All Things CLASS

Kristi Dalquest
Quality and Compliance Specialist II

Early Learning Coalition of Flagler and Volusia

Kristi Dalquest
Quality and Compliance Specialist II

Early Learning Coalition of Flagler and Volusia

• Tell me about a meal you had with your family. Where did you eat?
• Let's pretend you are going to plan a meal for the president. What would you serve? What foods do you think the president likes? Where would you have the meal?

• Tell me about a meal you had with your family. Where did you eat?
• Let's pretend you are going to plan a meal for the president. What would you serve? What foods do you think the president likes? Where would you have the meal?

I found these Tasty Talk: Mealtime Conversation Starters for a teacher who I cam coaching. I tried to attach it, but I'm having difficulty. Sorry for the long post :)

Tasty Talk: Mealtime Conversation Starters

Stories I like: During the meal, converse with children about stories they like. The stories could be from books or they could be stories the children have heard. Invite children to recall and talk about the characters in the books and what the characters do.

Food I like: During the meal, talk with children about the kinds of food they are eating and what foods they like to eat. Be nonjudgmental in your responses, adding your own comments to extend children's thinking. ("Some people do like candy. I also love apples- they are very crunchy.")

Changing the first letter of my name: During the meal, ask children to replace the first letter of their name with another letter. For example, you might say something like "Pete starts with a /p/. What if we put a /b/ first? How would you say his name now?"

Rhyming my name: During the meal, play a rhyming game with children's names. Ask children to give you a word or nonsense word that rhymes with their name (for example, "Chris rhymes with hiss, Sally rhymes with valley, Talia rhymes with malia").

Something at the table: During the meal, let the children know that you will describe something on the table and they can guess what it is. ("It is soft." Children guess. "It is small or tiny." Children guess. "It is green." Children guess peas.) Once children get the idea of the game, they can be the leaders and give the clues.

How old we are: During the meal, converse with children about their ages. Talk about how old they are, who is youngers or older, and the ages of their siblings (if they know). Try to use comments and then pause, rather than ask a lot of questions- this will encourage more language from the children. Adult: "Shannon, you said you are four, but your brother is just a baby." (The adult pauses.) Shannon: "Yes, he's just little." (The adult listens and pauses.) Micah: "My baby's bigger now. She's two." Adult: "Two is getting bigger." (The adult pauses.) Koby: "Yeah, but not as big as me- I'm three!"

***This idea might work with your open-ended question problem. When you ask the question, pause and just make comments, try not to ask a lot more questions.***

First, second, and third: As children get ready for lunch, talk with them about the concept of first, second, and third. Ask something like "What do you think you will eat first, then second, then third?" After children have eaten some of their food, say, "Do you remember what you said you were going to eat first? Is that what you ate first, or did you change your mind? What did you eat second and third?"

Learning about the author and illustrator of a book: Once the meal in underway, choose a book to read with the children. Before beginning to read the book, talk with the children about the author and illustrator and what their jobs are. For example, name the author, then say something like "What do you think an author does?" Listen to children's responses. Then say something like "An author is the one who write the words of the story."

Talking about the weather: During the meal, have fun talking about the weather. Converse with children about the weather and what the children like to do when it's sunny, rainy, snowy, windy, and so forth.

What I like to do at home: During the meal, talk with children about what they like to do at home. Ask open-ended questions and then pause, listening to children's responses.

My daily routine: Together with the children, create a story that recalls some of the children's experiences throughout the daily routine. You might start by saying "Let's tell a story together that starts like this: Once upon a time, there was a class of children. They came to school and they…." Be sure to let children contribute to the story. Children may find prompts about your daily routine helpful. ("After they looked through the tube and shared their plan, they went to work time. At work time they…." Or "After they clean up, they went to recall. At recall they….")

What I will do this weekend or what I did over the weekend: During the meal, ask children to share what they think they will do over the two no-school days. If you asked what they did, listen to what the children say, and repeat and restate their words to acknowledge their comments. ("You went to the laundromat and then say your new baby cousin.")

What I like to do: To find out more about individual children, talk with them about what they like to do at home. Ask open-ended questions and then pause, listening to children's responses. This strategy enables children to share their thoughts with you. 

