Introducing: Munch Squad!
Updated: 6 days ago
What is Munch Squad?
Our Munch Squad program is a feeding group for picky eaters developed by Martha Boiardt, speech-language pathologist and owner of Miami Speech Therapy. Every week, our small group (capped at 6 participants), meets on Mondays from 3:45-4:45 to go on a new food adventure!
Following the Dr. Yum Project’s food curriculum, everyone gets to participate in exposure to a new fruit or vegetable. They get to learn about the vitamins and minerals, or Super Dudes, in the food of the week, and the role that it plays in their health. Then they put on their aprons and use kid friendly cutting boards and dog knives to prepare a new recipe using that food.
Being around other kids with similar needs is so beneficial for these kids and really motivates them to take their food exploration and tasting a step further. Once the food has been explored and the recipe has been made, our team uses an approach inspired by the SOS Approach to Feeding to explore and guide our food adventure.
Why join Munch Squad?
Eating is one of the hardest multi-sensory experiences that a person has to participate in. Every bite asks them to handle how a food looks, smells, feels, sounds, and tastes, and then chew and swallow it safely.
When a child refuses food, they are often trying to tell us it feels like too much. Pressure, bribes, and "just one bite" tend to raise the stakes and make that food and the experience scarier.
Munch Squad helps provide relaxed, repeated chances to get to know a food before anyone expects them to eat it. After each session, each child gets to stamp their food passport with a new food. Parents receive carryover activities and recipes to take the lessons outside of the therapy room.
What is the Dr. Yum Adventure?
The Dr. Yum Project was founded by pediatrician Dr. Nimali Fernando and speech-language pathologist and feeding expert Melanie Potock. The Dr. Yum Adventure is a curriculum that invites children to explore fruits and vegetables with all of their senses.
Every session has one featured fruit or vegetable. The children explore it with all 5 senses, learn what it does for our bodies, and then prepare a simple recipe with it. Kids tend to be more curious about the food that they prepare so they learn simple kitchen skills, like chopping, tearing, stirring, scooping, etc.
Our Squadmates go from tolerating the food in the room to using their senses to touch, smell, and taste the foods, eventually working up to eating the food. The children encourage each other, creating a low pressure and FUN environment for tasting new foods!
Find out more about the program here: https://www.doctoryum.org/
After the Session
After the session, families go home with a food passport that has their new food included (along with feedback on how the session went), carryover activities and recipes. Progress happens fastest when the exploring continues between sessions. The goal is to take these skills OUT of the therapy room.
Join the Squad!
Munch Squad is for school-aged children who eat a limited range of foods or get upset around new ones. If that sounds like your child, we would love to meet you. Contact Miami Speech Therapy at 305-998-6084 or email info@miamispeechtx.com to ask how you can join!
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