Mayflower Nursery School

We are incorporating the rainbow into our snack time lessons! The concept, Eat A Rainbow, is perfect for preschoolers to learn how to eat a variety of fruits and vegetables each day. We will be learning how eating different colors of fruits and vegetables at meals and snacks can be a fun way to eat well and get a variety of nutrients!

Learning to make positive food choices when children are young helps to establish lifelong habits of choosing and eating healthy food. You can also practice eating the rainbow at home with the whole family!

Here are a few tips to add more of the rainbow of fruits and vegetables into your daily routine:

• Let your child help to plan your menus and snacks.
• Allow your child to choose fruits and vegetables at the grocery store to try at home or school.
• Eat fruits and vegetables raw or just lightly cooked instead of heavily cooked or flavored, and children will be more likely to eat them.
• Offer new fruits and vegetables with a low calorie dip, such as low sugar yogurt or hummus (pureed chick peas).
• Aim to offer fresh or frozen fruit and vegetables, instead of canned. If you do serve canned fruit and vegetables, look for “in natural juice” or “no added sodium” or rinse the fruit or vegetable prior to serving.
• Have at least one fruit or vegetable at each snack and mealtime of different colors.
• Encourage your child to try new foods. It can take up to 15 times of being exposed to a food before your child decides if they like it or not. However, you should never force a child to eat.
• Give your child choices at snack and mealtime for fruits and vegetables. For example, “You can have carrots or broccoli.”
• Post the Eating a Rainbow snack list, where your child can see it.

Thank you for helping us to incorporate Eating a Rainbow both at school and at home and continuing on our journey of establishing lifelong healthy habits with our children.

Eating a Rainbow Snack Ideas

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