Parents Taking Charge in Education Presents - Tips for Getting the Picky Eater to Eat by Mrs. Dorothy Barron

                Parents Taking Charge in Education Presents

Tips for Getting the Picky Eater to Eat by Mrs. Dorothy Barron

Got a phone or video camera and a viable food tip; the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) may be looking for you. The USDA’s Video Challenge Contest is in progress; a link has been added at the end of this post for those interested.

Whether fruits, vegetables or food in general, often it is a challenge on the Parent’s part to satisfy or get the picky eater to eat. For Parents who enjoy cooking, the specific tip below may be a cinch for you and possibly well worth the effort to select foods the picky eater will eat.

First, some general tips:

• Keep foods simple - limit or forget the spices, dressings and gravies
• Keep foods separate – keep each food separated and well- spaced on the plate.
• Keep food serving portions small – regular size servings can sometimes overwhelm a child.

In order to determine what you picky eater will eat: Conduct a Food Tasting test with your child/ren as the judge(s). Get creative – conduct the taste test with or without blindfolds; design placards with children’s names and place on the table and/or create your own taste test criteria forms, etc. You get the picture.

Specific Tip – Serve one food at a time in various ways to your picky eater(s) to determine what he/she will eat and how best to prepare and serve a particular food. Illustrations using a vegetable and a fruit as examples have been included here:

Cabbage – Lots of Nutritional Value     Photo by Mr. Patrick Barron	Prepare as: Cole Slaw Italian Sausage over steamed Cabbage Cabbage Chowder
Pineapple – Full of Nutrients Photo by Mr. Patrick Barron	Serve: Fresh - slices or spears As a shake or smoothie   As a dessert- Pineapple Sorbet

Provide each child with adequate utensils and mini-cups (baker’s paper cupcake liners and/or mini-plastic cups) for each “taste of food.” Serve very small amounts; talk about their likes and dislikes, recommended changes, etc., and etc.  

Have fun!

Some advantages of this food exercise:

• You now know what your picky eater(s) will and will not eat
• Provides a learning experience for both you and your child/ren
• Builds social, critical thinking and communication skills
• As a Parent, you spend some quality time with your child/ren
• One food equips you with a variety of meals

These food tips have been brought to you by Parents Taking Charge in Education

                                 http://mrsdbarron.blogspot.com

The URL for the USDA Video Challenge Contest: http://fruitsandveggies.challenge.gov/

Sincere thanks to Mr. Patrick Barron for granting permission to use his photos.

Parents Taking Charge in Education http://mrsdbarron.blogspot.com

Mrs. Dorothy Barron, Founder

E-mail: barron.dorothy@yahoo.com