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Easy, Fun Recipes for Young Children

Easy, Fun Recipes for Young ChildrenWe’ve bumped up the mealtime chatter in your home. We’ve ensured your little one can help safely in the kitchen – and learn a bunch in the process, too. Now, it’s time to cook! Here are two fool-proof recipes that young children love to make – and eat. From my family to yours – enjoy!

No-Bake Peanut Butter Power Balls

This is a very forgiving recipe – experiment with amounts and ingredients, and let your child call the shots. Start with your peanut butter and honey “base mixture”, add in your cereal of choice, and roll in any (or all!) of the options below. All the pouring, mixing, and messy rolling are wonderful fun. Then you get instant deliciousness, since no baking is required!

STEP ONE – Blend Together Base Ingredients

  • 1 C peanut butter, creamy or crunchy (for peanut allergies, try almond butter or sunflower seed butter instead);
  • 1/2 C honey

If the peanut butter and honey are cold, heat them in the microwave for 20 seconds to more easily blend.

STEP TWO – Optional Protein Power

Thoroughly mix in 1 C dried milk powder, if desired

STEP THREE – Pick Your Cereal

Add one of the following (or mix more than one, for a total of one cup)

  • I C oatmeal, uncooked, rolled or quick, or
  • I C Corn Flakes, or
  • 1 C Crispy Rice cereal, or
  • 1 C granola

Stir well into Base Mixture.

STEP FOUR – Roll and Coat

Roll about a tablespoon of the mixture into golfball-sized rounds. Wet your hands first if the mixture is very sticky. Then, roll the balls in any (or all!) of these yummy coatings:

Dried Toppings

  • Wheat germ (surprisingly delicious in this recipe)
  • Mini chocolate chips
  • Flaked coconut
  • Chopped Craisins
  • Chopped dried cherries
  • Cinnamon sugar
  • Cocoa powder
  • Chopped nuts

Store in the fridge, or freeze in a zip-top bag. They defrost nicely in lunch boxes, too!

Yummy Yogurt Parfait

Here are two versions of this simple, yummy, healthy treat.

PARFAIT VERSION

Place about a half cup of vanilla or maple yogurt into parfait cups. Select, rinse, and slice seasonal fruit, including:

  • bananas, sliced into “coins”
  • pears, peeled and cut as desired
  • grapes (cut into quarters for younger children and toddlers)
  • strawberries (leave on the green “handles” for the Yogurt Dippers version below)

Place each type of fruit into a small serving bowl. Allow kiddos to select their fruits of choice to place on top of first yogurt layer. Add a second layer of yogurt over fruit. Offer toppings for the second layer, including ANY of the dried toppings options from step FOUR in the recipe above. Eat immediately.

YOGURT DIPPERS VERSION

Some children don’t like their food to “touch” or be “mixed” with other foods. If this describes your kiddo, try it this way instead:

Place about a half cup of yogurt into a small bowl. Have your child select fruit chunks and dip into the yogurt before eating. Offer dried toppings as a “second step” dip.

Looking for more fun things to do with your children? Contact Premier Academy today!

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Got Breakfast? 4 Tips for Busy Families

Got Breakfast? 4 Tips for Busy FamiliesEat your breakfast!

We’ve heard it over and over – breakfast is important. Brains need fuel to work properly. If your little one is like mine, though, breakfast is the last thing on her mind in the morning. She might ask for juice, but she’d rather wait until snack time at school to eat. When you add that to the morning madness of getting everyone dressed and out the door, sometimes it’s just easier to skip breakfast altogether.

But a hungry brain is a crabby brain, and a crabby brain doesn’t learn (or behave) very well. So we made a decision to emphasize Family Breakfast Time – even on school days. Here’s how we ensure the kids get out the door with a healthy breakfast:

  • Schedule Sleep Success. Sleepy kids don’t want to eat. Some kiddos need more time than others to wake up and get going, too. To make sure you’re ALL getting enough shut-eye, dedicate yourself to an earlier bedtime. Push bedtime back by 5 minutes each night until everyone’s getting enough sleep, then awaken everyone early enough so there’s ample time to eat. That way, little bodies have enough time to wake up and start to feel hungry.
  • Forget Fancy Foods. Prep foods that are quick and healthy – nothing fancy required. A banana and a cup of oatmeal with raisins, cinnamon, and milk works great. Or serve peanut butter on whole wheat toast, plus what we call “kids’ tea” (warm, decaf tea with a bit of honey). Aim for protein, whole grains, and minimal sugar – and keep it simple.
  • Nix the Rush. The main reason families skip breakfast is because we’re in such a rush. Simplify your morning routine by doing an evening prep time the night before. That creates time for your Family Breakfast. You’ll ALL start out the day better.
  • Sit and Share. Model the importance of breakfast by sitting down together every morning and connecting with each other before going off in your separate directions. At our breakfast table, we talk about the dreams we had overnight, and discuss our plans and goals for the day.

The breakfast ritual is a wonderful way of connecting with each other before the bustle of the day gets going  – AND for sending your child to school with a brain that’s primed to learn!

Need more tips? Contact Premier Academy Today!

