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Nutrition Activity Booklet
A Message to Those Who Care for Children:
Have fun with these dino-mite nutrition activities
that fit into any unit on dinosaurs.
Studies reveal that children in the U.S. do not eat
enough vegetables. I hope you will join us in
encouraging vegetables even at this young age.
Aim for a variety of colorful vegetables each day.
Vegetables contain many vitamins such as vitamin
C, vitamin A, and folate that help children grow and
stay healthy.
Children love dinosaurs, so these gigantic creatures
of long ago can serve as role models for healthy
vegetable eating. Encourage children in your care
to dine like dinosaurs and devour their vegetables.
Jill Patterson, Ph.D.
Dept. of Nutritional Sciences, Penn State
What’s Inside
Dino–mite Veggie Activities
Engage children in learning about
dinosaurs and vegetables at the
same time.
Dino–mite Story Books
Salad with Dino–mite
Dressings
The Dinosaur Who Lived in My Backyard by B.G.
Hennessy (Penguin Books USA, Inc.) A little boy tells
about the dinosaur that (might have) lived in his back yard
and the hundred pounds of vegetables it ate everyday.
Family Nutrition News
Dinosaur Dinosaurs by Byron Barton (Harper Collins,
Inc., 1989) and Dinosaurs by Grace Maccarone
(Scholastic, 2001) have simple and easy to understand
text. Each book talks about differences among dinosaurs
such as big, small, long, spiked, or horned. Either one
makes an excellent introductory book to a dinosaur unit.
Dinosaur Dinners by Lee Davis (DK Publishing, Inc.,
1998) tells about meat- and plant-eating dinosaurs. It
also describes how plant-eating dinosaurs protected
themselves from the meat-eaters.
Dine like dinosaurs with this
healthy snack or lunch. Even
children can make these salad
dressings.
A send-home page you can copy
and share with families.
Helpful Web Site
www.enchantedlearning.com/
subjects/dinosaurs
This site is packed with
information in an easy to read
format including a page about
the diets of dinosaurs. Did you
know 65% of dinosaurs were
plant-eaters?
Dino–mite Veggie Activities
Circle Time
Most dinosaurs ate plants.
The plant eaters had flat
teeth that helped them chew
up leaves and branches. The
anatosaurus ate fruits and
seeds. The apatosaurus ate
pine needles. The
Triceratops ate bushes.
Have children look in books
to find names of other
plant–eating dinosaurs.
Then lead them into a
discussion about the plants
we eat. Use the diagrams
provided on page 6 to help
children identify the parts
of a plant; the seed, flower,
leaves, stems, and roots.
Pictures of vegetable plants
and a few real vegetables will
liven the discussion. Next,
help children make a list of
foods that we eat from each
plant part. Your list
may look similar to the
one below:
Seeds: peas,
corn
Flowers: broccoli,
cauliflower
Leaves: spinach,
cabbage,
lettuce
Stem: celery,
rhubarb
Roots: carrots, potatoes,
radishes
2
●
Song Time. Review what children have learned in cir-
cle time by singing this simple song to the tune of “The
Wheels on the Bus.” Children can think up other vegetables to include in the song.
1. Dinosaurs ate lots of plants, lots of plants, lots of
plants. Dinosaurs ate lots of plants. Plants helped
them grow.
2. Corn is a seed I eat, seed I eat, seed I eat. Corn is a
seed I eat. It helps me grow.
3. Broccoli is a flower I eat, flower I eat, flower I eat.
Broccoli is a flower I eat. It helps me grow.
4. Spinach is a leaf I eat, leaf I eat, leaf I eat. Spinach is a
leaf I eat. It helps me grow.
5. Celery is a stem I eat, stem I eat, stem I eat. Celery is
a stem I eat. It helps me grow.
6. Potato is a root I eat, root I eat, root I eat. Potato is a
root I eat. It helps me grow.
7. We all eat lots of plants, lots of plants, lots of plants.
We all eat lots of plants. They help us grow.
