theSun, Tues 23 Sept 2008
Early music education can aid in developing discipline and focus among children
WHEN it comes to music education, there are parents who are divided about its benefits to their children’s development. Should it be given priority equal to that of academic subjects like history, mathematics and science for example?
Many studies have been done over the years and the general conclusion is that music is good for children. However, research and tests are still on-going to determine the specifics of its benefits.
A study done in 1993 by scientists at the University of California at Irvine, found that listening to classical music before a test could improve one’s memory.
However, this study, known as the ‘Mozart Effect’, has been debated and further experiments conducted by other researchers could not provide the same findings. While there is no evidence that music enhances memory, it does not mean that music education is not important.
According to Kindermusik, a popular children’s music programme, learning music "encourages self-discipline and diligence traits that carry over into mathematics, science, foreign languages, civics and government, economics, arts, history and geography".
Findings from a study conducted at Sam Houston State University in Texas reports that early music training can improve intelligence.
It’s said that "strong correlations were found between musical abilities in young children – particularly the ability to match vocal pitches and reproduce rhythmic patterns – and abstract reasoning abilities".
Apart from intellectual benefits, I personally think that music education helps children develop discipline, focus, self-esteem and confidence.
My daughter is currently enrolled in a junior music course. Like most children, she has problems concentrating. However, she knows that in order to receive praise and applause, she has to focus and practise consistently, and does try to do that sometimes.
At the end of each semester, there is a mini concert where each child sings and plays individually for the audience. They also perform an ensemble. This develops confidence and team spirit. Even the most reserved and shy child can be seen performing without any problem.
Music also helps the child develop his fine and gross motor skills and rhythm sense when he participates in music and movement activities, for example jumping and skipping to music and using his fingers in action songs.
Research has found that the human brain has specialised parts to process music. As such, exposure to music develops cognitive skills, visuo-spatial capabilities, and perception, thus improving intelligence.
According to a youth arts project by the US Department of Justice National Endowment for the Arts, arts education has a measurable impact on youth in deterring delinquent behaviour and truancy problems.
It also increases overall academic performance among those youth engaged in after school and summer arts programmes targeted towards delinquency prevention.
If you do not wish to spend too much for music education initially, you could simply start at home by more consciously engaging your child in singing and moving to music, and listening to various types of music from ethnic and classical to jazz and rock.
Bouncing your baby on your lap in a rhythmic way while singing is already exposing him to music. Make musical instruments such as drums and shakers in craft projects, clap and dance to different rhythms. Find free and useful resources from the Internet to help you get started.
Wednesday, September 24, 2008
Tuesday, September 9, 2008
Budget with children in mind
theSun, Tues 9 Sept 2008
Being the family finance manager is part and parcel of good parenting.
How do we watch our pockets without compromising our family and childrens’ happiness and wellbeing?
This is nothing new as most families are already aware of or practicing, some form of budget. However, it helps to refresh the memory leave no stone unturned in our efforts not to overspend.
For the babies, instead of using disposable diapers, use cloth nappies. Babies, especially, go through a pack of diapers very quickly and these are not cheap.
While there is the hassle of washing, drying and folding them, cloth nappies are cheaper in the long run and they keep your baby’s bottom rash free. It is also more environmentally friendly.
If you are an expectant mother, plan to breastfeed. Not only will your baby get all the important and required nutrition from breast milk, you save a hefty sum on formula milk powder. All you need to do is to ensure you have a healthy diet and take care of your own health.
Eat out and takeaway less. It's cheaper and healthier to cook your own meals, plus you save on fuel, parking, tips and service taxes that come with the bill, not to mention the hidden cost for the ambience and the pretty swirls of gravy on your plate or slice of lemon wedged on your glass.
When it’s time for your children to eat solid food, cook for them instead of buying pre-packed, processed rice porridge, cereals or bottled purees. That way, you can ensure your children are getting all the right nutrients from the fresh and antural ingredients you are using.
And since you will be shopping for groceries for the whole family anyway, how much more inconvenient is it to get an extra carrot, potato or fish fillet for your tiny tots?
Moreover, you can cook tasty meals that cater to both adults and children. Simply remove a portion for the children before you add seasonings like salt or pepper, and chop or puree them into smaller bits or softer versions for them.