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15 Ideas for a Fun Family Picnic

Shopping HealthierPlanning a family picnic is the perfect activity for fun summer learning. With all the outside games and food, it’s easy to see why your kids will never know you have a secret curriculum up your sleeve! Here are 15 great tips to make your summer picnics full of learning – AND lots of fun:

  1. Races: Running races, the egg and spoon race, hopping-on-one-leg races – anything goes! Lots of exercise is linked to more learning – and better behavior. Have the kids run for at least an hour during your picnic to maximize this fun learning booster.
  2. Ball Games: Playing catch and kicking the ball helps with a kind of coordination called Motor Planning, which helps your children get from one place to another. The more confident  your children are with their bodies , the more likely  they are to take on other challenges in life.
  3. Daisy Chains: Dandelions or other common summer weeds are perfect for making daisy chains. Help your little one create the chain to help fine motor skills develop – and don’t forget to count the flowers.
  4. Leaf Adventures: When your children are  busy with something else, collect leaves from a few trees. Then ask them to find which trees they belong to. When they do, tell them about the trees they’ve discovered.
  5. Bubbles: Blowing bubbles helps little ones build the oral muscles needed to improve their speech. Count the bubbles for more fun and learning.
  6. Scavenger hunt: Create your hints ahead of time, and have one adult hide the items while another facilitates  games with the kids. Aim for 5 -6 items for younger children; older kiddos can stay focused for a longer list.
  7. Chalk it up: Bring chalk to draw pictures, letters, numbers, and shapes. Show your child how to play hopscotch and four square, too.
  8. Duck, Duck, Squirt (Gun): This variation on Duck, Duck, Goose goes like this:  Whoever is “it” goes around the circle, counting “duck, duck, duck” until he picks a player to squirt with the water gun. Race around the circle to see who can get back to the open position first, and try not to get too wet!
  9. Geocaching: This fun activity takes some preparation, but everyone in the family will enjoy it. Look up the location of treasures stashed nearby, and find them with the GPS on your phone.
  10. Cloud Watching: Lie on the grass together and watch the clouds go by. Have everyone say what shapes they see to encourage creativity. See what stories your little ones can make up about their cloud friends. Let the imagination flow!
  11. Freeze Tag: This classic game is a great way to challenge little ones to control themselves, be patient, and have fun. Make sure everyone has a chance to be “it!”
  12. Visit the Fire Department: Many parks are adjacent to a fire station. Teach the kids about fire safety by arranging a tour before your picnic. Most fire departments enjoy showing off their equipment to families.
  13. Healthy Food: Plan to pack simple, healthy snacks for your picnic. Choose foods with brain-building Omega 3 fatty acids such as chia seeds (fun and yummy to dip fruit in), edamame, salmon, and trail mix with walnuts. Your child’s brain – and behavior – will benefit.
  14. Fresh Fruit Ice Pops:  Before the picnic, have the kids help select and prep their favorite fresh fruits. Freeze fruit chunks and coconut water in popsicle molds to enjoy at the park. Yum!
  15. Don’t Forget the Sunscreen! Any outside adventure needs sun protection. This is the chance to teach little ones about the dangers of too much sun – and how to avoid it. Bring along the bug repellent, too.

Need more fun ideas? Contact Premier Academy Today!

 

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Walking – The Perfect Exercise

Walking – The Perfect ExerciseNo time to exercise? Think again! As our kids head back to school, we’re squeezing more than ever into our hectic schedules. But you can work in plenty of physical activity for the whole family — simply by walking more. No other form of exercise is as easy, convenient and inexpensive. All you need is a pair of shoes and the will to get up and move.

The Many Benefits of Walking

Walking has the lowest dropout rate and the lowest injury rate of any exercise. It can help control weight, build healthy muscles, bones, joints and improve your mood. And just walking 30-60 minutes a day will improve anyone’s overall health.

A healthy exercise regimen and a well-balanced diet are fundamental for a long healthy life. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), over the past 30 years, childhood obesity has more than tripled in the U.S. Children who are overweight or obese are at risk for developing hypertension, diabetes, elevated cholesterol levels and other illnesses.

How to Make Walking Fun

Children today are not as active as we were growing up. We were allowed more freedom and ran around for much of the day. Today we need to get our children away from the computer and TV screens and do something with them if we want to help keep them fit. A fun and easy way is to take them walking.

Children will look forward to walking if you make it fun. Playing games as you walk will encourage children to walk greater distances. Play “I Spy.” Have a walking scavenger hunt. Bring along a small bucket to collect “treasures” that children find along the way. Spice up a walk by playing “Follow the Leader” or with “interval training,” depending on your kids’ ages. Try different moves like giant steps, hopping, skipping, walking backwards – mix it up!

Keep Walking Safe

As with any form of exercise, it is important to keep a few safety factors in mind:

  1. Always stretch before you start walking.
  2. Walk on sidewalks or on a track.
  3. Walk with friends or family.
  4. Drink water before and after you walk. If you will be walking long distances, bring a water bottle along on your walk.
  5. Don’t overdo it. Start slowly and gradually increase your distance and speed over time.

Make a regular routine of healthy family dinners, followed by family walks to keep everyone healthy. (And don’t forget the dog!) This combination can help children develop healthy lifestyle habits early that will last a lifetime.

Contact Premier Academy Today!

 

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