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Packing your child’s lunch for school. The Challenges . To develop a nutritional diet that works for children. F ar too easy and convenient to choose prepackaged, processed, and/or fast-food. Pressure from children themselves. What can we do.
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The Challenges • To develop a nutritional diet that works for children. • Far too easy and convenient to choose prepackaged, processed, and/or fast-food. • Pressure from children themselves.
What can we do • The key to addressing this problem, as Dr. Montessori would no doubt tell us, is EDUCATION. • Tailor nutrition to satisfy each child’s requirements as each child is different. • Create an environment in which children can build an understanding of what food is and what it does for their body. • The more the children own their food, the more they will eat it.
What food is: • Food is nourishing your body. • Food is making sure you have enough energy to run and jump and play. • Food is helping your body to grow. • Food is about learning to listen to your body. Our body knows when it needs more food. • Food comes in many colors and flavors, shapes and sizes.
What food is not: • Food is not necessary when you don’t need it. • Food is not a reward. • Food is not a punishment. • Food is not a power struggle. • Food is not about love or anger. • Food is not about worry or fear.
Ideas for helping children develop their relationship with food: • Offer a wide variety of foods, colors, texturesand tastes. • Talk about the food. • Allow children to be involved in the food preparation. • Talk about the nutrients in food and what they do for you. • Try not to force your child. • Don’t offer ‘special kid food.’ • Treats are best kept for special occasions. • Offer as many whole food options as possible. • Stick with mealtime rules. • Allow children to feed themselves.
Pack your child’s lunch Montessori style • Please label everything with your child’s name. • Provide spoon, fork and a napkin with your child’s lunch. • Make sure the water bottle is easy for the child to use without spilling. • Make sure that your child can open boxes independently. • Make sure that food is easily manageable and not to messy. • Be aware of portion size so your child does not get over whelmed (lunch time is for 30 minutes).
Every day your child’s lunch should include: • A protein: turkey, chicken, ham, cheese, Greek yogurt, hummus, cottage cheese, black beans etc. • A fruit: berries, apple, melon, orange, banana, peach, grapes etc. • A vegetable: carrot, cucumber, tomato, salad, peppers, beans, peas, corn, broccoli etc. • A grain: whole grain bread, tortilla, pasta, crackers, pretzel, bagel, pita bread etc. • A drink: milk or water.