Plan your travel routes carefully to avoid burning extra fuel. If you need to get groceries, do it at a shop nearby your child’s tuition centre while waiting to pick him up.
Make a complete list of things you need to get. This saves you from making multiple trips to the shops just to pick up one or two items.
Buy only what you need and stick to the list. I used to be greedy and buy food that I plan to cook 'some day' and end up throwing them away.
Do your banking and pay your bills online to save fuel, parking cost, time and the hassle of queuing up.
Instead of going to the mall for entertainment, pack a picnic basket and visit a park or playground. The children get to exercise, bond with nature and play creatively. At the mall, you would have to pay to enter a children’s activity centre, eat at a restaurant, or buy tickets, sugar-filled popcorn and soda for a movie.
At home, keep your children occupied with books from the library, free online audio storybooks, and printable online games and activities.
Engage them in craft activities using recycled material or pretend play using costumes from unwanted clothes and fake jewellery.
Dust off the old board games and have a fun, educational time together.
Being the family finance manager is part and parcel of good parenting.
How do we watch our pockets without compromising our family and childrens’ happiness and wellbeing?
This is nothing new as most families are already aware of or practicing, some form of budget. However, it helps to refresh the memory leave no stone unturned in our efforts not to overspend.
For the babies, instead of using disposable diapers, use cloth nappies. Babies, especially, go through a pack of diapers very quickly and these are not cheap.
While there is the hassle of washing, drying and folding them, cloth nappies are cheaper in the long run and they keep your baby’s bottom rash free. It is also more environmentally friendly.
If you are an expectant mother, plan to breastfeed. Not only will your baby get all the important and required nutrition from breast milk, you save a hefty sum on formula milk powder. All you need to do is to ensure you have a healthy diet and take care of your own health.
Eat out and takeaway less. It's cheaper and healthier to cook your own meals, plus you save on fuel, parking, tips and service taxes that come with the bill, not to mention the hidden cost for the ambience and the pretty swirls of gravy on your plate or slice of lemon wedged on your glass.
When it’s time for your children to eat solid food, cook for them instead of buying pre-packed, processed rice porridge, cereals or bottled purees. That way, you can ensure your children are getting all the right nutrients from the fresh and antural ingredients you are using.
And since you will be shopping for groceries for the whole family anyway, how much more inconvenient is it to get an extra carrot, potato or fish fillet for your tiny tots?
Moreover, you can cook tasty meals that cater to both adults and children. Simply remove a portion for the children before you add seasonings like salt or pepper, and chop or puree them into smaller bits or softer versions for them.
Plan your travel routes carefully to avoid burning extra fuel. If you need to get groceries, do it at a shop nearby your child’s tuition centre while waiting to pick him up.
Make a complete list of things you need to get. This saves you from making multiple trips to the shops just to pick up one or two items.
Buy only what you need and stick to the list. I used to be greedy and buy food that I plan to cook 'some day' and end up throwing them away.
Do your banking and pay your bills online to save fuel, parking cost, time and the hassle of queuing up.
Instead of going to the mall for entertainment, pack a picnic basket and visit a park or playground. The children get to exercise, bond with nature and play creatively. At the mall, you would have to pay to enter a children’s activity centre, eat at a restaurant, or buy tickets, sugar-filled popcorn and soda for a movie.
At home, keep your children occupied with books from the library, free online audio storybooks, and printable online games and activities.
Engage them in craft activities using recycled material or pretend play using costumes from unwanted clothes and fake jewellery.
Dust off the old board games and have a fun, educational time together.
Thursday, August 28, 2008
Encouraging honesty
theSun, 26 Aug 2008
BY age three or four, most children will have somehow developed the smarts to avoid admitting their wrongdoing by telling lies or stories. They are afraid that if they tell the truth, we will be disappointed or angry, or they will be punished.
Usually young children fabricate stories because they have actually forgotten what they had done or because they want so much to please us that they really believe that they have done nothing wrong.
Once, my daughter’s teacher informed me that she and her friends were talking during her lesson. When the teacher brought it up with the children, my daughter insisted she had not talked. What should we do to encourage honesty among children and teach them about telling the truth?
It is important to have an environment where your child feels safe to tell the truth. Praise her when she does it. This helps, especially if she had lied before.
Children feel good when they know they have pleased you. Give them a smile or cuddle and say: "Thank you for telling me the truth. I like it when you do that."
