Talk and Shop
Here's What To Do
1
While shopping at the grocery store, talk about the different sections of the store as you go through them.
2
Ask your child to name the food you're putting in the cart, and share how you might prepare that food at home.
3
If practical, allow your child or children to hold the food items as you talk about them.
Put PEER Into Action
P
Pause:
- If possible, place your child in the shopping card seat. Tell them you're going to be grocery store explorers today!
E
Engage:
- "This part of the store has all the fruits and vegetables and herbs. Do you know what this section is called?"
- "Do you know what this is? This is a bell pepper. It's a vegetable and I'm going to cut it up and cook it in the pan with onions and garlic."
E
Encourage:
- Help your child with pronunciations of food names by saying them slowly and asking your child to repeat the word after you. Like: "Can you say tomato? Almost, it's to-ma-to. You try!"
- Don't worry if your child can't say the names of all the food items. They're learning lots of vocabulary by hearing the names and seeing the foods in the real world!
R
Reflect:
- Did your child surprise you by already knowing the names of any foods? What food names are they still learning?
Not quite ready?
Ask your child to repeat the names of their most familiar foods in the grocery store.
Ready for more?
If your child isn't sure what the item is, look at the shelf label and find the first letter. See if the first letter sound can help them guess the food word.
As your child masters this skill...
They will learn the names of different foods and the categories they belong to.