Snack and Nutrition Information:

The Brooks Preschool strives to provide healthy, nutritious snacks.

The following guidelines are provided to make snack time healthy and safe for our children.

Ÿ Please avoid bringing cupcakes/cake for snack on your child’s birthday. You may hand out treats at the end of class.

Ÿ When serving grapes or hotdogs, please slice lengthwise.

Ÿ Please shred or chop vegetables and remove pits before serving fruits such as peaches, cherries, or plums.

Ÿ Please follow Canada ’s Food Guide when making snack choices.

Ÿ Juice drinks must be 100% fruit juice and not juice punches.

Snack Ideas:

Whole grain crackers, meat and cheese, fig cookies, whole grain muffins, raw vegetables, cottage cheese, raw friuit, yogurt and granola, cheese strings, mini sandwiches, pita bread, bagels, mini cups of whole grain dry cereals.

Please note : The set food groups for the snack days are a guideline and you are not limited to these only. Eg. If you are to bring breads and cereal, feel free to add a fruit or vegetable as well.

If you have any questions about what to bring for a snack, please ask your teachers or room reps.

Reminder to Parents : Please do not bring cupcakes or other sugar treats for snack on your child’s birthday. We are promoting healthy, nutritious eating at the preschool. Thank you to all of the parents who have followed our guidelines. We understand that it is sometimes more convenient or tempting to bring “sweet treats” but we really appreciate that you follow our guidelines.

Food can be divided into different groups. The three main groups are:

These types of foods guarantee strong muscles, bones, clear vision, and healthy skin & protect us against illnesses; therefore if you give your child the right food it would guarantee a healthy body.

Food to build

These types of foods are necessary for your child to grow. Examples of these are as follows:

Milk, eggs, meat, fish, chicken, cheese & peanut butter

Food for energy

These types of foods are necessary to create an active child; examples are:

Food for protection

These foods are necessary for protection against illnesses and consist of all fruit & vegetables. Children need to get at least 4 servings per day (1 serving = 1 tablespoon for every cycle year).

 

Nutrition Note:

 

 

Eating for Christmas

 

With the Christmas season upon us we are being bombarded by sweets and treats. As good as everything looks and tastes it can be a nightmare for us parents trying to deal with children hopped up on sugar and excitement. Trying to limit the amount of treats our children eat is difficult when we arrive at peoples homes to plates full of cookies, chocolates and candies all over the place so try to feed your children healthy food before leaving home. Snacks of vegetables, cheese, sliced meats, crackers and breads will help to curb hunger and slow down the consumption of those sweets. Most importantly enjoy the season; you can make up for a few bad eating days when the holiday season is over. Happy Holidays!

 

 

 

Healthier Desert Ideas

 

  1. Make parfaits with low fat yogurt, fruit, and a cookie crumb topping.

  2. Kids love popsicles and you can make them healthy. Blend yogurt with fruit and freeze, can’t get much easier than that.

  3. Candy cane trail mix. Make you own trail mix with craisons, raisons, nuts, M&M’s, and candy cane pieces.

  4. Strawberry shooters, an unexpected blend of sweet and spicy. Cut the stem out of a strawberry, fill with your favourite hot sauce and top with whipping cream. You may want to leave out the hot sauce for the children.