolers: Adults can cut fruits into triangles and squares. Talk about the colors and shapes of the fruit while arranging. Your child can help arrange the fruits by color, kind, and shape. Tips for older children: Encourage your child's artistic expression in arranging the fruits. Creative ideas include concentric circles, wedges, pictures, or something a little more abstract. Stuffed dates Dried fruits are traditional holiday foods. In earlier times they were the only fruits available during cold winter months. This easy-to-make treat is a classic, and one that even the youngest child can help to make. What you need: whole dates (pits removed) walnut halves granulated or powdered sugar (optional) Simple directions: Slide walnut halves into the slits on each date. Squeeze the date flesh around the nut. Roll in granulated or powdered sugar or leave plain. Arrange the stuffed dates on a serving plate. Roasted chestnuts Fresh roasted chestnuts are a seasonal food, available only during the winter holiday season.