What I did at work time: Use the mealtime to continue to talk with children about what they did at work time. After asking children an initial open-ended question, pause and listen carefully to their comments. You can add statements about what you saw children doing, drawing other children into the conversation. ("Marcella, I saw you with come blocks, too. Were you working with Ethan?")

Who I live with: During the meal, chat with the children about how many people (or animals) live in their home. If possible, once the meal is well underway, you may want to bring out a simple chart that you made ahead of time, with children's names and letter-linked pictures down one side and a simple stick figure drawing of people (or animals) along the top. After children have shared, you could put tally marks showing how many people (or animals) live in their home. Children may want to count and compare the tally marks.

"I spy" (with shapes, colors, etc.): During the meal, play the "I Spy" game using shapes (for example, by saying "I spy something round" or "I spy something in the shape of a circle"). Start with something clearly visible on the table, then "spy" something father away. Keep giving children hints until they guess the object. Once children catch on to the game, they can be the leaders.

Things outside: Talk with children about things they would find outside but not inside (for example, swings, rain, trees, cars, birds, and so forth). Children might expand the conversation by sharing what they like to do with these things outside, and this is fine! Supports children's thoughts by repeating and restating what children share and by acknowledging their contributions. ("Your mom has the blue van, but your dad's car is black." "You were disappointed because it rained and you couldn't go out on the swings.")

Our artwork: During the meal, invite children to look around the classroom at their artwork. Talk with them about what media was used to make artwork. ("I wonder what Yolanda used to make her picture." "How do you think Brent got the beads to stick to his cardboard?") Be sure to pause and listen to children's thoughts and comments. Make extending comments to help children think about other ways to use materials. ("The beads area all gone. I wonder what else I could use with the glue if I wanted to do a picture like Brent's?")

Rhyming objects: During the meal, invite children to make up rhymes for things on the table. For example, you might say, "Let's play a rhyming game while we eat. I will start and then you can join in." Then you might say something like "Plate, gate- that sounds the same." Or you might say, "Spoon, moon- that sounds the same." Accept all answers given.

Who I played with: During the meal, converse with children about who they played with during work time and what they did together. Talk to children about working together and how they solved problems with what they were doing. If a child says that he did not play with anyone, offer an acknowledgement by saying something "You chose to do something by yourself today, Henry."

Where we are sitting: During the meal, talk with children about where they are sitting. Use descriptive words and phrases like between, in the middle, on the side, beside, across, next to, and so on. You might start by saying "There's lots of ways we could describe where we're sitting."

A story about our food: During the meal, name a food that the children are eating and invite the children to make up a story about that food. For example, you might start by saying "We're having broccoli today. Let's make up a broccoli story together. Once upon a time, there was a tall stalk of broccoli…." Be sure to pause to allow children to share their ideas about what happens in the story.

Describing what I'm eating: During the meal, converse with children about what they notice about the food they are eating. Children may share about the taste, he texture, what it looks like, if they have it at home, and so forth. You can use works like sweet, salty, sour, tangy, moist, crunchy, squishy, spicy, juicy, warm, chilled, baked, sautéed, and so forth.

Let us guess what you're thinking of!: During the meal, tell children that you are going to think of something (an animal, a shape, an item in the block area, one of the children, and so on), and give the children clues to guess what it is. For example, "I am thinking of a child who is a girl." Children guess. "She is four years old." Children guess. "She has braids." Continue until children guess who it is.

Comparing foods we like and food we don't like: During the meal, ask children what foods they like and what foods they don't like. If possible, write/draw these on a chart (for example, with one heading being "Foods We Like," and another, "Foods We Don't Like").

Talking about Story Characters: Read a book during the meal, discussing the book with the children as you read. Draw children's attention to the characters in the story. For example, you might say, "I wonder who the story is about" or "Who else is in the story?" and so on.

Guessing letter-linked picture: Describe several children's letter-linked pictures and see if they can guess whose it is.

My family: As you eat with the children, converse about who is in their family. You might start with a photograph, a statement about your own family, or offer an open-ended question or prompt. ("I'm curious about who lives with you.") Add contributions from your own experiences. For example, when asked about her own family, if a child responds by mentioning her brother Jeremiah, you might say, "I have a brother, too." This will help you get to know the children.

