Child and Family Engagement Worker - Kids Kitchen

This position is funded and scheduled during the school year. Employment concludes at the end of the June programming cycle, with no scheduled employment during the summer months.

Successful candidates may be offered a new contract beginning in September, subject to program funding, operational needs, and satisfactory performance. Renewal is not guaranteed.

The Child & Family Engagement Worker – Kids in the Kitchen uses food and cooking as tools to help children develop the life skills, confidence, relationships, and sense of belonging that contribute to their long-term wellbeing.

Rooted in KARA's prevention-based approach, Kids in the Kitchen is about much more than learning to cook. Through shared food preparation, children practice problem-solving, communication, cooperation, emotional regulation, decision-making, and responsibility. They learn to navigate challenges, celebrate accomplishments, contribute to a group, and recognize their own abilities.

The CFEW creates intentional learning opportunities within everyday kitchen experiences. Whether children are following a recipe, working through a disagreement, managing a limited budget, or discovering how to make a meal with unfamiliar ingredients, the facilitator helps them connect these experiences to skills they can use at home, at school, and in their communities.

This role requires someone who is confident and creative in the kitchen, loves teaching children, and understands that the meal is the activity, but the child's development is the outcome.

Kids in the Kitchen is a prevention-based, experiential learning program that strengthens protective factors in school-aged children through collaborative food preparation.

Cooking provides an accessible, practical environment where children can experience success, develop independence, build positive relationships with peers and trusted adults, and practise the skills needed to navigate everyday challenges.

The program intentionally supports the development of:

• Self-confidence and self-efficacy:
  Helping children recognize their abilities, take appropriate risks, and experience success.
• Emotional regulation and resilience:
  Learning to manage frustration, adapt when things do not go as planned, and persevere through challenges.
• Problem-solving and critical thinking:
  Making decisions, adjusting recipes, managing resources, and finding creative solutions.
• Communication and teamwork:
  Listening, sharing responsibilities, resolving disagreements, and working toward common goals.
• Independence and responsibility:
  Following through on tasks, practising safety, managing time, and contributing to a shared environment.
• Healthy relationships and belonging:
  Developing connections with peers and trusted adults in a welcoming, inclusive setting.
• Resourcefulness and financial literacy:
  Understanding food costs, making choices within a budget, reducing waste, and recognizing the value of available resources.
• Family connection:
  Developing practical skills children can share at home, creating opportunities for contribution, cooperation, and positive family interactions.

To strengthen protective factors and practical life skills in school-aged children by using food preparation as a meaningful, hands-on learning experience.

The program aims to help children become…