Individual snack

Age
3-6

Materials
A table or half of a longer table on which are neatly arranged the following items:


 * Disposable or cloth biscuits.
 * Plate with biscuits.
 * Bowl of fruit.
 * Chopping board and knife.
 * Two or three plates.
 * Two or three cups, fragile and attractive.
 * Two small jugs, one with milk and one with juice.
 * Cloth for wiping.
 * Dustpan and brush.
 * Rubbish bin.
 * Washing and drying facilities for the child and for the dishes.
 * Another table or the other half of the longer table where the snack is laid out.
 * Two or three chairs.
 * A small vase with flowers or a potted plant.

Preparation
These are the main skills the child should have achieved before embarking on the individual snack:


 * Washing hands.
 * Pouring.
 * Peeling and cutting fruit.
 * Use a table napkin.
 * Social skills.
 * Table manners.
 * Laying a table.
 * Carrying a tray.
 * Wiping up spills.
 * Sweeping.
 * Rinsing and wringing out clothes.

Presentation

 * 1) If a child decides to have a snack, he should check first if the snack table is free.
 * 2) If it is, he may invite another child who is not working to come and join him.
 * 3) Children should wash their hands first.
 * 4) Each child takes a tray and places a plate, a glass and a napkin on it.
 * 5) They then select a drink and pour it into the cup.
 * 6) They may choose fruit to eat in which case they may peel and chop it first before placing it on the plate.
 * 7) Children should clean their chopping board and dispose of any peelings.
 * 8) The children carry the tray to the table where they sit and eat their snack.
 * 9) Then a child has finished, he wipes the table where he ate and carries the tray to the washing area where he washes the dishes and replaces them on the serving table.
 * 10) The child disposes of the napkins, either in the rubbish bin or in the washing basket.
 * 11) The child sweeps up the crumbs, which may be under the table.
 * 12) He rinses and squeezes the wiping cloth.
 * 13) He checks that the snack and the serving tables are ready for another child to use.

Control Of Error
The quality of chairs and utensils indicates how many children may have their snack at any one time. Spills on the table and floor. Directress assists procedures (as long as it is considered necessary). The lay out of the snack in readiness for others.

Points Of Interest
The child will have an opportunity to enjoy the companionship of others in a natural, relaxed, social situation. Involvement in maintaining and attractively laid out snack table. Choosing to have a snack with a friend. The opportunity to observe others. The ornamentation on the table. The opportunity to choose food and drink.

Purpose
Direct aims: 


 * The child should be able to make an appropriate decision as to when to have his/her snack.
 * The child will have an opportunity to use social skills in a practical situation.
 * The child will be able to organize his/her snack and take an appropriate amount of time.
 * The child should be able to clear away, wash and dry the utensils used an reestablish the snack table for the following user.

Indirect aims: 


 * To allow for uninterrupted work cycles/the development of concentration.
 * To develop independence.
 * To develop social skills/awareness to others.

Variation
Setting out the table and tray with sufficient cups for each member of the group, an area for placing cups, organizing volunteers to wash, dry and replace these at the end of the session. The quantity of children having a snack at any one time. Tablecloth - washable. Table napkins, individually owned - washable. The children wash, dry and iron these. Hand washing before the snack. More assistance and time given to the new and younger children.