When working with children of all ages, we must be sure to not just teach them mentally, but physically as well. When we have children who are not getting exercise at home, we must take the initiative to engage the children with physical activities to ensure the children are healthy and growing physically the way they should. If we as adults do not make sure the children are physically active, they have a high risk of becoming obese, unhealthy with diseases, or even have growing difficulties due to not getting the proper amount of exercise and nutrition together. We just take this responsibility serious as we have too many children who are overweight as of today.
At this age, children are not only developing their motor skills, but they are also developing their social skills. Another development at their age would be their habits and their abilities to decide what is right and wrong. In those things they need to be well nourished and physically active. That is why they need to be taught what to eat to stay healthy and to be active to keep their hearts and minds healthy as well.
When children do not engage in physical activity, they are at a very high risk of becoming overweight and even obese. When a child becomes obese, it is a very serious and life threatening issue and if it is not watched carefully in children, then it becomes a problem from an early age. If we instill in the children at an early age the importance of exercise and get them to enjoy it then, it will not be a issue when they get older. Being obese can cause so many problems in a child’s life. It can cause them to be made fun of, or even abused physically in some cases. So it’s not just a health issue, but a social issue as well.
A few ways adults can help children be more active and enjoy the exercise we need to stay healthy is to come up with enjoyable games and interactions that promote exercise or movements that expend energy. One thing an adult could do is to get the children to play a game like Duck-Duck-Goose. It can make them stand up, sit down, squat, turn around and many other actions in the one game. Another game that is a great one to not only get the body moving, but also gets the mind involved as well is Simon Says. It’s a great way to teach listening and responding promptly when they here a specific group of words, Simon Says.
Adults are the key to making everything grow to joy in a child. So if we take our time and show children that everything about nutrition and exercise can be enjoyable and fun, then they will take that with them through life and teach others what they have learned as well. This could be a snowball effect on a country that is in need of good health and nutritional values.
Tuesday, April 13, 2010
Recipes to please the children...
In today’s world of super sizing and large portions, children are the ones who are getting the brunt of the punishment from our mistakes. We continue to feed our children junk and ignore the facts of nutrition and in turn, our children are turning into overweight teens and obese adults. We must take a stand and put nutrition and healthy eating back into our kids, and it begins with us parents and teachers now.
There are thirteen million children in early childhood education every day, and these children are getting a significant part of their weekday nutrition from the early childhood education environment. As teachers and caregivers, we not only need to teach these children that nutrition is a vital part of life, but that if we are not aware of our eating habits, we may end up sick and unhealthy as part of our neglect to eat by the nutritional guidelines placed in front of us by the ones who study health and nutrition. Without the nutrients and nutrition of the four major food groups, our children will not know how to eat right in their lives.
Adults have a big responsibility and that includes the parents and the teachers that have such a big impact on the children who they are working with or living with. If we as adults do not take initiative to help children of all ages to eat healthier and live a healthier lifestyle, then we are doing no better for them than the generations before us have done to make our world as obese as it is right now. We can help them by exemplifying good eating habits and by explaining to them why eating healthy foods can prolong our lives and make our lives much less inhibited by disease, and unhealthy hearts and bodies.
A few healthy recipes that we can quickly and easily make for preschooler’s that are not only healthy, but tastes good as well are Sweet Potato Oven Fries, Bird’s Nest Salad, and Peach Bread Pudding. Here are the exact directions for making these three recipes:
Sweet Potato Oven Fries
• Cut up fresh sweet potatoes like French fries and spray with low-fat cooking
spray.
• Place on baking sheet and bake at 375 degrees for 20 minutes.
• Sprinkle with a purchased seasoning mix and lemon juice if desired.
Bird’s Nest Salald (Makes 1 Serving)
• 1/3 cup grated carrots
• 5 or 6 grapes
• 1 tsp. salad dressing
Directions:
1. Place grated carrot in a bowl and add a tsp. salad dressing, stirring to moisten.
2. Place carrots in the center of a plate and make a hollow in the carrot nest with
the back of a spoon.
