i know, it's been done to death.... but *really* how to encourage picky 4 yr. old to try new foods...

[morninggirl]

..with september approaching and his first year at school starting, i've been trying (to no real success) to broaden the range of food he eats (we are opting for school dinners as there isn't much packed lunch-wise he will eat!) i'm trying not to stress about this, as him starting school will (and is!) causing enough stress for me...

i know it's gonna be a change for him and then being served food he might not eat...

(wait, do primary schools give out copies of the weekly menus? dont know if this would be a good or bad thing for me though!)

sigh.... anything helpful is appreciated.

try leaving him with something new to try through the day as a snack. My lo (only 18mo so don't know if this will be any use or not) will try something better if left to her own devices with it rather than sitting her down in a 'you have to try this' kind of way. other than that, give him a small amount of something new on the side of something he will eat and suggest he tries a mouthfull, even if it's only a nibble, then he can either try some more or leave it if not keen and there's no pressure to have to eat it.

Don't know about nowadays but when I was at primary school, there was a printed copy of the menu on the kitchen window for parents to see what we were going to be eating but don't know if they'd do something like that now. They probably meal plan on a 4 weekly basis though or something like that (i used to work in a nursing home kitchen and we did that), i'm sure if you asked for a copy they would probably get you one