Learning centre ideas on the food theme?

Question

for four year olds...i have done my research but i need experts help in this...cz well im not yet an expert..;)

Answer 1

lots to add to those of the previous responder......

math all sorts of recipies....try fruit salad, soups, counting the number of sections in fruit, looking at the shapes of foods(the star inside the apple, star fruit, patterns of food, and sizes of foods(even the same types of foods do not always have the same size and shape))

language ...besides the books already mentioned there are a whole selection of others by tomie de pola , and various other authors (check out your local library) some of my favorites include cloudy with a chance of meatballs, stone soup, fruit and vegetables a to z, and the series that includes bread, bread, bread(picture books that show the same food and how people around the world think of it)....you can also do flannel board stories with food books and table manners or setting the table

circle time-----have a tasting party one day bring a selection of breads many children do not ever get to try or see....rye bread, banana bread, tortilla, pita...then on other days use other food groups....fruit(star fruit, papaya, mango)..vegetables....also this is a good time to discuss what tasting means and table manners(along with at the meal times)...

science----try things like watching plants grow and helping children learn that food doesnt just come from the store.....you can make sprouts in less than a week, ...start a carrot or potatoe or beans growing

dramatic play can be a grocery store, or a restraunt or a picnic(including a blanket, basket, and plastic table ware)

in the blocks add some food containers and build a grocery store or a pretend farm with some tractors

of course there are always lots of puzzles and other games for fine motor skills with food and or other things related to the theme

art work is also easy....have the children look for food pictures in old magazines, newspaper ads to make their own grocery lists, a healthy snack plate(using an actual paper plate for the base) or even a picnic table using a red checked napkin....and then there are the usual food prints, and rolled paintings with a variety of foods, and almost all of these can also be worked into a bulletin board or you can make the pieces to go along with the stories you read for the week...(some of the students in one of my classes wanted to make the pieces for the very hungry caterpillar so we helped them to cut, color and then laminated the pieces and added some velcro and then added the set to the reading area for all to use)

sorry, can add more but need to go to work good luck

Answer 2

Wow...there are so many things you can do with this theme. I would start with a couple good food related books.  The Very Hungry Caterpillar is a great one...Eating the Alphabet is another good one. Each Orange Has Eight Slices is another....

With the Very Hungry Caterpillar, you can do sorting, counting, colors with all the different foods the caterpillar ate.  Fruit salad would be a great activity for this...cutting up the fruit, mixing & eating.  

Part to whole relationships...there are some wooden fruits/veggies you can purchase that velcro together...kids  practice cutting & then putting back together. This is nice for cutting skills and those part to whole relationships.

File folder games with the food theme...which foods go together (according to food groups - fruit, veggies, dairy, etc), matching or counting...

Set up a grocery store or a fruit/vegatable stand with empty food containers & plastic foods. Put in a cash register, play money, paper/pen for shopping list, shopping cart, weight scale for measuring, apron, etc.