Cool Mom Ideas for kids (crafts, art, and learning activities) » Healthy Kids

Baked Kale Chips

coolmom — Thu, 29 Mar 2012 19:00:04 +0000

If you are looking for another sneaky way to get those green veggies into your child’s diet, this is the recipe for you. These crispy and salty snacks are a perfect afternoon treat or a fun side to a sandwich. Kale is another super food that everyone should be including in their diet. It is high in antioxidants and powerful phytochemicals. The phytochemicals found in cabbage (kale is a cabbage) have been found to have protective effect against breast, cervical and colon cancer. But wait, there is more….kale is also loaded with iron, calcium, vitamins A, C and K. It also has beta carotene. You can get 4 grams of protein and 3 grams of fiber in two cups of kale. This green wonder has much to offer to you and your children’s health and nutrition. If you are looking for a quick way to increase your child’s intake of nutrients and vegetables, just add tiny shreds of kale to the normal salad or even a smoothie.

Kale

Baked Kale Chips

Ingredients: Kale, Olive Oil and Salt.

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Use cookie sheet (you can line with foil or parchment paper).

Tear the leaves away from the middle stem and tear into small bite size pieces.

Wash and dry, use a sales spinner if you have one. Dab completely dry and spread onto pan. Drizzle with about two tablespoons of olive oil and dash with salt. If you have helping hands in the kitchen, they can tear and wash the kale.

Bake about 12 minutes. Watch to make sure they do not burn.

You have a crunchy snack perfect for the children.

Baked Kale Chips

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Mixed-up Cereal

coolmom — Sun, 05 Oct 2008 21:49:32 +0000

A yummy fall snack that the littlest ones can make on their own! Have an assortment of cereal in large bowls. For example, Cheerios, Chex and mini-Shredded Wheat. All of these have the organic equivalent at most grocery stores. Each child gets a baggie or small bowl to create the combination he or she wants.

A mini math lesson can easily be created with the cereal mix.

Skip counting: Two, three or four of each cereal placed in a group. Practice skip counting touching the piles as you count.

Addition: Grab any of two kinds of cereal (three for three addends), separate into piles. Count the amount in each pile and write on paper or whiteboard in a number sentence or equation (Example: 6+7=). Count the total to get the answer.

Subtraction: Count the total amount of cereal and eat three (whatever number you want) then ask how many are left. Write the equation out or if child is older have them write.

Division and multiplication: Start with a number of cereal such as 15. Have the child separate into equal groups, so they could make three groups of five, five groups of three or even one group of 15 or 15 groups of one. For younger children guide them with the amount of groups. You could say, “How can you make three even groups with your cereal?” You can even draw three circles on paper to make it easy for them to divide. Multiply or skip count once they are separated to show the relationship with multiplication and division.

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Your Bones Need Calcium Experiment

coolmom — Mon, 28 Jan 2008 19:40:41 +0000

This experiment demonstrates the importance of eating foods with calcium. Plus, it is just fun! First ask your child or class, Can you make an egg shell soft?

What you need:

one egg, glass, vinegar

Put egg in glass, pour vinegar over egg, wait several days . Take egg out and feel shell.

The vinegar dissolves the calcium in the shell making it soft and rubbery. Note that this shows the importance of calcium to make the shell strong, just like our bones need calcium.

To extend this activity, ask questions, list foods with calcium, eat foods with calcium, write out the hypothesis before the experiment, guessing what will happen and record the results at the end.

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