Foodie Fridays!

Today we started a new tradition. We had noticed that, like many students with autism,  some of our students were very limited in the healthy foods they were willing to eat or even try. We decided to incorporate a Foodie Friday to work on eating a variety of healthy foods.

At our first Foodie Friday we started off easy with carrots, cucumbers, hard boiled eggs, watermelon, and rice crackers with peanut butter. We used the twister spinner to make our lunch into a game. The number the spinner landed on determined the number of bites the student would take.

Some foods turned out to be popular with our students and some not so much. When we encountered lots of resistance we allowed the student to kiss the food instead. That was a helpful strategy and already a big step for some students. All students tried new foods and some even discovered a favorite. Mr. Sam took the opportunity to provide lots of facts about healthy eating, fruits, and vegetables.

Besides working on trying new foods, our Foodie Fridays will also incorporate some general daily living skills: setting the table, cleaning up, and pouring drinks. Next time we plan to include some steamed veggies! Yum!