How Children Can Make Decisions on Their Own Meal Choices
St Margaret’s Preschool is a morning service for children aged two years and 10 months to five years.
The preschool provides breakfast and lunch for the children every day, based on their own choices, decided at weekly discussion meetings.
• Each key worker has a weekly discussion with the children in her/his group about their favourite foods and meals at home. The educators put photographs of a variety of foods and real fruits and vegetables on the tables to encourage children to make healthy choices and try different foods.
• During these discussions, many children said that they do not like several foods placed on one dinner or breakfast plate. They told educators that they like to eat meat without potatoes or stew without vegetables. They also said they like to be able to choose exactly the foods they want on their plate at any meal.
• At the end of the discussion in each group, children are invited to decide what meal choices they want for breakfast and dinner the following week.
• Every Friday, the preschool develops a menu for the following week based on the choices the children made in their group discussions. The choices from every group are included as there are a range of foods available for breakfast and two main course dinner choices every day in addition to vegetables, fruit, and other foods.
The breakfast foods chosen by children are put on a trolley every day and include cereals, toast, scrambled eggs, fruit, yoghurt, crackers, and cheese. The children pick whatever foods they want, put them on their plates and pour their own milk or water.
The dinner foods chosen by children are put on a trolley every day and include:
• Two main course choices each day (pasta, stew, fish, chicken curry, etc.) without added potatoes or vegetables.
• All other foods are laid out individually:
– Sauces for pasta, fish, or meat
– Potatoes
– Vegetables
– Crackers
– Cheese
– Rainbow dish of fruit
The children pick whatever foods they want, put them on their plates and pour their own milk or water.
Feedback sessions
• Educators take pictures of what the children ate and hold a discussion with the children about what they liked or did not like.
• They also relate the foods to stories to encourage children to give their views.
• Educators observe what they like and don’t like eating because they eat with the children. They feed their observations back to children, which often prompts discussions about additional foods being added to the daily choices.
How the children were ensured SPACE, VOICE, AUDIENCE and INFLUENCE
Space: 
• The children feel safe to express their views because the educators let them decide what they want to eat at each meal.
• Educators have weekly discussions and a feedback session with children about their meal preferences and choices.
• Educators listen to and act on all children’s views about their weekly menu choices.
Voice:
• Educators encourage children to share their views on foods they like to eat.
• Children can discuss anything they want about their food tastes and choices at the weekly discussion and at the feedback session.
• Educators use group discussion, photos of food and food related stories to encourage children to give their views.
Audience:
• The educators show the children that they are ready and willing to listen to their views by having weekly discussions and feedback sessions and by enabling them to choose whatever food they want at each meal.
• The educators share their observations about the foods children liked and didn’t like.
• The educators develop weekly menus based on the children’s choices and preferences.
Influence:
• Children know they have a choice about what they eat at each meal and of the food choices made available on the weekly menu because educators act on their views.
• At the weekly feedback session children are asked what foods they liked and did not like, and educators share their observations on what children liked and did not like eating.
• Children know about the impact of their decisions because they can make choices about what to eat at each meal and what foods will be on the weekly menu.
• Educators hold weekly discussions and feedback sessions with the children at which they explain that the menus are based on the children’s likes and choices.
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