Children may lie due to other concerns or fears. Find out why they lied and address the underlying concern. If your child copied the answers for her homework, prompt her to tell you why she did it. You can then discuss with her why it is important to work out the answers on her own.
If your child jumps the ice cream queue and denies doing it, don’t call her a liar. Labelling her as one will make her defensive. It would be harder then for her to listen to you. You could say: "I understand that you like ice cream very much and want to get it as soon as possible." The child will then be more open to listen and learn that she must wait for her turn when she knows you are not out to get her.
To teach our children honesty, we must be honest ourselves. Children learn from example. If they hear you calling in sick when you are actually fine, they will think it is all right that they do the same when they want to avoid school.
Above all, create a loving environment to help the child feel assured that even if she has done something wrong, she will still be loved. Separate the wrongdoing from the lie. Help her understand that everyone makes mistakes now and then but this does not mean that the person can lie about it. Try to convey the message that you expect her to tell the truth.
Help her to understand the consequences of lying. When we find out that our child has lied, we would naturally feel disappointed or angry.
While it is easier said than done, try to keep your cool and not use punishment to scare her into telling the truth. Neither should you tell her that she will rewarded or not be punished if she tells the truth. Instead, help her see that when she lies, someone else will be blamed and in future, others will not want to trust her.
BY age three or four, most children will have somehow developed the smarts to avoid admitting their wrongdoing by telling lies or stories. They are afraid that if they tell the truth, we will be disappointed or angry, or they will be punished.
Usually young children fabricate stories because they have actually forgotten what they had done or because they want so much to please us that they really believe that they have done nothing wrong.
Once, my daughter’s teacher informed me that she and her friends were talking during her lesson. When the teacher brought it up with the children, my daughter insisted she had not talked. What should we do to encourage honesty among children and teach them about telling the truth?
It is important to have an environment where your child feels safe to tell the truth. Praise her when she does it. This helps, especially if she had lied before.
Children feel good when they know they have pleased you. Give them a smile or cuddle and say: "Thank you for telling me the truth. I like it when you do that."
Children may lie due to other concerns or fears. Find out why they lied and address the underlying concern. If your child copied the answers for her homework, prompt her to tell you why she did it. You can then discuss with her why it is important to work out the answers on her own.
If your child jumps the ice cream queue and denies doing it, don’t call her a liar. Labelling her as one will make her defensive. It would be harder then for her to listen to you. You could say: "I understand that you like ice cream very much and want to get it as soon as possible." The child will then be more open to listen and learn that she must wait for her turn when she knows you are not out to get her.
To teach our children honesty, we must be honest ourselves. Children learn from example. If they hear you calling in sick when you are actually fine, they will think it is all right that they do the same when they want to avoid school.
Above all, create a loving environment to help the child feel assured that even if she has done something wrong, she will still be loved. Separate the wrongdoing from the lie. Help her understand that everyone makes mistakes now and then but this does not mean that the person can lie about it. Try to convey the message that you expect her to tell the truth.
Help her to understand the consequences of lying. When we find out that our child has lied, we would naturally feel disappointed or angry.
While it is easier said than done, try to keep your cool and not use punishment to scare her into telling the truth. Neither should you tell her that she will rewarded or not be punished if she tells the truth. Instead, help her see that when she lies, someone else will be blamed and in future, others will not want to trust her.
Making the right choices
theSun, 12 Aug 2008
I HAD a casual chat with the father of my daughter’s classmate one day and learned that like most families, both he and his wife work and leave their children in the care of maids.
They hired two – one to care for the children and the other for housekeeping. One parent sends them to school in the morning and a hired driver fetches them home.
Due to the many horror stories about foreign maids abusing children, they had equipped their house with cameras to monitor the home while they are at work.
This scenario is very common in Malaysian homes. Gone are the days when the father is the sole breadwinner while the mother stays home to tend to the family’s needs.
Children’s needs then were far more basic. They went to school, came home, and did their homework. They played with the neighbours’ children with hardly any threat of being kidnapped, raped or murdered. At least, that was the childhood I remember having.
Children these days, especially those living in the city, have their schedules packed to the brim with tuition classes for every subject, extra-curricular activities and enrichment classes like languages, music, mental arithmetic, tennis, golf, gymnastics, art, dance, yoga – and the list goes on.
