Shemrock Heritage Preschool

SHEMROCK Heritage in Rohini is a leading Preschool in Delhi that nurtures children aged 2 to 5 years through a well-researched, child-centered curriculum, with a strong emphasis on hands-on learning and overall development.

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Healthy Eating Habits for Preschoolers: A Guide for Parents

It is essential for preschool children to have healthy eating habits in order to fuel their growing bodies and minds. Preschoolers are super energetic and active throughout the day. Nutritious meals and a healthy balanced diet keeps them focussed and fit, ensuring a fulfilling learning journey at school. Here are a few tips for parents to ensure their little preschooler eats healthy and develops good eating habits for life.

Patience and Perseverance is the Key

Instilling healthy eating habits in children is a gradual process. When you introduce a new healthy food to your preschooler, you may initially face rejection. Children take time to adjust to new flavours. The trick is to offer the same food multiple times until the child finally develops a taste for that particular food. Multiple exposures change food preferences in children. 

Let Children Eat as per their Appetite

Children’s appetite changes everyday depending on their physical activity and what they’ve been eating. Don't expect children to eat the same quantity of food every time. Don't worry if they are sometimes eating less as they can always make up for it in the next meal. Force feeding or over-eating should be avoided at all costs.     

Give them Choices to Pick From

Children in preschool ages are often fussy eaters. When you give them a wide variety of foods to choose from, they feel more in control of what they eat. They develop a positive connection with food. By presenting different flavors and textures, you help expand their palate and cultivate a love for nutritious food.

Enjoy Family Mealtimes Together

When everyone in the family eats healthy food together, children learn by observing. We can set a good example before them by eating healthy ourselves. As children serve food to themselves (with our supervision, of course), they understand portion control and take charge of what and how much they eat. They also look forward to mealtimes.

Set Times for Meals and Snacks 

Preschoolers thrive on routines. Having a fixed schedule for meals and snacks helps them understand when to expect food. Having a schedule also ensures there are no long gaps between two meals which is often the reason why children are prompted to pick unhealthy snacking options to satiate their hunger.

Engage Children in Meal Preparation 

When children choose, prepare and cook food together with you, they feel a sense of ownership towards what they eat. They become curious about different food items and don't shy away from giving new food items a try. You can tell them about the nutritional benefits of various foods as you prepare the meal together. Eating fresh and healthy becomes fun rather than forced.

Don’t Use Food as a Reward or a Punishment

It’s a bad practice to use food as a reward or a punishment as children develop unhealthy associations with eating. Offering sweets for being ‘good’ and withholding food for being “bad’ lead to negative eating patterns. Instead, try making food a neutral and enjoyable part of daily life fostering a life-long positive attitude towards eating.

In conclusion, fostering healthy eating habits is not just about choosing the right foods but also shaping a positive attitude and behaviours around mealtimes. Hope these simple tips will help you make your little preschooler grow into healthy, mindful adults.

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The Role of Preschools in Building Independence in Children

As parents, we are often reluctant to let our little toddlers do things independently because we think they will take more time and make a mess. It’s not easy to watch our kids try, fail and feel disappointed. So, we take control of everything. What we fail to understand is that nurturing independence in young kids is very important. It builds a sense of self-confidence and responsibility in children that sets them up for success later in life. 

The role of preschools in building independence in children is huge. A preschool-going child has numerous opportunities to develop independence and blossom into a well-rounded individual with high self-esteem. Here are 5 ways in which preschools help children become independent.

Structure and Routine

An organized classroom structure and routine during preschool years give children a sense of security, allowing them to look forward to and decide how they will engage in various activities planned ahead. With daily routine tasks, children learn to manage their time and become self-disciplined. In a preschool environment, where there are clearly defined spaces and there is easy access to everything, children learn to take control of their lives.

Interaction with the Peers

The setting of a play-school is such that children are required to interact and collaborate with their peers on a daily basis. This helps them to take the lead and work independently in a social setting. Working in groups helps them to take ownership of their work, share responsibilities and resolve conflicts independently. Values of cooperation, communication and collaboration have an important role to play in a child’s journey to independence. 

Opportunities for Decision-making

A day at preschool involves children making simple decisions - from which book to pick from the shelf to what toy to choose from the box. Preschools offer a blend of guided instruction and free play that requires children to make a choice of their own at many points during the day. Selecting activities or coming up with a solution to a problem during play gives children confidence in their ability to think and act in an independent manner. 

Fostering Self-Help Skills

When children wash their hands before opening their tiffin during lunch time, or put off their shoes before entering the gymnastics class, or pack their belongings before the dispersal, they develop basic self-help skills in the process. Playschools foster independence and a sense of responsibility by letting children do their simple personal tasks. These self-care skills go a long way in making  children smart and independent.

Play-based Activities for Independent Thinking

Play-based activities that are planned for children in a preschool help them to be independent thinkers. When children are encouraged to explore without the intervention of adults, they learn to think independently and trust their instincts. Unstructured playtime at preschool is where children are allowed to explore, experiment and use their imagination. This freedom boosts their confidence that they can manage things on their own. 

These are some of the ways preschool can do wonders in making children independent, something that is very hard to achieve at home. When children step out of the over-protective home environment and start going to a preschool that provides the right balance of guidance and freedom, that’s when a strong foundation is laid for children to develop self-reliance.