Making Grocery Shoping a Learning Experience

[ramama]

Wasn't sure whether to put this thread here or in the Childhood Years forum, but I'll try here first. Mods, let me know if it doesn't belong here!

My first instinct is not to take the kids in a grocery store. Ever. I always end up paying at least double what I would normally pay on stuff I wouldn't normally buy. It would make my life easier not to ever take them LOL, but that wouldn't teach them how to make appropriate food choices and spend money wisely, so....

How do you make grocery shopping a learning experience, regarding nutrition and money management? My girls are 4yo and 6yo. They do get a small allowance, and they really do know how to make choices regarding frivolous stuff they buy themselves (this has small pieces and I might lose them, this one looks like the dog might chew it up, this doesn't look well-made and might not last too long, this is too much like something I already have, etc.) but how do I extend this to food?

[Savoir Faire]

Mine are 4 and 5 and I always bring them. I've been pretty tough about frivilous purchases since the beginning (probably the only thing I've been tough on )

Do you go to the stores that offer a free cookie? I hear the Duggars bring all zillion kids to the store and as long as they are good and don't do the begging/whining....they get a popsicle when they get home.

We're starting this with our kids:

They each pick a meal they want for dinner. Luckily, it is usually something like spaghetti. Then they can help figure out the price of noodles at the store and which one is a better deal.

Also...give them the weekly fliers and figure out what is the most and least expensive thing. Both my kids learned to tell the dollar and cent sign from that.

[philomom]

My kids know all kinds of things that other teens seem oblivious to. Like checking the eggs to make sure one is not broken. Thumping and smelling melons to find a ripe one. How to buy by the pound. How to look at the unit per ounce prices. How to check if we think the meat is fresh. Check for bruises on apples and leave those at the store. Etc.. etc....

There's tons of learning at the market.

[moominmamma]

One thing my kids have really enjoyed over the years is having control over a small amount (usually $5 or $10) of the family grocery budget. They choose how to spend it -- it has to be something edible and it has to be shared with any family members who want some but it's totally up to them what they buy. Sometimes they've bought coveted convenience foods or junk foods. For a long while my youngest bought the family a couple of weekly packs of gum. (Thanks, sweetie... ) Sometimes their choices have been adventurous visually appealing things like dragon fruit or yucca root or japanese eggplant, sometimes frivolous things like Chilean strawberries in November or exotic snacks like Dragon Boat Mix or Bombay Mix. They've learned a lot about costing things out, about in-season and out-of-season prices, about preparing and enjoying new foods and have enjoyed sharing "their" purchases with the family. It's also eliminated any whining.

Miranda

[One_Girl]

Not bringing my dd to the store with me is almost never a choice and neither is doubling my grocery costs so I almost always stick to the grocery list and I don't give my dd a lot of say about expensive food items. Before I started letting her listen to a book on cd while we shopped, I would explain the food choices to her, talk about nutrition or cost, show her how to pick out the fresh food, and let her get some things for me. She is really great about making wise choices and understanding that name brand is almost always a bad buy. We have also talked a lot about the food pyramid and choosing healthier food. We go to a place with bulk bins so I do let her choose a small treat from one of the bins for the week. That seems to satisy her urge to get something really nice with my money. When she asks for something else I tell her she already chose her treat but she can switch treats if she wants to, she never has wanted to though.

[Ravin]

We just went grocery shopping today. DD helps me look over the ads, and we write down what's on sale that we might want in my notebook. At the store, I'll send her to the next aisle over to find items for me--this helps her practice reading as well as independent action. Today she was sent to get 2 boxes of the smallest size of Life cereal, Scooby fruit snacks, and reduced sugar Quaker granola bars (in 3 different trips). She got it right except for the reduced sugar part, so I took what she found. She helped decide what vegetables to buy (chose broccoli, and bought a lot--which means I'll be feeding it to her at every turn) and got to pick a fruit.

No way, no how does taking her mean buying more than I would have (well, except broccoli and plums on this trip, but I'd have bought fruits/veggies regardless and more is good). She asked for several things, and my answer was "no." "How about...no." etc. I mostly think she was just testing me--sometimes when she's behaved and asks nicely I'll buy her a donut. That's only when there's room in our budget. Today, no extra money, no donut (or capri suns, which she also wanted, mostly because they had a movie she likes on the box, but also because she has a friend who uses the containers to make gift bags).

She also likes using self check, but we didn't today because of ad matches. She did help put things up on the belt.

So DD:

--practiced independent action
--used symbol recognition, size comparison, and reading skills
--practised or was reminded of good behavior in a store
--helped group groceries for easy bagging--fruits and veggies together, cold stuff together, etc.
--helped plan and decide what to buy
--got a lesson in why the "impulse" department is usually a bad buy.

[chelsmm]

My kids are a little younger than your kids, but this is what we do-

I have them help load the cart.
I tell them what we are buying and let them choose within that (we need apples, do you want green or dark red? pick 3 and put them in the cart. oh you want both, how many of each to make 3?)
I let them choose certain produce (we need a green veggie for dinner tonight, what would you like? you want broccoli? ok where's the broccoli?)
They help me weigh the produce (this is just for fun, I don't usually go by wt when buying)
We always visit the lobsters to watch them. (this makes me sad, but the kids like it and ask all kinds of cool questions about lobsters, the filtration system, oceans, etc)
We talk about "green light, yellow light, and red light foods" so they are learning about nutrition.
They help unload the cart onto the belt.
They chat with the cashier.



I'm lucky in that they don't seem to care when I tell them they can't get something. They are usually ok with "that's a red light food. It has x in it so it's not good for our bodies". Sometimes I'll add in "but you can pick either strawberries or blueberries to put in the cart", and this makes them happy!