These classes are good for their overall development provided they are interested in them and if it is required to help them keep up with lessons. But how much is enough for a child to grow without being too stressed?
With all these activities going on in the life of the modern-day child, who would be responsible for ensuring that he gets where he needs to go safely, and that he is properly guided at home where revision of lessons is concerned?
Both parents are at work literally from dawn to dusk and probably have just enough time to have dinner with them and kiss them goodnight. Some families have grandparents who are able to help out but not everyone is that fortunate. They have no choice but to leave their children in the care of strangers like maids, drivers, and day-care minders.
My daughter has been blessed the past few years with having me at her disposal 24/7, so to speak. I am around to care for her at home and drive her to and from school and all her extra-curricular enrichment activities.
It was a matter of what is more important to us when we considered giving up a dual-income lifestyle. This is a crossroad all couples face once they have children.
One option, which is becoming more popular, is for one parent, or even both, to work from home, by owning a business, freelancing, offering niche services or taking on flexible or part-time jobs.
Whatever the choice, there will be sacrifices to be made and rewards to be reaped. It is a matter of knowing what suits your family best and what makes all of you happiest. After all, we only have one lifetime and we must make the most of it.
I HAD a casual chat with the father of my daughter’s classmate one day and learned that like most families, both he and his wife work and leave their children in the care of maids.
They hired two – one to care for the children and the other for housekeeping. One parent sends them to school in the morning and a hired driver fetches them home.
Due to the many horror stories about foreign maids abusing children, they had equipped their house with cameras to monitor the home while they are at work.
This scenario is very common in Malaysian homes. Gone are the days when the father is the sole breadwinner while the mother stays home to tend to the family’s needs.
Children’s needs then were far more basic. They went to school, came home, and did their homework. They played with the neighbours’ children with hardly any threat of being kidnapped, raped or murdered. At least, that was the childhood I remember having.
Children these days, especially those living in the city, have their schedules packed to the brim with tuition classes for every subject, extra-curricular activities and enrichment classes like languages, music, mental arithmetic, tennis, golf, gymnastics, art, dance, yoga – and the list goes on.
These classes are good for their overall development provided they are interested in them and if it is required to help them keep up with lessons. But how much is enough for a child to grow without being too stressed?
With all these activities going on in the life of the modern-day child, who would be responsible for ensuring that he gets where he needs to go safely, and that he is properly guided at home where revision of lessons is concerned?
Both parents are at work literally from dawn to dusk and probably have just enough time to have dinner with them and kiss them goodnight. Some families have grandparents who are able to help out but not everyone is that fortunate. They have no choice but to leave their children in the care of strangers like maids, drivers, and day-care minders.
My daughter has been blessed the past few years with having me at her disposal 24/7, so to speak. I am around to care for her at home and drive her to and from school and all her extra-curricular enrichment activities.
It was a matter of what is more important to us when we considered giving up a dual-income lifestyle. This is a crossroad all couples face once they have children.
One option, which is becoming more popular, is for one parent, or even both, to work from home, by owning a business, freelancing, offering niche services or taking on flexible or part-time jobs.
Whatever the choice, there will be sacrifices to be made and rewards to be reaped. It is a matter of knowing what suits your family best and what makes all of you happiest. After all, we only have one lifetime and we must make the most of it.
Putting in the fun
theSun, 29 July 2008
Children pick up the basics of personal hygiene faster if they learn them as a game rather than a chore
MY daughter knows the basics of personal hygiene but needs to be reminded sometimes. Once, in a hurry to go somewhere, I realised upon entering the car that she had not cleaned her mouth after eating and exclaimed such.
Very glibly, she replied: "Never mind, I’ll just lick it." While feeling equally exasperated and amused at her innocent creativity, I reminded her how mouths are to be cleaned.
I recall making a conscious effort to teach her about personal hygiene but somehow, she seems to enjoy amusing and frustrating me occasionally with her ‘personal’ hygiene practices.
Children learn by mimicking others, by example and repetition.
Does this mean my hand washing, showering, and teeth brushing, for instance, have not been visible enough to her? Or did she pick up some of the wrong habits from her friends at school?
We need to constantly expose our children to proper hygiene practices so that they, too, would do the same. It is important to start them young to allow them to learn earlier how to do it on their own without our prompting.
