Create a healthy relationship with food through play activities

Everything that is part of the daily routine takes on great importance in the life of children. Thus food, which returns in various forms from breakfast to dinner, soon becomes a revealing element of our psycho-physical health. Eating well helps our children thrive. Through food, children receive vitamins, minerals, and other valuable substances. When a child eats everything, we say that they give us satisfaction – otherwise, we say they throw tantrums.

Of course, every parent wants their children to eat with an appetite. But the relationship with food is a very delicate and personal one: impositions at the table hardly contribute to creating a healthy relationship between children and food. So what can we do to help our children eat with pleasure and curiosity? To stimulate their interest, it is important to introduce variety in their diet. We should serve them their favorite dishes, but sometimes we should alternate them with foods they never tasted. And why not involve them in cooking activities?

Participating in the transformation of ingredients into a delicious dish is like peering behind the scenes of a magic show: exciting and rewarding! Also, as you know, children are very fond of imitating the actions of adults. Pretending to cook and serve their menus is a fun activity to do alone, with siblings or friends. For this reason, Hape has dedicated an entire category to the Kitchen&Food theme, full of ideas intended for children aged 18 months and over. Colorful and fun, the Hape Food Playsets stand out for their educational approach, an added value that will turn into an advantage in the growth of your children.

Increase your daily Vitamin Game intake with the Healthy Fruit Playset

Fruits and vegetables are essential for all of us and especially for children. Due to their high content of micronutrients, minerals, and vitamins necessary for healthy growth, doctors recommend taking at least five servings a day. Natural and rich in vitamins, fruit (better if fresh, seasonal, and organic) is the healthy snack par excellence. A child who asks for a banana or apple instead of a chocolate snack will make parents proud and happy.

Children tend to like fruit’s fresh, colorful, and sugary flavor. If not all fruit, at least some fruits, such as apples, pears, bananas, cherries, apricots, and melons. Just think that fruit juices, popsicles, ice creams, jams, and candies often reproduce these familiar tastes, pleasing to younger palates.

But what if your kids don’t want to eat fruit? Here are some suggestions.

  • Children tend to imitate their parents. If you eat healthily, your kids are more likely to do the same.
  • Do not over-prohibit: we should always prefer healthy food, but we can indulge in some greedy snacks or fast food. Otherwise, you risk pushing your child to eat junk food as soon as he is out of your sight.
  • Use your imagination: offer different foods in many creative ways, varying the cuts and combinations.
  • And then turn fruit into play with Hape’s Healthy Food Playset!

An apple, a pear, an orange, two strawberries, a banana, and a watermelon make up a toy designed to stimulate children’s imaginations and motor skills. With their removable stalks, the fruit pieces of the Hape’s Healthy Food Playset offer a lot of fun. Our children can peel the banana and, thanks to the safe toy knife, slice a pear, orange, apple, and watermelon. And while they prepare their fruit salad, children develop socio-linguistic skills and imagination.

Improve the relationship between children and vegetables with the Healthy Salad Playset  

Many children refuse vegetables, often even for superficial aspects, such as the uninviting color or smell. The palate of children, accustomed to soft textures and simple flavors, does not always get along with veggies. Generally, they tend to appreciate those with a sweetish taste like carrots and zucchini. But with patience and some clever tricks, we can make our little ones curious about the world of salads and soups. One of our favorite ways, of course, is playing! 

The Healthy Salad Playset brings children closer to the rich and varied world of vegetables by inviting them to prepare their colored and flavored bowl. Slicing eggs, avocados, cucumbers, potatoes, and onions with the toy knife is safe and fun. Finally, why not dress the salad with oil and vinegar and turn it over in the bowl? The playset offers many stimuli, supporting the development of cognitive skills and precision movements.  

While slicing the ingredients and putting them together, kids learn to combine colors, flavors, and categories. In addition, we can encourage the division of ingredients by color or shape, asking children to stack them, break them down and reassemble the pieces. 

Breakfast is the most important game of the day with the Delicious Breakfast Playset   

Many people consider it the most important meal of the day. A healthy breakfast is a great way to recharge your batteries and start the morning on the right foot. Some want it salty, some sweet: this is why the Delicious Breakfast Playset presents several choices for a balanced breakfast. Toast and hard-boiled eggs or milk and cereal? It’s up to you! 

The fun comes from the openable packages, like the yogurt with its velcro lid, or the juice bottle that clicks when we turn the cap. Even the boiled egg, placed on its egg cup, opens halfway. And if you’re still hungry, make a delicious toast with two slices of bread, tomato, lettuce, and cheese. The set also includes a beautiful milk carton and oatmeal bowl with a spoon. 

There’s no limit to toppings with Perfect Pizza!   

What kind of toy proposal dedicated to food could do without the all-time favorite of young and old? Pizza, along with pasta, represents Italian cuisine in the world. Everyone loves it because it encourages sharing and stimulates creativity. How many toppings can we use to finish our pizza? Almost infinite, or at least a lot, as in the Perfect Pizza Playset by Hape. Tomatoes, onions, peppers, mushrooms, broccoli, salami, and shrimps are just some of the ingredients to have fun creating original and innovative recipes. 

The playset includes a wooden board, a cutter to slice the pizza, and a spatula to serve it. Besides, the transformable case can be used both as an oven and as a delivery box. Finally, all Hape toy food sets are compatible with each other to make the fun virtually endless. So, why not combine the ingredients of the salad playset with those of the pizza? Or the breakfast with the fruit salad ones?
 

Healthy nutrition education takes time, perseverance, and patience. And Hape playsets will be your precious allies in this crucial process. Discover the Kitchen and Food world of Hape and lay the foundations for a healthy, creative and joyful relationship between your child and food.