Around the Table and Around the Table: Nourishing Families (preview) are designed to build food, nutrition, and cooking literacy, while integrating social emotional learning and using trauma-sensitive facilitation. Participants enjoy hands-on cooking, facilitated conversations, and interactive activities that support healthy connections to food, self, and community.
- Around the Table is a six-week youth and young adult curriculum designed for groups of 7-15 youth, aged 14-21.
- Around the Table: Nourishing Families is a six-week adult curriculum designed for groups of 10-14 adults raising children.
- Two facilitators are recommended.
- A kitchen or community space with room for hands-on food preparation is required.
- Approved for use in California’s CalFresh Healthy Living Program (SNAP-Ed).

These programs prioritize:
- Relationship building
- Joyful experiences
- Safety and trust
- Empowerment and self care
Participants:
- Cook and eat together
- Share memories and stories about food
- Explore their personal relationship to food
- Improve cooking and food resource management skills
- Learn about nutrition for good physical and mental health
- Explore healthy coping and self nourishment skills
- Plan their own menu
- Practice mindful eating, grounding, and gratitude

Around the Table is part of the USDA’s national SNAP-Ed Toolkit, a one-stop shop for organizations seeking programs to improving nutritional health in their communities.
Facilitator Training
The following training is required before educators can facilitate Around the Table and/or Around the Table: Nourishing Families. This training includes:
- Self-assessment of readiness and skills for trauma-informed engagement
- Basic principles of trauma-informed nutrition education
- Trauma-informed strategies for working with youth
Type | Onsite | Remote | Length | Cost* |
---|---|---|---|---|
Trauma-Sensitive Nutrition Security | x | 7 hrs | $150 | |
Around the Table Training Program (ATTP) | x | 4 hrs | $75 | |
Trauma Basics and the Relationship to Nourishment | X | 1.5 hrs | ** | |
Online pre-training coursework | x | 4.5 hrs | ** |
* Cost includes digital access to curriculum. Fee is waived for CalFresh Healthy Living Funded agencies.
** These items are included in the cost of the other trainings.
Products
Get Started
Interested in using Around the Table and/or Around the Table: Nourishing Families with your clients/participants? Complete our Partner Registration to learn how to bring our educators to your site and access partner downloads (see training requirements above).