Plan ahead this Halloween for some healthier treats you can make for your ghouls and goblins. You will be playing the tricks this year!
Double Chocolate Protein Balls
Strawberry Oatmeal Cookie Balls
Plan ahead this Halloween for some healthier treats you can make for your ghouls and goblins. You will be playing the tricks this year!
Double Chocolate Protein Balls
Strawberry Oatmeal Cookie Balls
Intimidated by how difficult a spaghetti squash can be to cut into? Use your microwave! Microwave your squash for about 5 minutes to soften it, this makes it easier (and safer!) to cut into.
Now that you know the microwave tip and your spaghetti squash is soft, how do you cut and deseed the squash? See our video below:
Help to promote your child’s creativity by asking them to make something with some of the spaghetti squash you saved to the side. Ask them to create a funny face, a favorite animal, or even have them use the extra squash to work on their letters and numbers.
Reviewed by Vicki Shanta Retelny, RDN, LDN
Published August 27, 2019
Developing table manners is one of the earliest steps parents can take in teaching and modeling good behavior to their children. And, families that eat together most days of the week tend to be healthier.
Teaching table manners can start when the child is eating independently out of the high chair or old enough to sit at the table. Table manners taught in the early phases include teaching kids to not reach across the table, eat from their own plate, put a napkin in their lap and say please and thank you.
Parents are the most important role models for children and can provide ongoing positive reinforcement of good table manners at family dinners.
Having family meals is the best way to model and teach good manners, especially when introducing kids to new foods. They can be taught to politely say when they don’t like something. Also, young kids often can’t sit the whole meal, but can learn to properly dismiss themselves, rather than interrupt the meal.
In addition, never correct manners in an insulting way and explain to kids why you practice manners, such as why we chew with our mouth closed and put a napkin on our lap.
Everyone at the table should get a chance to be part of a positive conversation. Keep it lighthearted and fun and talk about positive things at the table.
Kids as young as 3 to 5 years old can get involved by learning to set the dinner table. Other important rules, of course, are no elbows on the table and in today’s electronic culture — no tech devices, phones or texting at the table!
Good table manners are about respect for the household and can highlight the pleasure of eating. It is something that everyone can do well.
Reviewed May 2018
Find the full article at eatright.org
Some kids love talking about school. With others, it’s like pulling teeth to get them to share even a few details about their day—especially if there are things going on that are upsetting them, like bullying or struggling in school.
If your child is on the quieter side or is very private, there are ways to ask questions that will open up a conversation instead of shutting one down. Here are some key concepts for starting a dialogue.
1. Ask open-ended questions. If you ask a question that can be answered with one word—yes or no—that’s what you’ll get. A one-word answer.
Example: “What was the best thing you did at school today?”
2. Start with a factual observation. Kids often have a hard time answering questions that seem to come out of the blue. Making an observation gives your child something to relate to.
Example: “I know you have a lot more kids in your class this year. What’s that like?”
3. Share something about yourself. When someone tells you about themselves, it’s natural to want to do that in return. Share something with your child and see what you get back.
Example: “We always played dodgeball at recess. What do you and your friends like to do?”
4. Avoid negative questions. If you think something isn’t going well, your questions may come out in a negative way, with emotion-packed words like sad or mean. Asking in a positive way lets your child express concerns.
Example: “I heard that you sat with new people at lunch today. What did you talk about?”
Here are other examples of how to say things differently to get your child to open up.
Instead of this | Try this |
---|---|
Was school fun today? | What was the best thing you did at school? |
How was lunch? | Which kids were sitting near you at lunch? |
Was your teacher nice? | What was the most interesting thing your teacher said today? |
Did you get your locker today? | How was it getting to your locker between classes? |
Were the kids in your class friendly? | Who did you like talking to the most? |
Did you get your schedule? | You got your schedule today, right? Which days look busiest? |
Do you have friends in your classes? | Who are the kids you talk to most in your classes? |
Did your presentation go well? | What part of the presentation do you think was best? |
Phrasing your questions this way invites your child to talk. But don’t expect for every question to result in a long, detailed answer. The goal is to have many small conversations over time. It helps to find natural moments to talk—like at dinner or riding in the car—when you’re not in a rush.
Sometimes kids, like adults, just don’t feel like talking. It’s important to know when to stop asking questions and leave it for another time. But if there’s something urgent or serious going on, you’ll have to ask direct, specific questions and push for an answer.
Full article can be found at understood.org
By: Nimali Fernando, MD, MPH, FAAP
When it comes to raising an adventurous eater, it is not just about coaxing kids to eat their veggies. Bringing up a child who can enjoy a cantaloupe as much as a cupcake takes patience and persistence, but it does not have to feel like a chore.
Kids may need to have frequent joyful experiences involving food to overcome the anxiety they may have around tasting the unfamiliar. Over time, cooking with your children can help build that confidence—and provide rich sensory experiences.
Over many years, cooking as a family will help develop a happy, adventurous eater with some pretty valuable life skills—and plenty of happy memories in the kitchen. With enough practice, your child will someday be able to cook YOU a delicious meal!
From the American Academy of Pediatrics, see full article here.