Flannelboard tip: Look for pictures of vegetables in
seed and garden catalogs or use the drawings on page
6. Enlarge pictures, color, cut out, laminate with contact
paper, and place a piece of Velcro on the back. Pass the
pictures out and tell children to put their picture on the
flannelboard when the class sings about eating that plant
part. Have blue flannel on top and brown flannel on the
bottom to reinforce the concepts of under and over the
ground.
play. Put “osaurus” after each child’s name
and let them pretend they are dinosaurs. Ask them to
draw or paste pictures of their favorite foods. Have each
child write their new name and their favorite vegetables.
●Pretend
●Dino sorting activity. Have two boxes labeled with two
different dinosaurs, one a plant-eater and the other a
meat-eater. Let children choose these dinosaurs. Children
sort plastic food models or magazine food pictures into
plants and meats by “feeding” the dinosaurs.
Dino–mite Salad Ideas
Salad with Dino–mite Dressings
A salad bar at snack time or lunch with dino–mite
dressings is a great way to encourage children to eat
healthy vegetables just as the plant-eating dinosaurs
did. Try fresh vegetables in season and talk with children
about where the vegetables are grown and which ones
can be grown locally. Two kinds of dino-mite dressings
(see recipes on this page and the center foldout) can be
prepared by children, with the pride of, “We made it ourselves.” Show measuring cups, teaspoons, and
tablespoons to children. At circle time, have children
share how they made each dressing using the recipe
sequence foldout. You could add some store-bought
dressings to the salad bar and then create a taste-testing
chart as described in our Getting Started booklet. Be sure
to share with families the tasty dressings to encourage
salad eating at home.
Salad Bar Recipe:
●Shredded lettuce
●Shredded carrot
●Chopped olives
●Sliced cucumber
●Cherry tomatoes
●Grated cheese
You may also wish to
include other favorite
vegetables that children
mentioned in Circle Time
like broccoli, celery,
or pea pods.
If you are short on supplies or time, invite families to
donate one salad ingredient (washed and cut up) for
Salad Bar Day. Post a sign–up sheet in advance to avoid
duplicate items.
For children to do: Assemble their own salad! Go through
the salad bar and choose the items for their salad.
Encourage children to put a little of everything in their
bowl, however, it is their choice on what to take and
how much.
Have small paper cups containing a few tablespoons of
dressing for each child. Whether children dip or pour,
dino-mite dressings are sure to be a hit!
Dino-mite Dressings
Each recipe makes about 8
servings. Once the dressing
has been made, spoon or pour
a small amount into a small
paper cup for each child to try.
Sweet and Saurus Maple
Dressing
3 Tbsp. apple cider vinegar
¼ cup maple syrup
½ cup ketchup
¼ cup olive oil or canola oil (or
any vegetable oil)
1 squirt mustard
Add all ingredients to a plastic
bottle with a lid. Cover and
shake well.
Ranchosaurus Rex
½ cup lite mayonnaise
½ cup fat free sour cream
½ tsp. dried chives
½ tsp. dried parsley
½ tsp. garlic powder
¼ tsp. onion powder
a few shakes salt
a few shakes pepper
In a bowl, mix together the
mayonnaise and the sour
cream. Next add the chives,
parsley, garlic powder and
onion powder. Shake in the salt
and pepper.
Sweet and Saurus Maple Dressing
Makes 8 (2 tablespoon) servings.
One serving provides 100 calories, 0
grams protein, 0 grams fiber, and 7
grams fat.
Ranchosaurus Rex Dressing
Makes 8 (2 tablespoon) servings.
One serving provides 70 calories, 1
gram protein, 0 grams fiber, and 5
grams fat.
3
Sweet and Saurus
Maple Dressing
1
Add 3 tablespoons
vinegar to a jar.
2
Add ¼ cup maple
syrup.
3
Add ½ cup
ketchup.
4
Add ¼ cup oil.
5
One squirt of
mustard.
6
Cover and shake.
