How flexible mealtimes work in early learning settings and why they are popular.

BY BONNIE LAXTON-BLINKHORN, KINDICARE

MAY 5, 2023

Nourishing little bodies is an important part of every childcare day but set mealtimes can interrupt the all-important business of play.  

It’s hard to coordinate the hunger pangs and play priorities of a big bunch of little people and to address this challenge some early learning services offer progressive mealtimes, which allow children to choose when they’d like to eat. 

In addition to ensuring children enjoy free-flow play time, progressive meals also encourage greater independence and support decision-making skills.    

How do progressive mealtimes work? 

Growing bodies need plenty of fuel and there are stacks of rules about nutrition in early learning settings. Services do, however, have flexibility when it comes to the timing of meals, and the National Quality Standard asks services to consider how mealtimes can be used to promote a sense of agency among children. 

Progressive meals do this, by allowing children to determine when they stop for a meal, rather than requiring everyone to sit down and eat at the same time.   

This means children can nibble on items from their lunchbox if they feel their tummy rumble or join a small group of their friends at the table for lunch if they feel so inclined.   

Rather than allowing children to graze all day, services which offer progressive mealtimes typically provide a window when they eat (for example lunch might run from 11:30am-1:00pm), and this may apply for all the meals across the childcare day or just some of them.  

While this probably sounds like a nightmare to manage, educators are master multi-taskers and well-practiced at keeping an eye on children to ensure they don’t forget to stop and eat at some stage.  

This may mean providing a gentle reminder to a two-year-old deeply immersed in a project, signalling when mealtime is about to end to the whole group or providing sandwiches and fruit to a famished four-year-old if they are hungry outside the designated window.  

But don’t children prefer routine? 

Yep, it’s true children thrive on structure and routine, so it might seem strange that some early learning services are opting for this very flexible approach, but progressive meals are increasingly popular because they give littlies lots more freedom.  

At Sustainable Play Preschool, where small groups of children share meals together, a variety of prompts are used to remind them it’s getting close to mealtime.  

The teams use stick-on images of menu items to ensure children understand what’s on offer at each meal and the chef serves food until all children and educators have had their fill.  

“We aim to cultivate the perfect combination of structure and flexibility. Visual, auditory and olfactory cues, like the sight of the meal trolley heading down the ramp and the smell of food, all signal the start time for a meal or snack.”  

Children also share responsibility for laying the table and cleaning up.   

Over at Keiki Early Learning meals are regarded as rituals rather than routines, and Keiki owner Samantha Morrell says progressive mealtimes empower children to take responsibility for managing their own hunger pangs. 

“Children choose how much to eat and are encouraged to self-serve their meals if possible. Our educators have discussions with children about choosing an amount they think they will eat, then they are allowed to go back for more if they are still hungry. We also encourage them to scrape their plates when they are done.”   

Educators keep an eagle eye on children to ensure they are eating the right amount of everything they need to keep bouncing through their day.  

Keiki has been offering progressive meals for years, Samantha says the decision to move to this style of eating aligns with service philosophies and that it: 

• Supports the development of independence and sense of agency.  
• Helps children develop social skills.  
• Enables educators to be flexible to each child and their needs.  
• Limits wastage and enhances sustainability. 
• Provides a home-like environment (rather than replicating a school environment).   

 

Samantha says that children are encouraged to take two-hour gaps between meals, so they learn the experience of being both hungry and full   

Progressive meals offer a bucketload of benefits to little learners and their educators: 

Cool, calm and collected care: 

Progressive meals may contribute to a calmer childcare experience for everyone by ensuring the rhythm for the day is set by the children and not the teachers. 

Keiki educators have noticed that smaller tables and fewer children eating at one time allows for more discussion and learning. 

“By letting children choose when they eat, they are joining the table already positive and engaged in the mealtime ritual,” says Samantha.  

The mind/body connection 

Learning to recognise and respond to hunger cues is an important part of growing up and progressive mealtimes are the perfect place to practice that skill.  

Educators at Evoke Early Learning use progressive mealtimes to role model the importance of respectful and healthy relationships with food and the importance of knowing when to stop.   

“Mealtimes are an opportunity for us to promote a sense of belonging and our environments are set in a way that supports mealtimes to be social and relaxed occasions where children have time to eat, make choices for themselves, follow their own bodily cues and interact with others.” 

Progressive mealtimes offer a whole new spin on eating in childcare and afford little learners a huge opportunity to really take charge of their day. 

Early education services who have made the switch swear by the benefits and we look forward to seeing whether this style of eating becomes more popular in the future. 

In the meantime, read this if your child’s lunches are going uneaten and this if you’re struggling with a fussy foodie.  

Find your nearest Keiki Early Learning centre on KindiCare >>>>