My Organized Chaos Snack Station - Amazon S3 · closed at 4pm, it was also closed 30 minutes before lunch time. It took some figuring out but I realised that if I left it open later

Snack StationMy Organized Chaos

© Jo Ebisujima 2014 www.my-organized-chaos.com


A snack station isn’t just about allowing the child independence, it is also an important way for them to learn life skills.

Having kids help in the kitchen, preparing dinner and making cookies or whatever is great but sometimes it can go for weeks before they get in the kitchen again. Trying to cook with kids underfoot isn’t a great option and having kids in the kitchen needs extra time (and patience). It often doesn’t happen on a regular basis.

Having a snack station where they have to prepare their own food on a more regular basis means they can be honing those skills between cooking with mom sessions.

Why?

http://www.my-organized-chaos.com


A snack station is an area set up so the child can take out, prepare and clear away their own snack with minimum help from an adult.

You might choose to set everything up in a drawer or cupboard in the kitchen or it might be easier for your family to have it in the dining room.

When my son was a toddler we had an open shelf next to the fridge for his snack station.

What Is A Snack Station?



This depends - useful answer! Really, it depends on the age and ability of your child and the type of snack they are going to prepare. A snack doesn’t mean grabbing a bag of crisps (chips) and scoffing them in from of the TV.

For a toddler the process of taking a banana, peeling it, chopping it, putting it on a plate then sitting down and eating it is a time consuming affair - snack time can take a good 30 minutes.

That is 30 minutes where they are learning skills from cutting, chopping, slicing, spreading, grating, and peeling. Plus the routine of taking things out and putting them away afterwards.

What Should Be Included?



There is a full checklist at the end but you should have at the very least…A place matPlateBowlCutleryKnife for cutting/spreading (the type of knife depends on their ability)Non slip chopping boardCloth for cleaning spillsCupJug

What Should Be Included?



First you need to set up the snack station, remember to follow the rules:

★ Is it easy?★ Is it logical?★ Can they reach?

Once you have that done, you need to model how to use it and the rules.

“Hey look what I’ve set up for you, your own snack station so you can prepare your own snacks! Cool right, but there are some rules...

How Do I get The Child Started?



Again, you will want to set the rules to suit your child. Some kids if you leave the whole box of trail mix and tell them they can have 1 scoop, that’s exactly what they will do, others will sit and scoff the whole lot in one sitting!

You know your child best, set the rules to suit their personality. If you have a child that will just eat everything you put out then you need to start talking about portion sizes and only leave out the amount that you think they should be eating.

You are totally in control here, set the rules that you are comfortable with.

Snack Station Rules...



You might also want to set times when the snack station is open. For drinks, I feel that they should be available at all times but food you might want to set specific times.When my son was younger the snack station was open at 10 am and closed at 4pm, it was also closed 30 minutes before lunch time. It took some figuring out but I realised that if I left it open later he wouldn’t eat his dinner. So this is the system that worked for us.Some kids are grazers and will come back several times a day for a small snack, others will take their snack as a mini meal, again, it depends on the child.Print out the page at the end and put your rules in it - this will be different for everyone.

Snack Station Rules cont...


prepare the snack


This is basically the same as the work cycle, the whole cycle needs to be completed, that means, yes, clearing up after themselves too!

WASH HANDS!

Using The Snack Station...

Take out everything to prepare the snack & set

the table

Clean up everything

Eat the snack



I’m starting to sound like a broken record here - it depends on your child! Obviously healthy is better. I think our generation have grown up with the idea that sweets, chocolate, ice-lollies and crisps are snacks but in reality fruit, veggies, bread, yoghurt etc are perfectly great snacks and much better for our little ones.

Anything that uses kitchen skills are good but even if the snack of the day is rice crackers, taking the extra step of taking them out of the packet and setting them out on the plate the child is learning.

A children interact with food they learn more about it and become more conscious of what they are putting in their mouth.