3. Place grapes in the nest for eggs.
4. Cut grapes in half for children under aged 2.
Peach Bread Pudding (Makes 10 Servings)
• 5 slices of bread (whole wheat, raisin or cinnamon)
• 2 large eggs
• 2 cups skim milk
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 1 tsp. vanilla
• 1/2 tsp. cinnamon
• 1-15 oz. can chunky cut peaches well drained
• 1/2 cup dried fruit of your choice
1. Cut bread into 1-inch cubes.
2. Mix eggs, milk, sugar, vanilla and cinnamon.
3. Add cubed bread mixture to eggs and let soak for 5 minutes. Stir in the peach
chunks and dried fruit.
4. Pour mixture into lightly greased 8”x8” baking dish.
5. Bake at 350 degrees for 50 minutes or until knife inserted in center comes out
clean.
Getting the children involved in not just eating, but cooking these items are important as well. When preparing the food to be cooked, we can have the children help with getting the correct ingredients out or by helping with the measurements for the ingredients as well. Kids love helping adults do the adult things, so let them enjoy getting their hands dirty along side you. These are just a few recipes that you can find on the United States Department of Agriculture’s website under Child Care Providers recipes and menu planning section. For more recipes you can search the web for healthy recipes for children as well.
There are thirteen million children in early childhood education every day, and these children are getting a significant part of their weekday nutrition from the early childhood education environment. As teachers and caregivers, we not only need to teach these children that nutrition is a vital part of life, but that if we are not aware of our eating habits, we may end up sick and unhealthy as part of our neglect to eat by the nutritional guidelines placed in front of us by the ones who study health and nutrition. Without the nutrients and nutrition of the four major food groups, our children will not know how to eat right in their lives.
Adults have a big responsibility and that includes the parents and the teachers that have such a big impact on the children who they are working with or living with. If we as adults do not take initiative to help children of all ages to eat healthier and live a healthier lifestyle, then we are doing no better for them than the generations before us have done to make our world as obese as it is right now. We can help them by exemplifying good eating habits and by explaining to them why eating healthy foods can prolong our lives and make our lives much less inhibited by disease, and unhealthy hearts and bodies.
A few healthy recipes that we can quickly and easily make for preschooler’s that are not only healthy, but tastes good as well are Sweet Potato Oven Fries, Bird’s Nest Salad, and Peach Bread Pudding. Here are the exact directions for making these three recipes:
Sweet Potato Oven Fries
• Cut up fresh sweet potatoes like French fries and spray with low-fat cooking
spray.
• Place on baking sheet and bake at 375 degrees for 20 minutes.
• Sprinkle with a purchased seasoning mix and lemon juice if desired.
Bird’s Nest Salald (Makes 1 Serving)
• 1/3 cup grated carrots
• 5 or 6 grapes
• 1 tsp. salad dressing
Directions:
1. Place grated carrot in a bowl and add a tsp. salad dressing, stirring to moisten.
2. Place carrots in the center of a plate and make a hollow in the carrot nest with
the back of a spoon.
3. Place grapes in the nest for eggs.
4. Cut grapes in half for children under aged 2.
Peach Bread Pudding (Makes 10 Servings)
• 5 slices of bread (whole wheat, raisin or cinnamon)
• 2 large eggs
• 2 cups skim milk
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 1 tsp. vanilla
• 1/2 tsp. cinnamon
• 1-15 oz. can chunky cut peaches well drained
• 1/2 cup dried fruit of your choice
1. Cut bread into 1-inch cubes.
2. Mix eggs, milk, sugar, vanilla and cinnamon.
3. Add cubed bread mixture to eggs and let soak for 5 minutes. Stir in the peach
chunks and dried fruit.
4. Pour mixture into lightly greased 8”x8” baking dish.
5. Bake at 350 degrees for 50 minutes or until knife inserted in center comes out
clean.
Getting the children involved in not just eating, but cooking these items are important as well. When preparing the food to be cooked, we can have the children help with getting the correct ingredients out or by helping with the measurements for the ingredients as well. Kids love helping adults do the adult things, so let them enjoy getting their hands dirty along side you. These are just a few recipes that you can find on the United States Department of Agriculture’s website under Child Care Providers recipes and menu planning section. For more recipes you can search the web for healthy recipes for children as well.
Emergency... What do you do?
