Community Programs

Little Footy Tackers

Nutrition Australia Victorian Division, Jalna and Accelerate Elite Performance Program have joined forces to give young Victorian children the chance to get active and enjoy healthy foods through the Little Footy Tackers program. This is an exciting new initiative addressing both nutrition and physical activity in a fun and interactive way that engages children and aims to prevent negative long term health outcomes.

The program is set in a relaxed and enjoyable recreational setting for children to learn and play one of Australia’s most popular sports – football! This experience, for children aged three to five years, includes teaching basic fundamental skills such as decision-making and hand-eye coordination as well as introducing children to sportsmanship.

The program incorporates a nutrition focused interactive workshop titled How to be Super – Touch and Taste, sponsored by Jalna.

With the support of Nutrition Australia VIC, the children will also learn about healthy foods through the How to be Super – Touch and Taste workshop, sponsored by Jalna. The workshop aims to give kids the opportunity to explore new tastes and try more of the foods that are essential to their good health, like fruits, vegetables and dairy foods.

Photos from the recent Little Footy Tackers 'How to be super - Touch and Taste' sessions - Term 4, 2011.

Kids in the Kitchen– Cook, Taste and Learn

Nutrition Australia has been funded by YMCA Victoria to run interactive cooking workshops and tasting experiences for children as part of their school holiday program. The program is not a series of cooking demonstrations, rather interactive sessions in which children cook and prepare simple meals and then eat them together.

Children aged five to eleven years participate in one of three aged appropriate workshops and work together in groups to carry out specific cooking tasks. Groups of four take turns preparing and cooking each meal. Each hands on cooking class runs for 45 minutes with approximately 16 participants.

The aim of the workshop is not only to have fun with food but also to inspire children to eat healthily. The workshops are interactive, informal and fun, giving children confidence to try new things, explore new tastes and make something they may have never made before.