Dinosaur Train & NATIONAL NUTRITION MONTH

March is National Nutrition Month®, a nutrition education and information campaign created annually in March by the American Dietetic Association. The campaign focuses attention on the importance of making informed food choices and developing sound eating and physical activity habits. This year's National Nutrition Month theme, “Eat right with Color,” encourages everyone to remember to include a colorful variety of fruits, vegetables, whole grains, lean proteins and dairy on their plates every day.

A healthy diet is important to us all, just as it was to Dinosaurs many years ago. With the month of March focusing on nutrition, it’s the perfect time to look at some great ideas and resources provided by The American Dietetic Association to eat a healthy diet! And, we invite you to to teach your child how to prepare a vegetarian (herbivore) picnic filled with great food and fun by visiting Dinosaur Train on the PBS parent’s site: http://www.pbs.org/parents/dinosaurtrain/activities/handson/picnic.html



To help parents, the American Dietetic Association provides many resources available at www.eatright.org/nnm. They even have a downloadable PDF listing 25 healthy snacks for kids, including these five great ideas:
1. Peel a banana and dip it in yogurt. Roll in crushed cereal and freeze.

2. Spread celery sticks with peanut butter or low-fat cream cheese. Top with raisins. Enjoy your “ants on a log.”

3. Stuff a whole-grain pita pocket with ricotta cheese and Granny Smith apple slices. Add a dash of cinnamon.

4. Mix together ready-to-eat cereal, dried fruit and nuts in a sandwich bag for an on-the-go snack.

5. Smear a scoop of frozen yogurt on two graham crackers and add sliced banana to make a yummy sandwich.



Next, Buddy can help you and your child prepare a vegetarian (herbivore) picnic. The Have A Brachiosaurus Picnic activity http://www.pbs.org/parents/dinosaurtrain/activities/handson/picnic.html helps young children to learn what foods fit into an herbivore's diet (fruits and vegetables); reminds children about the importance of hand washing before eating; and also creates an opportunity to discuss why all animals need to eliminate waste from their bodies (a.k.a. “poop”).
The downloadable PDF file, available at http://www.pbs.org/parents/dinosaurtrain/activities/pdfs/picnic.pdf, provides the ingredients to prepare Brachiosaurus Picnic, with fun food items on the menu, including:
o Brachiosaurus Super Salad: The kids will have fun tearing up green leafy veggies into bite-size pieces and mixing ranch dressing with green coloring to make a tasty topping.

o Sauropod Sandwich: With a plastic knife, cut pieces of whole wheat bread in the shape of a favorite dinosaur and spread with cheese spread or peanut butter.

o Herbivore Herb and Spinach Spread: Mix frozen spinach, dried onion soup mix, sour cream, celery sticks and crackers

o Green Juice – fill a child’s plastic cup with apple juice and add green food color to make a green beverage fit for an herbivore.

And as we all know, digestion is a very important part of keeping healthy for both humans…and dinosaurs back in the day! http://www.pbs.org/parents/dinosaurtrain/videos/video-dinosaurpoop-song.html to watch the video clip of the song “Every Dinosaur Poops” and talk about why every animal needs to go, and what would happen if the animal didn’t poop out the parts of the food its body didn’t need.


Another fun way to explore “poop” is with Uncle Milton’s new Dinosaur Train Dino Poop Kit, just one of a range of new science themed toys geared to make science more interesting, engaging and accessible for children. With the Dino Poop kit, kids can discover what the dinosaur had for lunch! Did he have fish or did he eat a plant? Once kids find pieces of what he ate, they can put them together to create their own fossil imprint to figure it out! It’s OK parents, it's not real poop…it's soft, pliable dino dough! Available at Toys”R”Us (SRP: $7.99, ages 4+) The hit television series Dinosaur Train® airs daily on PBS KIDS® (check local listings).


Disclosure: This information is shared/created from DINOSAUR TRAIN & http://www.360-comm.com