A 7-year-old child is playing on the playground and begins to choke and point at his throat as if to say he is choking. The first thing we must do as a teacher is to respond immediately and remain calm. The next step is to make sure the student stays calm as well, and in that time being sure to diagnose what the child could have possibly been choking on by asking those who were near him at the time. If necessary to do so, I would then proceed to give the Heimlich maneuver to try and dislodge the article the child has swallowed. If that doesn’t work then we make the call to the proper emergency crews to make sure the child gets to a place where they can remove what it is he is choking on.
A 4-year-old girl is playing on the swings when she falls off backwards and landed on her head. She is unconscious and in need of help as soon as possible. The first thing we do is check for a pulse. Staying calm and in control we make sure we know exactly what happened as we call the paramedics to the scene. We then try to wake the girl, but there is no response. So we begin to do CPR on her as we await the arrival of the paramedics to take over from there.
Advance planning is so very important because we never know when and what might happen any day with children. We must be qualified to perform CPR and other safety procedures required by the state so that a child and their parents are secure that their safe in our supervision. Without being prepared for a situation, we could have a problem arise, and we are so unprepared and don’t know what to do that the child dies and then the school and we as a teacher might be in a lot of trouble and even lose our jobs. I believe that every teacher should know the Heimlich maneuver, CPR and also be certified to give CPR, not just know what it is.
Adults must be prepared and have the correct supplies near by as we never know when we will need the skills and supplies to save a life. As adults, we should familiarize ourselves with the different supplies that are used to help keep burns from becoming worse, keeping a bleeding person from bleeding too much, and even just knowing how to make sure a bloody nose gets cleaned up properly. Because a bloody nose is bound to happen when you have boys playing together. The last thing that is vital to an adult being prepared for any situation is for that adult to be understanding and know that children are going to get hurt, it is a natural thing and being to afraid of it will cause the adult to not be prepared or capable of helping when a child is in need of emergency care.
A 4-year-old girl is playing on the swings when she falls off backwards and landed on her head. She is unconscious and in need of help as soon as possible. The first thing we do is check for a pulse. Staying calm and in control we make sure we know exactly what happened as we call the paramedics to the scene. We then try to wake the girl, but there is no response. So we begin to do CPR on her as we await the arrival of the paramedics to take over from there.
Advance planning is so very important because we never know when and what might happen any day with children. We must be qualified to perform CPR and other safety procedures required by the state so that a child and their parents are secure that their safe in our supervision. Without being prepared for a situation, we could have a problem arise, and we are so unprepared and don’t know what to do that the child dies and then the school and we as a teacher might be in a lot of trouble and even lose our jobs. I believe that every teacher should know the Heimlich maneuver, CPR and also be certified to give CPR, not just know what it is.
Adults must be prepared and have the correct supplies near by as we never know when we will need the skills and supplies to save a life. As adults, we should familiarize ourselves with the different supplies that are used to help keep burns from becoming worse, keeping a bleeding person from bleeding too much, and even just knowing how to make sure a bloody nose gets cleaned up properly. Because a bloody nose is bound to happen when you have boys playing together. The last thing that is vital to an adult being prepared for any situation is for that adult to be understanding and know that children are going to get hurt, it is a natural thing and being to afraid of it will cause the adult to not be prepared or capable of helping when a child is in need of emergency care.
How to Prepare for Disasters
Two disasters that are a possible challenge in my area would be tornados and school shootings. The main dangers that are posed by these disasters would be the entire building being blown away in a tornado, and for the school shootings, I believe it might be a little obvious what the dangers would be with a school shooting. The danger always lurks for a person to walk into a school with a weapon. The children and all the staff are definitely at a huge risk in both situations of the disasters.
My colleagues and I should be prepared for both in a manner as to which everyone is trying to stay calm. The school shooting would be a very difficult to prepare for other than having a plan in place that when someone threatens all staff people must have practiced what to do in this case, and if they are not prepared, not only will they be unprepared, they would also not know what standard procedures are. As far as the tornado, students and teachers usually practice the procedures a few times through out the year. The preparation of schools for a tornado is what may keep some people safe when an actual tornado comes their way. If you were unprepared it would not be good for either scenario. If they have to get into position for the school lock down, and the tornado crouch, but have never practiced for either, then when it happens, things that happen would be devastating.
