Our journey to eating a variety of wholesome foods consists of many experiences of exploring foods through seeing, touching, tasting and smelling. For many kids, these experiences are enjoyable and quickly lead to messy hands and full tummies. But for others, their journey to enjoying mealtime may be longer and more complex.
Sometimes kids may be apprehensive to explore new foods based on how it looks, feels or smells. Sometimes a child may have a complex medical history. There may be structural reasons making sucking, biting, chewing or swallowing difficult. There may be neurological or musculoskeletal impairments. Or there may be no obvious reason at all.
No matter where your child is at in their mealtime journey, may the focus be to provide opportunities to experience the joy of food, the connection of mealtime and the curiosity of exploration, in a safe and positive environment. I have put together some of my favourite, tried and tested, food exploration activities. They’re fun and playful and provide wonderful opportunities for sensory exploration, fine motor skill development and visual-motor development.
1. Fruit and vegetable animals
I originally saw the idea to make little caterpillars and snails from a Woman’s Day article but the ideas are endless! Simply cut up slices, cubes and sticks of fruit, vegetables and herbs, grate foods such as carrot and beetroot and add in dried fruits and nuts (where appropriate) to create animals. Nut butter is my go-to to join the pieces together but other “glues” have included hummus, guacamole, cream cheese, yoghurt and jam.
2. Fruit and vegetable shapes
Nutritional foods always taste better when they’re the shape of a star, love heart or dinosaur! Simply cut fruit into large slices and press with cookie cutters- simple but effective and often even the most picky eaters will, at the very least, be curious to explore. Look for firm fruits to prevent the shapes from falling apart- watermelon, rockmelon, pineapple, apples are a great start.
3. Fruit kebabs
These were so fun (and easy) to make- even my 13 year old got involved! Simply cut up fruit and vegetables into bite sized pieces and thread onto skewers. We used a variety of berries (strawberries, raspberries and blueberries) kiwi fruit, banana, grapes and mandarin. For a finishing touch, add a shape to the top- we used watermelon to make stars and hearts but have also used fresh pineapple.
4. Food faces
Creating faces out of food is one of my favourite food exploration activities because it allows children to explore a vast variety of foods including fruit, vegetables, herbs, spices and edible blooms and match the properties of the food to their experiences and perceptions. For example, they may choose parsley to make coarse, curly hair or dill as a long, soft moustache. Ideation, imagination and self-expression is valued and encouraged however face templates, or even just the outline of a face, can be helpful for younger kids or children who have difficulty understanding verbal language as they can be a lovely visual prompt.
5. Food hide and seek
Hide and seek has been a much loved game since the dawn of time. It is fun, engaging and interactive and brings a lot of joy for kids and adults alike. As the name suggests, simply take turns hiding a piece of food while the other looks for it. The sillier the hiding spot the better (eg. on top of your head, in your mouth, in your pocket). Sounds messy (and it is) but the child-caregiver connection factor in this game makes it a favourite amongst families and allows for laughter and joy as they explore.
A few things to remember about food exploration…..
The goal is exploration- eating is a bonus
Shared joy with a caregiver is vital for a positive mealtime experience
Follow the child’s lead- these activities are an invitation to explore and can be evolved
Talk with the child about their experience of the activities- what do they see, feel, smell and taste
Expect and prepare for mess- food play is messy play
Consider the environment- are there any distractions?
Allow for the use of utensils if using the hands to explore is too much too soon