In my case, I believe I started my daughter young enough as she has understood its importance. While she knows how to do it on her own without prompting, it has yet to become a habit that does not need reminding.
Children are more apt to learn if fun is involved. Some parents get their children to sing a song that is 20 seconds long while washing hands. This is a fun way to help them remember to wash for that long to ensure they are clean.
My daughter used to dislike having her hair shampooed, so we used the foam to mould it into various funny shapes, spikes or horns, and let her see it in the mirror. It became a fun activity as she enjoyed laughing at herself. Till today, she still asks me to do it sometimes.
Having fun with the process shows them that personal hygiene does not have to be a chore. It can be something to look forward to which will eventually become an easy ritual.
I have discovered through experience that encouragement, praise and reward also work. To get my daughter to enjoy brushing teeth, we got her toothbrushes with her favourite cartoon characters and toothpaste in flavours that she likes.
We sometimes brush our teeth together, counting the strokes as we go along and making funny noises as we rinse. Once we also put up a tooth-brushing chart for her to colour a picture of a tooth after she has brushed.
At the end of the week, she is rewarded with stickers or a balloon if all the teeth on the chart are coloured.
Besides making it fun, we can give them the opportunity to feel responsible. Children like to feel important, as if they are all grown-up and independent.
Allow them to do things themselves like shower or brush teeth, even if it means doing it for them again afterwards. Praise them after they have done it.
Soon, they will become familiar with what needs to be done, learn the correct way of doing it, and like what I’m hoping for my daughter, remember to do it all the time.
Children pick up the basics of personal hygiene faster if they learn them as a game rather than a chore
MY daughter knows the basics of personal hygiene but needs to be reminded sometimes. Once, in a hurry to go somewhere, I realised upon entering the car that she had not cleaned her mouth after eating and exclaimed such.
Very glibly, she replied: "Never mind, I’ll just lick it." While feeling equally exasperated and amused at her innocent creativity, I reminded her how mouths are to be cleaned.
I recall making a conscious effort to teach her about personal hygiene but somehow, she seems to enjoy amusing and frustrating me occasionally with her ‘personal’ hygiene practices.
Children learn by mimicking others, by example and repetition.
Does this mean my hand washing, showering, and teeth brushing, for instance, have not been visible enough to her? Or did she pick up some of the wrong habits from her friends at school?
We need to constantly expose our children to proper hygiene practices so that they, too, would do the same. It is important to start them young to allow them to learn earlier how to do it on their own without our prompting.
In my case, I believe I started my daughter young enough as she has understood its importance. While she knows how to do it on her own without prompting, it has yet to become a habit that does not need reminding.
Children are more apt to learn if fun is involved. Some parents get their children to sing a song that is 20 seconds long while washing hands. This is a fun way to help them remember to wash for that long to ensure they are clean.
My daughter used to dislike having her hair shampooed, so we used the foam to mould it into various funny shapes, spikes or horns, and let her see it in the mirror. It became a fun activity as she enjoyed laughing at herself. Till today, she still asks me to do it sometimes.
Having fun with the process shows them that personal hygiene does not have to be a chore. It can be something to look forward to which will eventually become an easy ritual.
I have discovered through experience that encouragement, praise and reward also work. To get my daughter to enjoy brushing teeth, we got her toothbrushes with her favourite cartoon characters and toothpaste in flavours that she likes.
We sometimes brush our teeth together, counting the strokes as we go along and making funny noises as we rinse. Once we also put up a tooth-brushing chart for her to colour a picture of a tooth after she has brushed.
At the end of the week, she is rewarded with stickers or a balloon if all the teeth on the chart are coloured.
Besides making it fun, we can give them the opportunity to feel responsible. Children like to feel important, as if they are all grown-up and independent.
Allow them to do things themselves like shower or brush teeth, even if it means doing it for them again afterwards. Praise them after they have done it.
Soon, they will become familiar with what needs to be done, learn the correct way of doing it, and like what I’m hoping for my daughter, remember to do it all the time.
Curbs on the surf
theSun, Tues, 15 July 2008
Surfing on the Net for children, like playing in any open field, requires parental supervision
COMPUTER knowledge is a necessity these days. Children as young as three or four years old are being taught the basics in pre-school.
There is much to be gained by children from knowing how to use the computer and Internet. The Net provides unlimited resources to information and communication, and diverse learning experiences such as problem-solving, information-gathering, analyses and communication skills.
