A Recipe For Inclusion
How diverse menus support cultural awareness at Sparkways.
BY BONNIE LAXTON-BLINKHORN, KINDICARE
Mealtimes also offer a wonderful opportunity to broaden children’s culinary horizons and support children from culturally and linguistically diverse backgrounds to feel welcome and included.
For children at Sparkways Early Learning Showgrounds Centre in Flemington, a diverse inner-city Melbourne suburb, lunch time meals vary from classic Italian bolognaise right through to fragrant South Asian biryani.
Director of the Showgrounds centre Marianne Fruci says for the children in her service sharing a variety of meals with an international flavour provides a recipe for diversity and inclusion, laying the foundations for children to relax and learn.
"We have a diverse community here at Showgrounds, so to ensure we are inclusive we have asked families for suggestions to include in our menu, so it better reflects our community.
"A hot lunch is customary for many children who come to our centre for kinder and childcare, so we offer meals like biryani, chickpea curry and lamb tehari.
“It's great to be getting wonderful wafts of these incredible world classics as we work - and the children just love them."
It's no secret that food is an important tool for bringing about cultural education, awareness and inclusion.
That’s why, the Showgrounds staff reach out to families periodically to plan meals that mirror home life with a repertoire of treasured family and community recipes collected over time from all corners of the globe.
“Talking about food is always a great way to connect with children and their families,” Marianne explains.
“There is something that’s just so comforting and unifying about sitting down to a delicious lunch that comes from your very own heritage and then having the pleasure of tasting a dish from someone else’s family favourites. It’s one of the wonderful things about working in a multicultural centre like this.”
The Victorian Government’s Healthy Eating Advisory Service says early learning services have an important role to play in promoting healthy eating habits among children and strong foundations can set children up for a lifetime of healthy eating.
The Healthy Eating Advisory Service reminds educators to:
- Make mealtimes relaxed and comfortable
- Sit and eat with children
- Talk positively about the healthy foods children are eating
- Encourage fussy eaters to try new foods
- Be good role model by eating a broad range of foods
- Teach children about healthy eating through discussions, questions, games and activities.
These pointers work equally as well for parents seeking to instil good eating habits among children and to nurture an open and curious approach to different cuisines.
View the Sparkways Early Learning Showgrounds Centre in Flemington on KindiCare >>>
