Browsing by Author "Eloranta, Oona"

Aims. Food education in daycare has a significant impact on children's eating habits and in forming children's attitude towards food. Encouraging and positive food talk has a positive effect on children's eating, while pressuring or forcing interaction lowers children's attitude towards food. Food education in daycare centers will experience changes in the fall of 2017, when The National Curriculum Guidelines on Early Childhood Education and Care in Finland are updated. With the new regulations, the importance of food education will be emphasized and it will become more goal orientated. The aim of this study is to find out how food education is currently being implemented as a part of early childhood education in a daycare center in Espoo, and how the different areas of food education are presented in food talk of the daycare centers personnel. Methods. The material of the qualitative study was collected ethnographically by attending breakfast-, lunch- and snack times for the duration of two weeks in a daycare center in Espoo. The material was collected by recording the daycare centers personnel and the children speaking as well as by observing dining situations and making notes. Quantitative research data was collected to support the qualitative data by calculating the frequency of food talk themes with a predetermined table. Qualitative research material was analyzed by thematising. The nursery group consisted of 21 children, one teacher and two nurses. A trainee, a volunteer or a substitute was occasionally present. Results and conclusions. The daycare centers food talk included all the different areas of food education, but their emphasis varied greatly. Most emphasized ones were tasting the food and table manners. The personnel spoke to the children about the food mainly in a positive tone and they also spoke to the children about the origin and methods of cooking the food. There was hardly any reference to hunger or thirst of the children, and the names of the foods being served were not always told to the children. Children were not encouraged to use the food plate model. Various food cultures or food-related responsibility education were not very strongly present in the food talk. Based on the results, food education in the daycare center could be developed by balancing different areas, so that food education would better meet all the goals set for it, even when the new National Curriculum Guidelines on Early Childhood Education and Care will come into force.