For example, children can get help with schoolwork by using online encyclopaedias. They can learn how to read and practise math problems from websites offering such resources. They can also visit online museums, art galleries, read e-books, create scrapbooks, write their own stories, and get ideas for art and craft projects.
Parents must, however, bear in mind that computers and the Internet are merely tools that help their children and can only be effective if used well.
Therefore, strong parental guidance and adequate supervision are required to ensure that children benefit positively from this medium of learning.
But bear in mind that children still need personal attention from teachers and parents. They learn best when their interests and achievements are encouraged and acknowledged.
Being glued to the computer does not make a child brilliant. He needs to balance it with outdoor activities, and interaction with friends and family to become an all-rounded person.
As computer literacy skills are increasingly expected of the present and future generations, more parents are allowing children reasonable freedom in using the computer and Internet.
This can pose a hazard for families when it goes unchecked. Some chatrooms, newsgroups, and websites have violent, disturbing, pornographic, and other inappropriate material for children.
Children may stumble upon such sites when doing a search using search engines that seldom filter these out. When older children tread into chatrooms, they could inadvertently give out personal information that could put them at risk when they meet odd characters and dangerous people.
There are many software programs available to control access to the computer and all of its functions such as the Internet, programs, games, etc. Some online services and Internet service providers allow parents to limit their children’s access to certain services and features.
Other ways to filter and control what children can access online include spam filters and rating systems. Internet browsers can be set to only allow children to visit sites that are rated at the level that the parents specify. Using such software or services enables you to leave your children on their own in the knowledge that they are using the computer safely.
But in the end, what’s best is still parental involvement. Be in touch with what your children are doing online … and offline as well!
Surfing on the Net for children, like playing in any open field, requires parental supervision
COMPUTER knowledge is a necessity these days. Children as young as three or four years old are being taught the basics in pre-school.
There is much to be gained by children from knowing how to use the computer and Internet. The Net provides unlimited resources to information and communication, and diverse learning experiences such as problem-solving, information-gathering, analyses and communication skills.
For example, children can get help with schoolwork by using online encyclopaedias. They can learn how to read and practise math problems from websites offering such resources. They can also visit online museums, art galleries, read e-books, create scrapbooks, write their own stories, and get ideas for art and craft projects.
Parents must, however, bear in mind that computers and the Internet are merely tools that help their children and can only be effective if used well.
Therefore, strong parental guidance and adequate supervision are required to ensure that children benefit positively from this medium of learning.
But bear in mind that children still need personal attention from teachers and parents. They learn best when their interests and achievements are encouraged and acknowledged.
Being glued to the computer does not make a child brilliant. He needs to balance it with outdoor activities, and interaction with friends and family to become an all-rounded person.
As computer literacy skills are increasingly expected of the present and future generations, more parents are allowing children reasonable freedom in using the computer and Internet.
This can pose a hazard for families when it goes unchecked. Some chatrooms, newsgroups, and websites have violent, disturbing, pornographic, and other inappropriate material for children.
Children may stumble upon such sites when doing a search using search engines that seldom filter these out. When older children tread into chatrooms, they could inadvertently give out personal information that could put them at risk when they meet odd characters and dangerous people.
There are many software programs available to control access to the computer and all of its functions such as the Internet, programs, games, etc. Some online services and Internet service providers allow parents to limit their children’s access to certain services and features.
Other ways to filter and control what children can access online include spam filters and rating systems. Internet browsers can be set to only allow children to visit sites that are rated at the level that the parents specify. Using such software or services enables you to leave your children on their own in the knowledge that they are using the computer safely.
But in the end, what’s best is still parental involvement. Be in touch with what your children are doing online … and offline as well!
Green menu for kids
theSun, Tues, 01 Jul 2008
Parents must come up with creative ways to encourage children to eat their veggies and develop a love for them
Most children love sweet and colourful foods, and very often, these are not the healthiest because they tend to contain too much sugar, salt, fat, artificial flavours, additives and dyes.
Fresh produce cooked at home is the best option for a healthy, balanced diet for the entire family. Children’s palates are, however, difficult to please and vegetables are usually the most unpopular item on their menu.
When my child started eating semi-solid food, vegetables were not a problem because they were all mashed, pureed, and sometimes flavoured with milk.