Note to adult: Be sure to have children wash their hands before handling food. Always wat
children during meals and snacks. Young children, ages 2 to 3 especially, are at risk of cho
on food.
Ranchosaurus Rex
1
Bowl.
2
Add ½ cup lite
mayonaise.
3
Add ½ cup sour
cream.
5
Shake salt and
pepper.
6
Mix.
chives
parsley
garlic powder
onion
powder
4
tch
oking
Add spices.
Illustrated by Mustafa Muhammad
Nutrient Analysis for Recipes (2 tablespoons)
Protein Fiber Fat
Recipe Title
Calories (g)
(g)
(g)
Sweet and Saurus Maple Dressing
100
0
0
7
Ranchosaurus Rex 70
1
0
5
Vegetable Cutouts
peas
carrot
broccoli
flower
leaves
leaves
stem
stem
root
celery
roots
lettuce
6
corn
potato
spinach
Family Nutrition News
Aim for a Variety of
Veggies Each Day
A rainbow of vegetable colors can be part of meals and
snack for young children. The MyPyramid food guide recommends that young children eat about 1 to 1½ cups of vegetables each day. So, offer small portions such as ¼ cup of
cooked carrot pieces at lunch or some raw broccoli with dip
at snack. Aim to include at least one dark-green vegetable
every day. Offer orange or deep-yellow vegetables several
days a week. Cooked dry beans such as pinto or chickpeas
count as vegetables, too. The brighter and darker the color
of vegetable, the more vitamins it has.
All Great Choices: Fresh, Frozen, and Canned
Fresh, frozen, and canned vegetables are all nutritious
choices. There are small losses in vitamin C when fresh
vegetables sit in the supermarket or fridge, and in
processing. However, the bottom line is that they are
all good sources of vitamins and minerals, especially
vitamin C and vitamin A. Steaming vegetables is a great
way to keep vitamins and minerals in the food rather than
wasting them in boiling water.
Vegetable Ideas for Snacks and Lunch
like to dip their vegetables. Try reduced-fat ranch
dressing, peanut butter, or hummus. Peel the stems and
steam broccoli spears for 30 seconds. Steaming then
chilling softens those hard-to-chew veggies.
●Roll-ups anyone? Wrap meat or cheese with lettuce or
spinach. The crispy texture is a treat.
●Pocket sandwich — Stuff finely chopped green veggies
(green peppers, broccoli, or spinach) and shredded cheese
into pocket bread. Try shredded carrot too. Top with yogurt
or dressing to complete this yummy sandwich.
●Kids
8
Ways to
Raise
a Vegetable
Eater
1. When shopping, let your
child choose a vegetable
for the family to eat.
2. At home, let your
child help prepare the
vegetable.
3. Have raw vegetables
ready in the refrigerator
for snacks.
4. Don’t overcook
vegetables. Steam,
microwave, or stir–fry
them. They will have
brighter color, more
crunchiness, and milder
flavor.
5. Try a new vegetable at
the beginning of the meal,
when your child is
hungriest.
6. Offer a new vegetable
along with a familiar one.
7. Give your child a small
serving or let your child
choose the portion size.
8. Be a good role
model. Smile when
you serve, and eat
vegetables. Your
child is watching!
Guard against choking. Watch children while they eat.
Readers may photocopy this page to send home to families.
extension.psu.edu
Prepared by Jill Patterson, assistant
professor of nutrition, Kathy Gorman
and Carol Lebold, project specialists,
Charles Orlofsky, graphic designer,
and Julie Haines, assistant director,
Nutrition Links Program
Portions of this material came from Celebrate Healthy
Eating, a collaborative project with Dannon Institute (a
nonprofit foundation), Scholastic Inc., and the Dept. of
Nutritional Sciences at The Pennsylvania State University,
University Park, Pa.
extension.psu.edu
Penn State College of Agricultural Sciences research and extension programs
are funded in part by Pennsylvania counties, the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, and the U.S. Department of Agriculture.
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