What Kind Of Snacks?



I’m a big believer of having drinks available the whole time, so many of us don’t take in enough liquid through the day and having rigid drink times for kids doesn’t help the matter.

You might want to go with a no-spill water bottle that is out all the time and then have a drink available just for snack time. We often had milk, as the milk carton was too big for my son to handle, I would pour the milk into his jug the he would pour his own drinks from there.

Two practical life skill lessons are important for your child to learn here, pouring and how to clean up a spill.

What About Drinks?


Some Examples...Plenty of space on the top to prepare the snack

All the bowls etc kept neatly on middle shelf

Choice of snack on the bottom - big tubs with easy to open lids - Important!

Source: Kids These days

http://kidsthesedays.org/content/4-tips-creating-kid-friendly-kitchen

Perfect For A ToddlerI love the absolute simplicity behind this snack station

Very simpleLimited choicesSpooning, drink in no-spill cup, cloth for spills, and snack tub

Although this doesn’t have the child making snacks, which at this age they need to do supervised, it is introducing the child to the idea of getting a snack and drink when they need it

Source: Pinterest

http://www.pinterest.com/pin/262686590740988875/


Not Much Space?I know some people are pushed for space and setting up a shelf specifically for the snack station might not be possible.

Using a cupboard or a specific drawer/shelf in the fridge is another way to go about it

Everything the child needs for the snack preparation is in the white basket and I expect they can just take the basket out and to where they are going to do their snack prep

Source: Pinterest



Using The PantryThis mama has used the lower shelf in the pantry. I love the water pot, although I think a bowl underneath to catch spills would be a good idea and I’d be reluctant to put this out until the child is past the stage of just opening the tap to see the magic water spilling everywhere!

We can only see a sneaky peak of the rest of the pantry but it looks beautifully organized too. Great example for the kids to follow

More ideas over on my Pinterest BoardSource: Pinterest

http://www.pinterest.com/jojoebi/snack-station/



Time To Set Up Your Own...Where will I set up the snack station? Do I have everything I need or do I need

to buy something for it?

Which snacks will I introduce first (choose a couple and alternate, when your child has got the hang of those, you can add something new)

Is the equipment child sized and easy for a child to use (think about how the snack ingredients will be stored)


★ ___________________________________________

★ ___________________________________________

★ ___________________________________________

★ ___________________________________________

★ ___________________________________________

Snack Station Rules



❏ Shelf or cupboard space❏ Child sized cutlery❏ Plate & dish❏ Cloth for spills❏ Placemat❏ Napkin❏ Knife for cutting/spreading (the type of knife depends on their ability)

❏ Non slip chopping board❏ Special equipment (egg slicer, apple slicer, grater etc.)

❏ Cup❏ Drink (in a jug/bottle/dispenser)❏ Apron

Checklist

Plus the ingredients

for the snack!


Simple No Cook Snacks★ Satsuma - peeled and put on the plate

★ Banana - peeled, sliced and with little

food picks

★ Hard boiled egg, peeled and sliced

★ Slice of bread with jam/nut

butter/cream cheese…

★ Veggie slices and hummus

★ Cheese and crackers

★ Threading fruit onto a wooden skewer

to make fruit kebabs

★ Mashed avocado with veg sticks to dip

★ Yoghurt

★ Ants on a log, celery with nut butter

and raisins

★ Edamame (pre-cooked by you)

★ Tortilla rolls (fill with what they like)

★ Berry salad (use whichever berries are

in season)

★ Apple sandwiches (2 slices of apple

stuck together with nut butter)

★ Number pick ‘n’ mix (1 almond, 2

raisins, 3 dried bananas..)

★ Cheese and pineapple on sticks

★ Mini salad - make their own

My Organized Chaos Snack Station - Amazon S3 · closed at 4pm, it was also closed 30 minutes before lunch time. It took some figuring out but I realised that if I left it open later

Documents