Nutrition & Cooking with Children

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Good Gut Health is Important for Brain Development

A healthy diet can play a vital role in a person’s life and one of the most important factors of our well-being, frequently overlooked, is the health of our gut microbiome. As with an adult’s gut, a child’s digestive tract contains dozens of natural and beneficial bacteria that serve a variety of functions, such as regulating immune function and metabolism. Scientists are now studying how children’s diets influence their gut health and also, more importantly, how it might affect everything from mood to mental health and cognitive development. A well-balanced diet rich in whole fo...

Advanced Pre-K
Preschool
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Peace of Mind for Parents - Make Mealtimes Learning Opportunities!

Mealtimes are great opportunities for children to have conversations, use their manners, and even practice math. Here are some ways to keep the fun and learning going at your next family meal. Set the table. Together you and your child can count the number of forks you need, note where each piece of silverware goes, and point out that there is one place setting for each person. This allows children use and practice an important math skill: one–to–one correspondence. Try new foods. Children learn to be more independent and open-minded when they choose to try a new f...

Advanced Pre-K
Preschool
School-Age
Toddler
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Banana Pancake Snowmen!

This is a fun and easy recipe you can make with your children on Christmas morning, or anytime during the holiday season! Ingredients 1 cup complete buttermilk pancake mix 3/4 cup water 1/3 cup mashed ripe banana 1 teaspoon confectioners' sugar Pretzel sticks, chocolate chips, dried cranberries and/or halved banana slices Instructions In a small bowl, stir the pancake mix, water and banana just until moistened. Pour a scant 1/2 cup batter onto a greased hot griddle, making three circles to form a snowman. Turn when bubbles form on top. Cook until the second...

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Teaching Your Child Health and Wellness Habits

As a parent, you instinctively want your children to grow up leading happy and healthy lives, while developing good habits. Not only are good eating habits important for a child to learn, but, establishing health and wellness habits that nurture the mind, body and spirit as a whole are significant as well. Teaching your child a healthy routine when he is young can prove to be beneficial for his mental development and encourage a positive relationship with his health. Here are some of our favorite healthy habits: Eliminating junk food. Feeding your child a balanced and nutritious diet h...

Advanced Pre-K
Preschool
School-Age
Toddler
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Cooking with Children

Have you ever had Thunder Cake? It was my first successful from-scratch cake and I made it with a classroom full of four and five-year-olds. I was still fairly new to the world of Early Childhood Education and my principal challenged me to incorporate some cooking into my classroom highlighting the many benefits. Initially terrified at the thought of cooking with young children, I had brought in a prepackaged mix so the children just had to add water, stir, and bake - not a very engaging or tasty experience. Several weeks later, a colleague introduced me to the book Thunder Cake b...

Advanced Pre-K
Preschool
School-Age
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Seven Ways to Encourage Healthy Eating Habits with Your Children

Stepping Stone School is your partner in raising healthy, happy and confident children. To that end, we serve balanced and nutritional meals and snacks and offer the following suggestions for encouraging healthy eating in children. Keep healthy food on hand. Keep snacks like fruits, veggies and low-fat cheese in a special place that children can access easily. It’s OK to have an occasional treat, but if you buy smaller packages of “junk food,” it’s easier to keep these snacks to a minimum. Make healthy foods fun. When offering something new try to mix it up and be crea...

Preschool
School-Age
Toddler
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Encouraging Healthy Eating on a Working Parent's Schedule

Healthy eating for children sometimes seems to be a bumpy road pitted with obstacles and hurdles. As parents, we want to give our children the foundations for achieving all their current and future goals. And of course, we know that achieving goals requires a healthy body, which in turn, requires healthy food. With many children, this can be a challenge, especially for working parents with busy schedules. So how can you serve healthful meals … and how can you get your child to eat them? Planning A little planning can go a long way toward preparing nutritious (and stress-fre...

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Five Tips for Healthier Eating

Stepping Stone School is your partner in raising healthy, happy and confident children. To that end, we serve balanced and nutritional meals and snacks and offer the following suggestions for encouraging healthy eating in children. 1. Keep healthy food on hand. Keep snacks like fruits, veggies and low-fat cheese in a special place that children can access easily. It's OK to have an occasional treat, but if you buy smaller packages of "junk food," it's easier to keep these snacks to a minimum. 2. Acknowledge healthy choices. When your children choose healthy foods, praise the...

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