SNN: KTC Core YMCA Cooking Matters

Using fresh ingredients and basic kitchen techniques, students with learning challenges are gaining skills for independence and potential. Like most young adults, students attending a “Cooking Matters” class at the Visser Family YMCA knew what snacks and treats could be found in their refrigerators and cupboards at home. But after the class, they now know how to stock those shelves with healthy food they can prepare themselves. The class was presented through Kent Transition Center’s CORE Program for students with disabilities. It’s designed to meet the needs of Kent County’s secondary students who are not yet ready for independent, competitive employment. In the “Cooking Matters” class, students learn cooking skills, budgeting and nutrition, and yes, the importance of eating more fruits and vegetables. They learn how to chop veggies, grate cheese, break eggs and add spices to their creations. Plus they learn to handle knives safely and how to clean up after a meal. At the end of each class, students are given the ingredients necessary to cook the recipe they learn at home. The nutrition educator with the Y teaches the importance of creating grocery lists and sticking to them, which keeps costs down and junk food out of the grocery cart. The Cooking Matters classes through the Y are free and open to the community. More information can be found at grymca-dot-org. Joy Walczak for School News Network