But when she grew older and started taking adult food, the problem began. She had developed an ability to detect even the smallest bit of chopped vegetable in the spoonful I fed her. Very quickly, the vegetable appeared at the tip of her tongue, ready to be spat out.
How do we teach children to enjoy eating vegetables? I discovered from my struggles with my daughter that forcing does not work. Neither does hiding the chopped veggies with other food in a spoonful, especially when the textures differ and the greens are still visible.
Hiding only works with her when they are finely chopped and mixed into gravies, pasta sauces, omelets or meatballs. I would do that sometimes to ensure that my daughter still gets the nutritional value of vegetables.
There is, however, a school of thought that children must not be ‘cheated’ into eating vegetables by sneaking them into the meal, as it does not effectively teach them the importance of eating healthy food like vegetables.
If your child prefers vegetables raw, I would suggest that you don’t bother cooking them. Give them carrot and celery sticks, with some mayonnaise, salad dips or even tomato sauce if that’s what they love, instead of cookies during snack time. I found this worked with my daughter and sometimes, she had even asked me for raw carrots on her own.
We also need to remind ourselves children’s tastebuds change as they grow older. It does not mean that if they disliked broccoli at age four that they would not eat it at seven. My daughter ate only carrots and celery when she was four but now she eats cauliflower, broccoli stems, corn and beans.
We simply need to be consistent in making vegetables a part of their meal and continue to let them try different types of vegetables.
It is said that if we let our children help us cook, they are more likely to eat what they have cooked. That could work with vegetables too. Let them choose a vegetable dish they think they would like to cook and let them help you cook it.
And if you have a garden or planter boxes, a longer-term project to help children take to greens could involve starting a vegetable plot together.
Allow them to choose the seeds they would like to grow and ensure that they invest some time every day tending to the plants. This will encourage them to eat their harvest, and later, develop an interest in gardening and planting their own vegetables.
Parents must come up with creative ways to encourage children to eat their veggies and develop a love for them
Most children love sweet and colourful foods, and very often, these are not the healthiest because they tend to contain too much sugar, salt, fat, artificial flavours, additives and dyes.
Fresh produce cooked at home is the best option for a healthy, balanced diet for the entire family. Children’s palates are, however, difficult to please and vegetables are usually the most unpopular item on their menu.
When my child started eating semi-solid food, vegetables were not a problem because they were all mashed, pureed, and sometimes flavoured with milk.
But when she grew older and started taking adult food, the problem began. She had developed an ability to detect even the smallest bit of chopped vegetable in the spoonful I fed her. Very quickly, the vegetable appeared at the tip of her tongue, ready to be spat out.
How do we teach children to enjoy eating vegetables? I discovered from my struggles with my daughter that forcing does not work. Neither does hiding the chopped veggies with other food in a spoonful, especially when the textures differ and the greens are still visible.
Hiding only works with her when they are finely chopped and mixed into gravies, pasta sauces, omelets or meatballs. I would do that sometimes to ensure that my daughter still gets the nutritional value of vegetables.
There is, however, a school of thought that children must not be ‘cheated’ into eating vegetables by sneaking them into the meal, as it does not effectively teach them the importance of eating healthy food like vegetables.
If your child prefers vegetables raw, I would suggest that you don’t bother cooking them. Give them carrot and celery sticks, with some mayonnaise, salad dips or even tomato sauce if that’s what they love, instead of cookies during snack time. I found this worked with my daughter and sometimes, she had even asked me for raw carrots on her own.
We also need to remind ourselves children’s tastebuds change as they grow older. It does not mean that if they disliked broccoli at age four that they would not eat it at seven. My daughter ate only carrots and celery when she was four but now she eats cauliflower, broccoli stems, corn and beans.
We simply need to be consistent in making vegetables a part of their meal and continue to let them try different types of vegetables.
It is said that if we let our children help us cook, they are more likely to eat what they have cooked. That could work with vegetables too. Let them choose a vegetable dish they think they would like to cook and let them help you cook it.
And if you have a garden or planter boxes, a longer-term project to help children take to greens could involve starting a vegetable plot together.
Allow them to choose the seeds they would like to grow and ensure that they invest some time every day tending to the plants. This will encourage them to eat their harvest, and later, develop an interest in gardening and planting their own vegetables.
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