The Expanded Food and Nutrition Education Program (EFNEP) is a national nutrition education program administered by the University of California Cooperative Extension to provide nutrition education to low income youth.  For more information about the curriculum available to schools and youth-serving organizations, please contact Stella Taylor at (858) 694-2122.

EFNEP Objectives

• Contribute to the personal development of low income youth through improved nutrition
• Provide education for youth in selecting and preparing healthy food
• Contribute to the improvement of the nutrition of the total family by means of educational programs for youth

EFNEP Training

• Schools, community centers, parks, or other groups can host an Expanded Food and Nutrition Education Program, provided a volunteer serves as a leader.
• Cooperative Extension Youth Program Representatives will train leaders and teachers to implement the program and coordinate project activities.
• Educational curriculum is available -- free of charge -- that utilizes a creative approach to teaching nutrition while reflecting the nutritional and cultural needs of the audience.  Most materials are available in Spanish as well as English.

Available Curriculum

• Eating Right is Basic -- Four programs, each corresponding to the appropriate age level, are designed for classroom and group use.  In the preschool program, children learn about colors, shapes, sensory perception, and texture relating to different types of food.  Older youth and teens are exposed to a variety of low fat, low sugar, and high fiber foods, which are reinforced through exiciting educational games.  This curriculum meets the State of California Frameworks, and is also available in Spanish.
• Twigs (Team With Intergenerational Support) -- This gardening curriculum includes 30 field-tested lessons connecting gardening with nutrition for children grades K-6.  The focus is on positively influencing participants' food choices through the planting and harvesting of a vegetable garden. 
• Nutrition to Grow On -- Offering teachers a direct link between the school garden and the classroom, this innovative curriculum is designed for children grades 4-6.  Nine lessons encourage healthy lifestyle choices, such as:  "The Food Guide Pyramid"," Get Physically Active", and "Making Healthful Snacks."  This curriculum is linked to California State Content Standards.
• Jump Start for Teens -- This curriculum encourages high school students to eat healthy, keep moving, and become smart consumers and involved citizens.  The lessons focus on relevant, real-life topics such as:  "The ABCs of Healthy Eating", "Teens Making a Difference", "Have It Your Way Fast Food", and "Advertising's Hidden Message."  Creative, stand-alone lessons integrate physical activity, nutrition, and mass media with community service, language arts, math, science, social studies, and more.
• Reading Up the Food Guide Pyramid -- This nutrition and literacy program helps children grades K-3 become aware of food and nutrition through storybook reading and hands-on activities featuring "The Food Guide Pyramid for Healthy Kids" (age 2-6 years) and "The Food Guide Pyramid" (age 8 years and up).  This curriculum has been reviewed for alignment with the California State Content Standards for grades K-3.