Grocery shopping with kids can be enjoyable for both you and them. What's the secret on how to make grocery shopping fun? Motivate them by assigning your children engaging tasks that help you out at the same time.
1. Coupon duty
Once you have your grocery list completed for the week, give your kids the responsibility of matching items on it with coupons found in current newspaper inserts or circulars. If your children are computer savvy enough, have them search for coupons online and help you print them. Reward your child’s effort by adding a percentage of the money saved to their allowance.
2. Keep them busy
While in the supermarket, giving your children something to do can help you concentrate on shopping. For example, have them hold the shopping list, which can be either a digital list or a piece of paper, and read it out loud to you. With a little direction and practice, you and your children will become a well-oiled shopping machine and will be finding all the items you need in no time.
3. Let your kids pick
For every trip to the supermarket, allow your children to buy one item that they’d like and that is not on your grocery list—this will not only keep them engaged, but will also make them want to take more supermarket trips with you. If you want to switch it up from time to time, assign a category of food they are allowed to pick from; one week a produce item, next week a frozen item, the week after a low-sugar item. Items like David® Sunflower Seeds, Peter Pan® Peanut Butter, or Marie Callender’s® Desserts could certainly fit the bill.
4. Let them ask the questions
When you’re grocery shopping with kids in the fresh produce department or at the butcher counter, allow your children to ask the questions you need answered for certain items. Encourage your kids to converse with the fresh produce clerk, butcher, fishmonger or baker. The more they know about the food they eat, the more they’ll probably be interested in it; the knowledge your kids pick up will help them now and later in life.
5. Gamify the store visit
Playing games while in the store can be fun for everybody. For example, you and your children can play a game of “Guess the weight” in which you pick a certain produce item and then make your child tell you how much they think it weighs; once you’re both ready for the answer, just lay it on the scale and find out. Another game can be “What’s the price?” where you point to a certain product you’re about to purchase and then have them guess how much it is.
6. Nutrition education
A good way to start your children's food education is by utilizing a monthly subscription service with companies such as Kidstir, which provides monthly hands-on kits that teach children to build their own cookbooks, try new foods, learn where foods comes from, how nutritious they are and much more. When kids are engaged and having fun, helping them appreciate healthy foods can be easy.
7. Mini bagger
Once you’re at checkout, if there is no bagger, have your children help out in putting your grocery bags together. If there is a bagger stationed at your checkout aisle, ask him/her if they can show your kids how to properly pack bags, and the importance of putting heavier items at the bottom and eggs or other crushable items on top.
8. Hunger is a no-no
Scheduled supermarket trips with your kids should be arranged around their eating patterns. Don’t let hunger be a distraction while you’re shopping. Make sure to schedule your trips for after your child has eaten. Not only will the distractions be minimal, but you can also reduce the number of possible impulse purchases.
