Nurturing Young Children: The Importance of Family Style Meal Service

Nurturing Young Children: The Importance of Family Style Meal Service Sharen Crockett, MS, CFCS Dr. Beth Wilson, CFCS, CFLE

Family Meal Times:What Does the Research Say? • A positive effect upon the character and social development of the children • Family communication skills • Improved nutritional intake of the entire family

Family Meal Times:What Does the Research Say? • Development of family values and traditions • Development of the culinary skills of family members • Development of child’s confidence • Fewer behavior problems, especially adolescent drug and alcohol use

Are Families Eating Together? • Families eating meals together have declined significantly over the past 30 years. • Parents believe that eating meals together is very important. • Due to complexity of family life, less than 50% of families eat as a family regularly.

What is the role of early childhood professionals? • Child care providers have assumed a role that was typically held by parents in nurturing young children. Viewed as: • A supplement and extension, not a replacement, of good parenting • A team effort with good parental involvement • Good communication between staff and parents • This means creating a “child-friendly” environment that: • Provides nutritious foods, well-prepared and attractive • Provides opportunities for learning • Provides for an enjoyable experience

Definition: Family Style Meal Service • A type of meal service that allows children to serve themselves at the table from common dishes of food with the assistance of an adult. • It encourages adults to: • Set a personal example • Provide educational activities centered around foods • Allow children to identify new foods, new tastes, and new menus • Help develop a positive attitude toward nutritious foods and develop good eating habits • Learn to share in group eating situations and manners

Family Style Meal Service is. . . • Extremely important for early childhood programs from three viewpoints: • Positive food habits, good nutrition, and long-term health (lifetime skills) • Developmentally appropriate curriculum and environment for learning • Compliance with quality/accreditation standards

Positive Aspects of Family-Style Meal Service • Provides abundant opportunities to promote: • Language development • Cognitive development • Sensorimotor development • Social/emotional development • Motor skills • Self-esteem • Independence (competency)

Physical Environment • Safe, clean, and comfortable • Child size plates, utensils, glasses and cups • Furniture of right size and shape for children’s age and development

Foods • Serve new food with familiar food • Serve foods from different cultures • Variety of shapes, colors, textures, flavors • Do not serve any foods that represent a choking hazard

Adults: Setting regular times for meals and snacks Planning and preparing healthy meals and snacks Assuring that the children come to the table at meal and snack time Creating a pleasant mealtime environment Children: Deciding which of the healthy foods offered they want to eat Deciding how much food they want to eat Division of Responsibility in Feeding Children

Social Environment • Pleasant, relaxed and peaceful • Children involved—table setting, food preparation, self-service, cleanup • Encourage children to eat food but do not force • Food should not be used as reward or punishment • Allow children to feed themselves

Social Environment • Balance learning new skills with enjoying eating • Give children time to eat

Social Environment • Talk with children, allow for self-directed conversation (language development and social skills development) • Simple rules of etiquette such as “please,” “thank you, “ and “no thank you”

Tips for Success • Have a transition activity before a meal or snack • Children should wash their hands; adults should model this behavior • Use carefully planned meals and snacks—”every day foods” and “sometimes foods”

Tips for Success • Sit with the children, model healthy eating habits, trying new foods with positive attitude, allowing the child to guide conversation • Model etiquette

Tips for Success • Send copies of menus home to parents • Be aware of “teachable” moments

Ideas for Teaching. . . • Introduce and discuss new colors, tastes, textures, shapes • Have children measure ingredients with real kitchen measuring cups and spoons • Teach the origin of foods • Plan meals around holidays or community events

Ideas for Teaching. . . • Provide diverse cultural experiences • Have a window garden with herbs

Ideas for Teaching. . . • Language development: talk about the food, how it is grown, good eating habits, proper table manners • Show children how to serve the food, taking the proper amounts, what to do if a spill occurs

Nurturing Young Children: The Importance of Family Style Meal Service