It is advisable to lay the foundation for nutritious food choices and healthy eating when boys and girls are young. Parents, caregivers and preschool teachers can help little children form healthy attitudes toward food. Preschool children learn best with hands-on activities. Since the youngsters already have experience with food, teachers and parents can build on their prior knowledge, integrating nutrition exercises with fine and gross motor activities in reading, art, science, math and music.
My Plate
Ask the children what they like to eat for dinner, and talk about the importance of healthy food choices. Show the boys and girls “My Plate,” the food icon unveiled in 2011 by the United States Department of Agriculture. Cut out pictures of healthy foods from magazines or grocery store ads and ask students to choose one item from each food group – fruits, vegetables, grains, proteins and dairy – to glue on their own dinner plates.
Funny Faces
Holly Kuovo, nutrition specialist and owner of Massachusetts’ Fitting Fitness In, teaches exercise and nutrition basics in her Kids’ Weight Loss Camps. She recommends talking to children about the benefits of eating a variety of vegetables. Instruct them to make funny faces on their plates using various, colorful vegetables. Take pictures of the creations and display them around the classroom. Then, let the kids eat the eyes, nose and mouth.
Food of the Week
Children in preschool classes typically learn a different letter of the alphabet each week. Choose a healthy food to accompany the letter, such as apple for “A.” Bring in different types and colors of apples for the students to see. Integrate math and science by asking students to match and sort the apples and count apple seeds. Make an apple craft or an art project. Have an apple-tasting day, including apples in different forms, such as juice and applesauce. Sing songs and read poems about apples.
Socks
Alabama dietitian, Keecha Harris, suggests playing a guessing game with preschool students. Show them five different fruits, such as apples, oranges, bananas, kiwis and pears. As students observe the fruit, ask them to describe each one: How does it look, smell and feel? Secretly place each piece of fruit in clean socks. Enlist children to verbally analyze which fruit is in the sock without peeking. Try this activity with vegetables, such as a crown of broccoli, a sweet potato, a carrot, an ear of corn and a tomato.
Nutrition Booklet
Preschool children typically love to color. Help them make booklets full of healthy food choices. Run off printable black and white sheets, such as DLTK’s online nutrition coloring book pages. Suggest vibrant colors for different items. Depending on the age group, allow students to pick a specified number of pictures to color, and then staple them into booklets at the end of the week. Challenge students to tell stories to go along with their pictures.
