Program Evaluation

Building a healthy me! Stacking up choices for good nutrition.

Evaluation Summary

Overview
In the 2000-2001 school year, the Dairy Council of California conducted a summative evaluation of their Kindergarten nutrition program- Building a healthy me! Stacking up choices for good nutrition. This school-based nutrition program targets kindergarten-age children and their parents.

Evaluation validated the initial testing that the program achieves its desired outcomes. The program positively impacted student nutrition knowledge, attitudes and behaviors. Educators learned more about nutrition and many worked to improve their food choices. Parents increased their nutrition knowledge through their children. And teachers who encouraged dialogue at home and sent nutrition materials home to parents fostered better parent outcomes. Specific program outcomes are below.

Kindergarten Students Make Healthy Choices!
Our summative evaluation found that the Kindergarteners that used this program improved their knowledge, enhanced their attitude, and positively impacted behavior change. Following are the details.

Improved their Knowledge:

• Understood that the Food Guide Pyramid helps them make healthy food choices
• Named foods in each group at home and in the classroom
• Talked about the food groups at home
• Sang songs about the food groups at home

Enhanced their Attitude:

• Improved their attitude towards breakfast
• More willing to try new foods
• Greater interest in cooking

Positively Impacted Behavior:

• More child participation in meal planning and preparation
• Increase in fruit consumption
• Decrease in Extra foods (sweets, fats and oils)
• Requested healthy snacks
• Asked for breakfast more often
• Talked with parents about nutrition

Parents Take Time to Read Nutrition Booklets!
The Home Connection booklet and the newsletters were read by over 80 percent of parents, supporting the information students shared in the home. The Food Guide Pyramid from the booklet was used by 72 percent of parents. The Home Connection booklet and newsletters reinforced the program's nutrition concepts.

Teachers Learn Too!
Teacher nutrition knowledge improved significantly over the control group after teaching the lessons. Teachers also reported they plan to make better food choices:

• "This really helped me to be conscious of my own eating. Limit[ing] extras and eating fruit are my goals."
• "I'm more aware of eating healthier foods and how it affects us."

To read the complete summative executive summary click here.