Tornado plans are as follows. When the weather warning comes in, we get the kids to line up in the hallway away from windows and doors if possible. The next thing we have the children do is sit down in a balled up form with your head under your hands and hands over your head to guard from flying objects. School shooting plans are not s simple as the tornado. The school must be aware of the people and students in their school in order for the school to keep the rest of the people in the building safe. We try to lock down the room where the shooter is, and the rest of the school will evacuate as quickly as possible. These two are very different disasters as the tornado is a little easier to prepare for and to predict as well.
My colleagues and I should be prepared for both in a manner as to which everyone is trying to stay calm. The school shooting would be a very difficult to prepare for other than having a plan in place that when someone threatens all staff people must have practiced what to do in this case, and if they are not prepared, not only will they be unprepared, they would also not know what standard procedures are. As far as the tornado, students and teachers usually practice the procedures a few times through out the year. The preparation of schools for a tornado is what may keep some people safe when an actual tornado comes their way. If you were unprepared it would not be good for either scenario. If they have to get into position for the school lock down, and the tornado crouch, but have never practiced for either, then when it happens, things that happen would be devastating.
Tornado plans are as follows. When the weather warning comes in, we get the kids to line up in the hallway away from windows and doors if possible. The next thing we have the children do is sit down in a balled up form with your head under your hands and hands over your head to guard from flying objects. School shooting plans are not s simple as the tornado. The school must be aware of the people and students in their school in order for the school to keep the rest of the people in the building safe. We try to lock down the room where the shooter is, and the rest of the school will evacuate as quickly as possible. These two are very different disasters as the tornado is a little easier to prepare for and to predict as well.
Safety First
When it comes to the safety and care of infants and toddlers, I have a very special heart for that age group as I am a father and have been through some times of my children being hurt or injured on different occasions where if more precautions were taken, these injuries could have been stopped. This post will highlight some ways you and your establishment or home can protect infants and toddlers from safety issues and possibly stop an injury or two as you go through this stage of the children.
Some of the most important things we must remember about this age of children and their safety are that the majority of them are very curious and able to get into things when you are least expecting it. So the first step to keeping the toddlers and infants safe are keeping the areas around their play areas clear of sharp, unsafe, and objects that could be swallowed by them. The second main safety precautions we need to take around this age, is making sure that the wall sockets are covered properly with wall sockets plugs. Another we should take into account for safety would be making sure that the areas that are dangerous such as stairs, doors and pools are gated off so that they could not end up falling down the stairs, getting knocked over by an opening door or getting the hands caught in the door, or even falling in the pool and drowning. In that situation you would be able to get the foam pads that cover those edges and make them safer for children who would be crawling, walking or running around them. The last of the five areas of safety and threats for toddlers and infants, will be the cleaning products we use to keep the areas clean at all times. As caregivers and teachers, we all know the biggest issue in this situation is the fact that children are sick often, and all the materials and cleaning products we use to keep the areas clean are just as harmful as sharp edges or any other safety issues that we come across. If the products that are used, get into the hands of the children and then into the mouths as well, a child can end up very sick or even dying.
So in the issues of safety, there are many more to be aware of and take the initiative to make the place you work, or the areas you serve in, the safest and even the most enjoyable place for children.
Some of the most important things we must remember about this age of children and their safety are that the majority of them are very curious and able to get into things when you are least expecting it. So the first step to keeping the toddlers and infants safe are keeping the areas around their play areas clear of sharp, unsafe, and objects that could be swallowed by them. The second main safety precautions we need to take around this age, is making sure that the wall sockets are covered properly with wall sockets plugs. Another we should take into account for safety would be making sure that the areas that are dangerous such as stairs, doors and pools are gated off so that they could not end up falling down the stairs, getting knocked over by an opening door or getting the hands caught in the door, or even falling in the pool and drowning. In that situation you would be able to get the foam pads that cover those edges and make them safer for children who would be crawling, walking or running around them. The last of the five areas of safety and threats for toddlers and infants, will be the cleaning products we use to keep the areas clean at all times. As caregivers and teachers, we all know the biggest issue in this situation is the fact that children are sick often, and all the materials and cleaning products we use to keep the areas clean are just as harmful as sharp edges or any other safety issues that we come across. If the products that are used, get into the hands of the children and then into the mouths as well, a child can end up very sick or even dying.
So in the issues of safety, there are many more to be aware of and take the initiative to make the place you work, or the areas you serve in, the safest and even the most enjoyable place for children.
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