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daughter eats a banana then you should give them a<br />
cookie. It is better for the child‘s health and<br />
wellbeing for the reward to be something that is not<br />
material, for example if the child eats all their<br />
vegetables at dinner, or fruit from their lunch box<br />
then the reward will be a trip to the park or<br />
swimming pool. Exercise is always good, and<br />
children just see it as fun! So what better way to<br />
reward them, then with something that keeps them<br />
fit?<br />
TIP FIVE- Less is more. Giving your child a plate<br />
piled to the high hills with carrots is extremely<br />
daunting for a child. One tablespoon of vegetables is<br />
fine at first while you ease the child into the food<br />
that they are refusing to eat. After a while you can<br />
slowly increase the quantity until it is a reasonable<br />
helping.<br />
TIP SIX- Take the kids food shopping! Children<br />
love trips out and what better way to introduce them<br />
to food that‘s in a supermarket? A fun game you<br />
could play is create a mini shopping list for the child<br />
and allow them to partly do the shop for you. Once<br />
they find each object they can tick it off of their list.<br />
Children love games like this as it is like hide and<br />
seek and they feel proud being able to say that they<br />
have completed the challenge. Another reason that<br />
children like to go on the food shop with parents is<br />
because it makes them feel like they have slight<br />
control over the situation. Even though in all<br />
circumstances the parent(s) will be in control, the<br />
child will feel differently. This will lead the child to<br />
believe that the dinner they are eating has been<br />
chosen by them, therefore they do not feel pressured<br />
(this relates to tip one).<br />
TIP SEVEN- Make the food look fun! There are lots<br />
of ways to make food look fun. I‘ll give you a few<br />
examples. How about making a plate of carrot sticks<br />
and celery sticks that look like the sun with a nice<br />
dip in the middle? When giving them food try to<br />
assemble it to look like a face, this way it is more<br />
appealing to the child. Children love to get messy<br />
fingers, so give them meat on the bone and big<br />
chunky carrots to munch on! Just make sure you are<br />
prepared for the mess! Finally, add a bit of colour to<br />
the dish. Make sure it has different colours or it will<br />
look bland to the child and this will not encourage<br />
them to eat it!<br />
TIP EIGHT- Last but definitely not least, get the<br />
children involved with the creation of meals!<br />
Whether it‘s sprinkling the cheese, pouring the flour<br />
or mixing the sauce, children love getting stuck in<br />
and getting their hands messy! Letting the child<br />
make their own food gives them a sense of control<br />
over what they‘re eating whilst also educating them<br />
on how to cook.<br />
Here are a couple of recipes that are fun to<br />
make with the children.<br />
MINI MUFFIN PIZZAS<br />
You will need:<br />
� One English muffin<br />
� Tomato puree -2 tbsp<br />
� Personal choice of meat<br />
� Yellow and green peppers<br />
� 1 Fresh tomato<br />
� Sweet corn<br />
� Red onion sliced<br />
� ½ cup of Mozzarella grated<br />
� Salt and Pepper to season<br />
� Slice the muffin into two halves creating 2<br />
bases for your mini-pizzas<br />
� Toast the muffins until golden brown<br />
� Cook the onions until softened<br />
� Spread the tomato puree on the base<br />
� Layer up with your toppings (can alter to<br />
choice)<br />
� Place under grill four approximately 4<br />
minutes until the mozzarella has melted.<br />
TUCK IN!<br />
BANANA ICE LOLLIES<br />
This one is a perfect summer snack.<br />
You will need:<br />
1/2 banana per person<br />
20g melted milk or dark chocolate<br />
Lolly sticks<br />
� Push the stick inside the halved<br />
banana.<br />
� Roll the banana in the chocolate until<br />
evenly covered.<br />
� Place in freezer until the child is<br />
peckish<br />
ENJOY! Hannah Aldwinkle