Encourage Kids with Healthy Eating Habits
Did you know that a healthy diet from an early age encourages children to make the right food choices?
Healthy eating week is taking place on the 13th of June. We know that food is a vital part of a child’s health and wellbeing. It provides nourishment, energy and helps children grow into healthy adults. We know it can be hard to get a child to eat healthy, but one of the best things you can do as teachers is make small changes to children’s diet. It’s not always easy, but it’s worth it!
Often children like to snack on sweets, chocolates and crisps at lunchtime. But we know that these foods are full of sugars and calories, which can cause weight gain and lead to health problems. To encourage them towards healthier snacks, try offering fresh fruit during break times.
We’ve created a blog on how to encourage kids in your classroom to eat healthy.
Benefits of healthy eating
Eating healthy in school helps improve a child’s ability to learn, memorise and interact with other children in the class as well as develop their social skills. The benefits of healthy eating are:
- Have better concentration in their studies.
- Perform better academically.
- Helps improve their mood which will make them more productive in school.
Encourage healthy eating habits
Offer fresh fruits and vegetables
One way to encourage children to eat healthy is by providing children in your classroom with fresh fruits on the table during break or lunchtime or even frozen fruit sticks for them to enjoy. This will help pupils develop a natural preference for food that they enjoy, which will make it easier for you as well as for them.
Make food fun
Another way is by making food look fun for children in the classroom. Not all kids will eat veggies and fruits but if you make it look fun, it will encourage them to eat. Try pairing foods with healthy dips such as guacamole, fruit salsa or even cucumber raita. This will motivate and encourage kids to eat healthy.
Involve kids in food
Did you know children that are involved in food choices in the early years of their childhood can help make the right food choices? It will also make children feel more invested in healthy eating.
Involving kids in food choices is a wonderful way to encourage them to eat better and be healthy. It’s important to teach children in your classroom how to make healthy food choices. You can start by encouraging children to prepare their morning breakfast in school such as a bowl of cereal with bananas or strawberries. You can even ask them what kind of milk they would like to drink.
It’s never too early to get pupils involved in making healthy decisions about what they eat. The earlier you start, the easier it will be for them to continue making the right choices throughout their childhood.
Teach children about healthy food options
Did you know that children who learn to eat healthy in school are more likely to continue those habits throughout their lives? Start by creating healthy eating activities around healthy food choices. For example, you can create a healthy eating shopping game for your class or even create toy lunchbox games. This will help pupils understand how to make the right food choices about what they eat. They will also be able to explore different food options.
Plan a class trip
Take your class out for a trip and show children of different food they could be eating in school. Take them on a tour of your local grocery store where they can hand pick different fruits and vegetables for your classroom. This will keep pupils interested in healthy eating and encourage them to find healthy eating alternatives.
Healthy eating doesn’t have to be complicated. It just needs to be a habit encouraged and formed early on as part of each children’s daily life. Simple changes like providing healthy, affordable options in the classroom, in the school canteen or even offering them the option to bring their own lunch can go a long way towards making sure all children get the nutrition they need.
For more blogs like this, you can read our previous blog on ‘A Guide To: Promote Healthy Eating in Schools’.