At child care water should be available at all times.
Water is essential for life. Young children are very active so they can get thirsty and dehydrated pretty quickly.
Young children should not be given sweet drinks, or drinks that are high in sugar like juices. These should only be offered occasionally, and in very small amounts.
Tips for providing water to children
At child care you can help children get enough water in their diet by doing these things:
Offer water with meals and snacks
Make sure tap water is available between meals so children can help themselves.
Encourage children to pour their own water from a jug into a cup.
Here is a lovely video showing two little girls Lynda used to teach, serving up water with mint in it and playing a little imaginary game. They are showing their agency, independence and language skills here, so you can make water fun for kids!
At Kinder, children should also have their own water bottle that they can help themselves to at any time.
Toddlers should be encouraged to drink around one litre of fluid per day.
Three-to-five-year-olds need around 1.2 litres of fluid each day.
Make sure that YOU role-model to the children by drinking plenty of water too!
TASK 1: How many glasses or litres of water do you drink in a day? Can you keep a note of how much you drink in one week? Could you drink more water?
TASK 2: Can you think of a fun way you could encourage children to drink more water?
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