Frequently Asked Questions
Recruitment and Online Facilitation
How do you recruit for the online CMCCP sessions?
Connect with partners already engaged with child care professionals in your community. This might include early childhood councils, Head Start associations, early childhood advisory councils, local Child and Adult Care Food Program (CACFP) sponsors, public health departments or Friends, Family, and Neighbor (FFN) networks.
Consider offering CMCCP in one of two ways:
Open sessions for any child care professional practicing in centers or in their homes.
Closed sessions for care centers with larger staff or local associations of child care providers.
If you have gained state accreditation for CMCCP, you may be able to recruit through your state’s professional development system for early childhood providers. See below for more information on CMCCP state accreditation.
How are you keeping participants engaged for the longer CMCCP sessions?
Engage participants in conversation through facilitated dialogue and a learner-centered approach. Use team-teaching when possible to offer varying perspectives and a change of pace.
Make use of your technology. Consider using break out rooms to engage in small group activities and discussions at least once every hour. Encourage participants to use their video when possible, unmute and have real-time conversation.
Facilitate activities to get participants involved. Consider doing a quick food demonstration for a snack or an activity that providers can do with the kids in their care. See below for tips on adapting cooking activities for online sessions. Exploring Foods Together is also a great resource for activities to practice in a training.
Take breaks. Best practice is to give participants a ten-minute break halfway through a two-hour session. Encourage participants to get up and move.
Choosing and Adapting Curricula for Different Audiences
How do you choose which modules and when to offer?
Get to know your intended audience. Ask if participants play a role in meal service, and if so, how? Some modules are relevant for all roles within child care, but some modules, such as Menu Planning and Safe Cooking with Confidence are most relevant for professionals that play a role in meal planning, shopping and cooking.
Module | Audience |
Creating Positive Mealtime Attitudes | All early child care roles |
Choosing Healthy Food for Kids | All early child care roles |
Safe Cooking with Confidence | Those preparing snacks and/or meals for children |
Meal Appeal | Those preparing or serving snacks/meals, including classroom teachers that are serving snacks/meals |
Menu Planning | Providers planning menus and purchasing food |
Partnering with Parents | All early child care roles |
It is important to consider the role of your training participants when deciding the day and time of your training. Inquire about regularly planned staff professional development days. Food service staff likely will not be available until mid-afternoon when the kitchen has closed for the day. Evening and weekend trainings may be preferred.
How do you adapt the curricula for specific audiences (i.e. classroom teachers who do not have food preparation responsibilities)?
If possible, choose the module that best suits the audience. If you have a varied audience, tailor talking points to acknowledge the specific roles that teachers, administrators, and food service workers play in helping kids eat well. Understanding all of the steps to getting food to the table may encourage collaboration across the staff.
Talking points include:
How is the menu shared with staff and parents? How can classroom teachers support communication efforts?
What role can classroom staff and children play in creating menus? Are food service staff open to suggestions, i.e., a new fruit or vegetable that kids are excited about trying, are learning about in classroom activities, or will be planting and harvesting in a school garden?
How do classroom staff role model healthy eating? Do they try the same foods as the children?
What food related activities can classroom staff facilitate that coincide with the week’s menu?
How can staff support one another in offering a variety of foods to children in a way that is appealing and increases acceptance?
How are staff communicating about food allergies?
How can administrators and classroom staff support adherence to food safety rules?
How does staff communicate about food insecurity among families in their care?
Consider using some of the talking points from the Feeding Kids Well Takes Teamwork! Handout from the Cooking Matters EXTRA for Center-Based Child Care Professionals booklet.
Online Adaptation for Cooking
How do you adapt cooking activities for online facilitation?
The Safe Cooking with Confidence module can be delivered in a 1-hour or 2-hour format for flexibility, depending on if you are incorporating cooking into the module or not. The slide deck for Safe Cooking with Confidence includes CACFP-approved recipe options, if you incorporate cooking.
Refer to the Culinary Slide Bank for five options for running a culinary component in an online class, when you might use each option, and resources/tips. This bank refers to Cooking Matters at Home lessons, but is also relevant for CMCCP online sessions.
State Accreditation for Child Care Professionals
How do you gain accreditation for CMCCP trainings?
In most states, child care professionals are required to complete a number of professional development continuing education hours each year. Gaining accreditation for CMCCP in your state incentivizes providers to participate and can provide recruitment benefits for your program.
Each state has different processes and requirements for continuing education accreditation hours. Check with your state Department of Education or Department of Early Childhood Education to inquire about local processes and requirements.
Do instructors have to apply and be approved with the state to teach child care providers trainings for continuing education hours?
Accreditation requirements vary by state. Some states require that CMCCP facilitators apply for approval to offer accredited trainings. Check with your state Department of Education or Department of Early Childhood Education to inquire about local processes and requirements.
Does adaptation of the modules affect accreditations?
Most accreditation processes are based on the general objectives for each CMCCP module. You are able to make adaptations based on audience for each module, while still hitting the required objectives. To maintain the integrity of Cooking Matters curricula, effort should be made to consistently address the modular objectives.
CEU's vs other continuing education hours
One Continuing Education Unit (CEU) is typically equivalent to 10 contact hours. To earn points for a CEU, the training must be provided by an International Association for Continuing Education and Training (IACET). Currently CMCCP is not on this list.
Examples:
- In Colorado, training hours for child care providers are called “clock hours” or “contact hours” and CMCCP sessions can be found on the Department of Education’s ECE Professional Development system.
- In Massachusetts, training hours can be called “Professional Development Points” (PDP’s), “Competency Education Credits” (CEC’s) or just “EEC Professional Development Hours.” This is the professional development website for Massachusetts.