Sitting together as a family to share food can be a great opportunity to talk about what happened during the day or what might happen tomorrow.

If the weather is nice you could pack a picnic and sit outside or go to the park and share a meal together. If it is cold and wet you could still have a picnic, but have it inside by the fire or heater where it is nice and warm.

Before you eat, talk about how hungry each person is - so you know how much food to serve. Will each person have their own plate of food or will you put all of the food on one big plate for sharing? Let your child know who else will be sharing the meal.

We’re going to have 5 people for lunch today. We’ll need to find a space that’s big enough to fit all of us.

Ask your child to help you set up. Will you sit at a table, on a mat or somewhere else? If you are going to sit on the floor, ask your child to lay out a rug or mat. Explore together how big the mat will need to be and where it might fit.

Finally everyone is ready, the food is on the plates, the hands are washed and everyone has found a spot to sit.

Talk with your child about their day or what food there is to eat. Will your child tell you what they want to eat or will you make the choices and feed them?

We have rice, potatoes, chicken and salad. What would you like to eat?

Daddy is having chicken and rice. Would you like the same?