Dealing with Picky Eaters
Email 1
Copy/Paste the following email:
Subject Line: Picky Eaters, Part One
Dear Parents,
Who likes brussel sprouts? Bread crusts? Soggy cereal? Not your preschooler, I bet!
Dealing with a picky eater can be challenging to the point of I-want-to-pull-my-hair-out frustration. But don’t worry, there is hope and help to be had.
The video for this lesson addresses the issue of preschoolers who are picky eaters. No, there’s no pill or sure-fire cure you can offer, but you will be given tips that have proven successful to help you a) deal with the issue and b) rectify the situation (to some degree, anyway).
Thank you for allowing me to partner with you in your parenting journey. I consider it a privilege. Please let me know if there is any way I can be of further assistance to you and your family.
Don’t hesitate to get in touch with me to let me know how I can pray for you and your family.
https://vimeo.com/parentministry/review/149143123/9d66ed1be5
Feasting on God’s grace,
Preschool Pastor
Email 2
Copy/Paste the following email:
Subject Line: Picky Eaters, Part Two
Hi!
So how’s it going? Are you having any luck getting your preschooler to be less picky about his/her eating habits? Did you find the Online Parenting Class video helpful?
Okay, enough questions. Let’s get to the meat of this issue (pun intended). Let’s give you some practical suggestions for getting your preschooler to eat better.
1. Try one bite and that’s all you have to eat should be a rule in your house. You can’t judge a book by its cover or a veggie by its shape.
2. Don’t force kids to clean their plates.
3. Don’t make sweets and other unhealthy foods an option for snack time.
4. Kids have a tendency to fixate on one or two foods at a time. As long as they’re healthy ones, don’t worry. It will change right along with their shoe size.
5. Let your kids see you eating a variety of healthy foods.
6. Let your kids help you cook and prepare meals. Taking ownership in something makes it more appealing.
7. Make eating fun. A piece of celery is boring, but add peanut butter or cheese spread and raisins and it’s an adventure.
You have foods you don’t like. So does your preschooler. Don’t worry about it. Just make sure to introduce new foods to their diet and keep things healthy and interesting. Oh, and it won’t hurt to remind them that it’s all good. The Bible even says so!
“Then God said, “Let the land produce vegetation: seed-bearing plants and trees on the land that bear fruit with seed in it, according to their various kinds.” And it was so. The land produced vegetation: plants bearing seed according to their kinds and trees bearing fruit with seed in it according to their kinds. And God saw that it was good.” ~Genesis 1:11-12
Happy meal time,
Preschool Pastor
Video Script
Preschool – Dealing with Picky Eaters
Mealtime can be miserable at times if your child is a picky eater. Have you ever found yourself dreading dinner time in your home because you anticipating the “battle” over what your child will eat. In this video we’re going to work through some ideas to help your picky eater try new foods without making meal time stressful.
Let’s be honest, if your child is a picky eater, it can be annoying. When they don’t eat what we’ve prepared, it comes across as an act of rebellion. It’s like they are saying, “I’m in control here, and there’s nothing you can do to make me eat this.” That has the potential to make you as a parent feel pretty powerless.
Here are some strategies to help you bring back some of the joy of meal time in your home.
First of all, Make sure your kids are hungry at meal time. I’m not at all suggesting you starve your child. But one of the common reasons your child might be choosy about their food at meal time is because they are so full from snacking through out the day. Try making a little more space between snack time and dinner time. It might allow a natural hunger to motivate your child to try more food.
Here’s my second tip for making meal time a bit more manageable. Set yourself up for a win when you prepare their plate. In order to increase the types of foods that your child is willing to eat, you’ve got to regularly introduce to them new foods. One approach you can try is to prepare a food that you know your child likes and serve it right next to the new food you’re introducing. Then you can say “If you take a three bites of everything on your plate you can have dessert.” If there is something on their plate that they like, your child will not view this as much of an impossible task, and just might surprise you with what their willing to do for dessert.
Finally, let’s remember that meal time is about more than food. Yes, we want our child to grow their list of foods that they are willing to eat. In fact, some parents actually write out a list of foods their child will eat and encourage their child to add to the list. But the family meal time is really about connecting with one another. This is a priceless time to have faith based conversations in your home. Many parents just simply read a Scripture or two before the family begins eating. Just bringing your Bible to the table every night for dinner communicates to your kids the importance of God’s Word. You might also consider playing some games together at the table. I know we were taught as kids, “Don’t play with your food.” But one of the best things you can do with kids is speak their language, which is the language of FUN. So maybe you don’t play with your food, but you can enjoy a quick game together at the table after everyone is done eating.
The point is that you can choose to make dinner less about a power struggle, and more about making a connection. When you do that, your picky eater might just surprise you with their willingness to try something new.
Texts/Tweets
TIP: Choose a hashtag for your tweets and use it consistently. That will tell Twitter to store a list of your tweets on one place for later reference.
Tweet One: Food is for eating not turning your nose up at #Pickyeaters
Tweet Two: Just one bite—that’s all you have to take #Pickyeaters
Tweet Three: Preschoolers declare mutiny against vegetables #Pickyeaters
Tweet Four: You can overcome a picky preschooler #Pickyeaters
Tweet Five: Vegetables won’t kill preschoolers…I promise #Pickyeaters
Tweet Six: Make food fun #Pickyeaters
Tweet Seven: Replace junk with fruits and veggies #Pickyeaters
Tweet Eight: It’s okay to not clean your plate #Pickyeaters
Tweet Nine: One veggie is better than none #Pickyeaters
Tweet Ten: The LORD made everything good…even peas #Pickyeaters