Parenting Tips for Your 39-40 Month Old Child
My pyramid for ages 2-5 lists basic types of foods that preschoolers need:
- Milk and dairy products: milk, yogurt, cheese, custard, pudding, milk-based soups
- Meat and meat substitutes: chicken, pork, beef, fish, eggs, peanut butter, dried beans, nuts
- Fruits and vegetables: tomatoes, peas, beans, corn, carrots, potatoes, melon, apples, peaches (include both yellow and green vegetables)
- Breads and cereals: cooked cereals, ready-to-eat cereals, macaroni, rice, bread, muffins, rolls (include whole-grain or enriched breads)
Children often want to eat certain foods all the time, then change and eat other foods. This is OK as long as the food is nutritious. Children will eat what their bodies need if you make a variety of foods available. For example, your 3-year-old might eat pears, peaches and pineapple for several weeks, but not bread. Then suddenly, no more fruit, but lots of meat. Then milk and cheese will be a favorite.
Sometimes give your child a new food. Do not insist that he eat it, but let him know about it. Talk about the shape, texture and color. Encourage him to taste it. If he does not like it the first time around, serve the food again in a few weeks. Children’s tastes change just like adults. As they get older, children learn to like more foods.
Tips for Serving Meals:
- Serve foods with a variety of colors. This adds interest to the meal.
- Avoid very hot or very cold foods.
- Use small plates. Let your child serve himself and judge how much to eat.
- Make foods easy to eat. Serve only one food that requires a spoon or fork so your child can practice using it. Other foods can be finger foods. For example, your child can use his fingers to pick up carrots, but needs a spoon for brown rice.
- Fill drinking cups less than half-full. This makes drinking easier and is less messy in case of spills.
- Serve meals at regular times. A hungry child is irritable and less likely to cooperate and eat well.
- Avoid nagging about table manners, but encourage your child when he uses a spoon, tries new foods, or wipes his face with a napkin.
- Remember that appetites change. Your child may be very hungry one day and only a little hungry the next. That is OK.
