Charisma Grygorczuk

While focusing on social interaction skills and emotional wellness, children learn through hands-on activities, arts and crafts, music and play. One of their favorite activities is cooking class once a week. Everyone discusses the recipe and where age-appropriate, children help. Charisma strongly believes that if the children can help and actually prep their own food, they are more apt to try it.

Through her CACFP sponsor, Charisma participated in the Healthy Start, Healthy Children Program. In the program, the children participated in cooking classes and physical activities. The children loved making snack recipes and taking part in taste tests. Charisma enjoyed watching them try new foods and liking them simply because they were a part of the creation. To add to the learning, Charisma attended nutrition classes to gain new ideas and resources.

Charisma is constantly looking for ways to improve learning and keep the children active. She has applied for grants to add gardening tools and materials, cooking utensils and an outdoor classroom. In addition, when seeing an idea the children love, such as a butterfly garden, they implement that at the child care. Charisma leads by example when seeing a beneficial idea for the children and using her own initiative to be the best childcare provider she can be.