By Anne Roy, Executive Program Director at Kinderberry Hill Child Development Center

Is it crazy to love an iguana named Lana?

Perhaps, but the NAEYC Conference is less than a month away, and I am so
excited for the opportunity to talk about her and the LANA preschool program!
At the conference I will share how we have been successful implementing
the LANA Preschool program at our center. We love it!

Before LANA, I never would have thought we’d be serving the children sweet potato smoothies for a snack….or that they would actually enjoy it! The LANA program has so
many wonderful activities and ideas to get children excited about eating fruits
and vegetables, and amazingly they work! The teachers and I are even eating
healthier…when we need a little snack, instead of reaching for the animal
crackers, we head to the kitchen for leftover sugar snap peas! So you see, I
love the iguana and what she has to offer, and I am looking forward to letting
everyone know more about it!

At the NAEYC conference, I will talk about all the various components of the LANA
preschool program, the ways you can modify it for your needs, tips on how it has
worked for us, and then you’ll even have the opportunity to make and eat a LANA
snack! I hope you join me!

If you are an early childhood educator attending the NAEYC (National Association for the Education of Young Children) Annual Conference, make sure to come learn about LANA! Anne Roy and Holly Beckius will be presenting about LANA and how the program helps children to taste, eat and enjoy fruits and vegetables.

LANA and Learning Zone Xpress will also have a booth at the expo, so please come by and meet us!

For those not yet registered for the conference, please see the information below and click on the link to register.

What: An opportunity to explore best practices, connect with colleagues, learn new skills, and get the professional development you need at the world’s largest gathering of early childhood educators
Where: Orlando, FL
When: November 2-5, 2011

http://www.naeyc.org/conference/registration

By Sofia Horvath, Teacher and Mother of 3

The answer is: yes!

As a mom of three young children, I can easily relate to the food issues/battles/frustrations/whatever-you-want-to-call-it that so many other parents have. I have carefully watched my child out of the corner of my eye, looking to see if today will be the day that she does not spit egg out. Or if I have successfully disguised it enough to get her to consume it. I have slaved over what I thought would be a slam-dunk winning dinner (because it was something that had previously been a hit) only to have two out of the three kids decide they didn’t like it that day. And I have sat there when my 2-year-old pushed her plate away, declaring, “I don’t like it.”—before even looking to see what it was!

I’ve been there. I have traveled that road. I don’t think anyone caring for kids can avoid it.

However, despite their occasional resistance, I’m lucky to have three kids who eat a variety of foods, many of which include fruits and vegetables. So instead of dwelling on the failures and frustrations, I would like to celebrate the successes and share the (mostly) tried and true tricks I use to introduce new and healthy foods to my kids.

1. Get them while they are hungry. You know that half hour right before dinner when the kids are at their crabbiest and begging for a snack, and you are trying desperately to throw dinner together as fast as you can without losing your mind? THAT’S IT! That is the moment! Take that moment to put out a plate of chopped up veggies and some hummus or guacamole. Don’t make a big production of it or try too hard. Just put it on the table and walk away. It looks pretty, the kids think they are getting away with eating right before dinner, and they will be eating something healthy, and (perhaps more importantly) they will be quiet and leave you alone.
2. Don’t serve the new food with “competing” foods. If you try tip #1, but throw out some chips with the guacamole, you might as well bring the veggies right back into the kitchen. Of course, there are the kids that would choose the veggies over chips, but mine wouldn’t and I know they’re not alone.
3. Let them help you pick out a new food or vegetable to try. Take a family trip to the grocery store. Ask the child to pick out something (from the produce section!) that they would like to try. If it is something you know how to prepare, awesome. If not? Google it, and enjoy the adventure of preparing bok choy, or kale, or whatever interesting thing they have chosen. It might be something new for all of you (and then you will be that much more informed when watching Top Chef).
4. Have them help you prepare it. This could be as simple as putting cherry tomatoes on skewers or mixing something in a bowl. Give them the ingredients/meal components, a butter knife and tell them to come up with their own dinner. It is borderline ridiculous what my kids will eat if they had a hand in making it. I have seen my child dip tomatoes into yogurt and declare it delicious just because she came up with the idea herself.

Do my kids always eat what’s on their plate? No. But they do recognize that new foods can be fun and taste good. And in the back of my head, I am already counting on the wonderful meals they will serve me as they grow up to be accomplished chefs.

By Carrie Reynoso, Registered Dietitian & LANA Master Facilitator

In today’s busy schedule there are many different things that influence what and how much kids eat. Everything from enticing characters on cereal, juice and fruit boxes or the home cooked meals during dinnertime, to the new fruity apricot bug activity presented at school for snack  can affect a child’s food choices.  As time flies by we can easily forget the huge role both parents and teachers play in helping children develop those healthy eating habits that they will apply for a lifetime.

With that in mind, here are a few tips for changing habits by creating a more positive (and fun) mealtime:

Adults are responsible for:                 Children are responsible for:

What food is offered                            How much food is eaten
When food is offered                           Whether they eat
Where food is offered

1. Encourage through words:
• Encourage children to taste a variety of new foods
• Praise and reinforce children for trying and tasting any new foods
• Understand the consequences of bribing, forcing or rewarding children
• Rewards can backfire~ devalue the new food being introduced and increase the value of the reward
• Nagging or persuading can increase resistance to the new or desired food
• Identify and emphasize the new food choices at meals
2. Encourage through behavior:
• Model positive eating habits
• Eat meals and snacks with children
• Serve/offer appropriate portions to children
• Understand “normal” childhood eating behaviors
• Expect food waste
• Irregular eating habits
• Expect spills and a mess
• There will be squirming
• Involve children in age appropriate meal preparation tasks
3. Encourage through the environment:
• Offer new foods every day at breakfast, lunch and snacks
• Substitute or reduce availability of foods that will compete with the new food
• Offer repeated opportunities for children to try the new food
• Create a calm and supportive mealtime environment
• Reduce distractions during meals
• Create regular, structured mealtime routines
• Promote positive conversation at meals
• Encourage and allow children to eat at their own pace
• Promote good table manners
• Encourage children to serve themselves and regulate their own food intake