Creating and Following a Weekly Menu Lesson Plan
Created by: Rachel Steinberg, 3LPlace, April 2017
Applies to: Life Skills, Critical Thinking, Self Awareness
Purpose: To create a varied, yet comfortable eating plan for members with sensory aversions to certain foods, smells etc.
Objectives:
- Managing stress and anxiety related to sensory input (smells, tastes, textures)
- Creating and following a plan (higher order thinking)
- Expanding the scope of textures, smells and tastes consumed by the member
Materials needed:
- Visual supports/word bank of foods
- Computer or paper and pens
- Printer (if using computer)
- Tape/magnets/thumbtacks
- Applicable Food
- Example weekly menu (see attachment below)
Activity Steps:
- Make the menu
- Sit down with member and draw/type out a blank weekly schedule
- Choose meals for each day together, using visual supports or word bank to spur creativity and higher order thinking
- Use a variety of foods, some that you know are comfortable, and some that step slightly out of the comfort zone
- Consider book-ending the week with foods that are known and comfortable
- Incorporate the menu into everyday life
- Hang menu somewhere near the kitchen that the member will notice (i.e. on the fridge)
- Point it out often, and ask the member to read off what they will be having for dinner that night, or another night of the week
- Implement
- At the end of each meal, ask member to rate it on a scale of 1-6 (1 bad, 3, neutral, 6 good)
- If member gets comfortable with this menu over the course of weeks or months, consider altering meals slightly (i.e. substitute bacon for turkey bacon or make mac’n’cheese from scratch)