Snacks that Provide Educational Opportunities for Children

Snacks that Provide Educational Opportunities for Children
photo by: yomi955
By J. B. Endres|R. E. Rockwell|C. G. Mense
Pearson Allyn Bacon Prentice Hall

Care providers can use snack times and meal times to encourage children to practice fine motor skills. The table below provides a general list of snack foods primarily from the fruit and vegetable group. The list includes opportunities for pouring (and drinking), for using fingers, and for practicing spreading with a knife.

Activity Snack
To pour and drink
  • 100% fruit juices, milk, protein shake (1/2 c milk, 1/2 c orange juice, 1/4 c powdered milk), water
For fingers
  • Fruit*: Orange, grapefruit, tangerine, banana slices, apple, pear, peach slices, pineapple wedges, dried apricots, dates, raisins, grapes, plums, berries
  • Ice pop made from fruit juice or pureed fruit, fruit puree, pudding (made with fluid milk), plain yogurt**
  • Vegetables: Cherry tomato halves, and other vegetables, raw or cooked crunchy—cucumber, zucchini, turnip, green beans, cauliflower, green pepper strips or wedges, asparagus, broccoli, brussels sprouts, peas (for older children), lima beans, jicima, sugar snap peas
To spread on
  • Peanut butter, yogurt dips, flavored margarine (make your own)
To use spoon, fork
  • Yogurt**, cottage cheese, cold meat cubes, pudding, whole-grain or fortified cereals with milk

*Most fresh or canned fruit (e.g., bananas cut in disks or pieces, oranges, grapefruit, pineapple) can be frozen on a tray, brought out 10 minutes before snack time, and enjoyed as a crunchy snack.

**Plain yogurt may be sweetened by adding fresh fruit.

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