Getting the kids to buy the groceries
While toddlers might cause havoc in the supermarket, older children can help you and begin to understand more about the value of the food they eat.
Once your children are over the age where they want to argue the case for every novelty item on the supermarket shelves, they can actually help get the week’s shopping done. Indeed, taking the kids shopping also helps them appreciate what they are eating at home and will prepare them for the years of independence ahead.
Passing on your shopping wisdom
• At first you don’t need to give your child a lecture on every item on your shopping list. Send them off to get obvious items that you regularly buy – the items for which they will recognise the right brand and size.
• Then start to explain how to be a savvy shopper for a few key items that your child really likes. For example, how to shop for ripe mango, what to look for when choosing sliced ham (show them the varieties they like and the ones they don’t – they won’t have realised there was a difference before now), how to choose the right orange juice that isn’t just juice drink or that’s smooth rather than ‘with bits’. If it’s food that they enjoy, they’ll really appreciate you passing on your grown-up’s wisdom as if you’re letting them into your secret world.
• Encourage the wise shopping instinct. Show them how to look for good special offers, or how buying a 200g pack of something might be cheaper than two 100g packs. If they’re old enough, show them how buying fruit, veg and sometimes deli counter items ‘loose’ is cheaper than a pre-packed option, and maybe even show them the difference between what you’re paying for when you buy cooked meat rather than a heavier slice of raw meat that’s going to shrink down when cooked at home.
• If your child is a bit older, encourage them to find their own way round the store selecting the ingredients for a meal they could try making for the family when you get home. Don’t just leave them to do it on their own, but do give them the space to make decisions themselves and then meet you at the checkout.
• Eventually, give your child ownership of a few items. Perhaps they’re responsible for going out to buy bread from the bakers at the end of your road (you’ll know when your kid is ready to take on missions like this) or praise the fact that they always know just which desserts the whole family are going to prefer. This kind of trust will not only help their confidence and their own sense of responsibility but will help them take a more rounded view of one of the jobs mum always makes look so easy.