Students at Common Threads don aprons and chef hats and learn basic kitchen skills, cooking techniques, how to read recipes, and the importance of fresh ingredients from the organization’s Chef Instructors. In the process of preparing and sharing a healthy ethnic meal, they learn how to connect with their bodies, their neighbors, and the outside world — in bite-sized lessons. Common Threads provides programs in 18 different Chicago neighborhoods, one in Miami, and two in Los Angeles.