EXPLORING NEW FOODS

Name that food

Eating “Boris The Broccoli”  is a lot more fun than eating plain old broccoli.

• Come up with fun, silly names for foods and encourage your kid to do the same
• Try building a story around the “food characters” you create

Dining room manager

If your child is not into being a chef, make him or her dining room manager. He or she can:

• Set the table and decorate with a special centrepiece
• Fold the napkins into shapes
• Call the family to dinner
• Announce tonight's “specials”
• Compliment the “chef”
• Help serve and clean up the table

Pizza, everyone?

A good way to get kids to eat their vegetables is to let them make their own mini-pizzas.

• Set up an assembly line of pizza toppings
• Include veggies cut up into different shapes
• Cook the pizzas and watch your kid share and eat his or her creation

Play with your food

Warning: This might get messy.

Up for some friendly competition? Make a meal with colourful foods and have each family member plate their food in artistic ways. Then vote for:

• Most creative
• Fanciest
• Funniest, etc.

Kid’s choice (with a little supervision)

A great way to get kids to eat a variety of healthy foods is to empower them with choice.

• To make nutritious breakfasts easier, print out this menu and its attached foods.
• Then, cut each of the food items out.
• In the morning, pre-select the ones you have on hand and ask your little one to pick from each category to build their own yummy breakfast!

Let your kid create the dinner menu every once in a while.

• Have him or her pick out the ingredients
• Let him or her help prepare the meal for the family
• Eat enthusiastically, whatever it is

Grow a garden

Gardening is an educational and fun outdoor activity. You can plant flowers, fruits, vegetables, and even herbs.

• Dig, plant, and water the garden
• Identify the plants with waterproof drawings or names (if your child can write)
• Enjoy the fruits of your labour