Objects with the same sound as my name: During the meal, ask children to look around the room and find things that start with the same letter sound as their name. You may need to provide an example ("Carolyn- /c/ crayon"; Marlin- /m/ markers").

Singing names: While getting ready for the meal, call children using segmentation- that is, call them by their name syllables. Do this by calling names to the first two pitches of "Rain, Rain, Go Away" (for example, "Gab-ri-ele, pass the juice" or "Ar-leen, take a napkin"). You may want to continue singing your conversations in this two-pitch style for the remainder of the meal.

Items on my plate: After children begin eating, invite them to count and compare the things on their plate, saying something like "I wonder how many crackers (or beans or whatever) you have now that you ate one? How many crackers (or beans or whatever) does Drew have?" Children will begin counting and comparing as they continue to eat.

What I hear: During the meal, ask children to just listen to sounds they hear. Children might notice things like the other group talking, chewing noises, someone walking down the hall, the clock ticking, a phone ringing, an airplane flying overhead, a bird outside, and so forth. Continue talking with children about the sounds they hear.

The special word game: During the meal, invite children to play "the special word game" with you. Tell children that when they hear the special word, they can tap their finger on the table. Tell them what the word is and then begin saying different words until you say the special word. ("The special word is pumpkin. When you hear pumpkin, tap your finger on the table. Ready? Cherries, watermelon, pears, grapes, pineapples, bananas, pumpkin.") Continue playing the game, changing the special word. Let children be the leaders- choosing the special word and then saying the string of words.

Objects on the table: During conversations with children, bring the children's attention to objects that are on the table, or are clearly visible from the table, that have similarities and differences. Invite children to describe similarities and differences by using comments and observations. For example, you might say, "Koby, your fruit looks different from Margaret's now," inviting Koby to notice and comment on the comparison.

Where my food is: While children are eating, use language that describes the position of things. ("You put your cheese on top of your bread." You cup is between the spoon and the plate." Jill, you are sitting across the table from Gena.")

Materials in classroom areas: During the meal, play a guessing game to help children get to know the materials in the different areas. Name a material and see if someone can guess what area the material is from. ("What area are the cars in?" "If I wanted to use the crayons, where would I find them?") Continue by having children take turns naming materials and guessing the area.
Silly same-sound sentences: During the meal, invite the children to join you in making up silly same-sound sentences starting with names. Use names children know, and come up with simple sentences and alliterative phrases (phrases with words having the same beginning sounds). For example, you might say, "Karla kicked kangaroos" or "David drove dinosaurs." Continue, pausing at the end and letting children come up with ideas. Adult: "Mary made…." Child: "Messes!" Adult: Nita needs…." Child: "Necklaces!"

          Children may or may not offer words that start with the same beginning sounds. Accept children's idea's, but if you find this happening often, you may want to ass the sound hint; Adult: "Mary made… /m/…/ m/…" Child: "Monkey's!"

Stories about large-group time: Together with the children, create a story that recalls some of their experiences at large-group time. You might start by saying "Let's make up a story about what we like to do at large-group time. Once upon a time, there were some children. They came to school and they loved large-group time. At large group time, they…." Be sure to let children contribute to the story. Children might want to include their favorite songs, rhymes, movement, and so forth.

I found these Tasty Talk: Mealtime Conversation Starters for a teacher who I cam coaching. I tried to attach it, but I'm having difficulty. Sorry for the long post :)

Tasty Talk: Mealtime Conversation Starters

Stories I like: During the meal, converse with children about stories they like. The stories could be from books or they could be stories the children have heard. Invite children to recall and talk about the characters in the books and what the characters do.

Food I like: During the meal, talk with children about the kinds of food they are eating and what foods they like to eat. Be nonjudgmental in your responses, adding your own comments to extend children's thinking. ("Some people do like candy. I also love apples- they are very crunchy.")

Changing the first letter of my name: During the meal, ask children to replace the first letter of their name with another letter. For example, you might say something like "Pete starts with a /p/. What if we put a /b/ first? How would you say his name now?"

Rhyming my name: During the meal, play a rhyming game with children's names. Ask children to give you a word or nonsense word that rhymes with their name (for example, "Chris rhymes with hiss, Sally rhymes with valley, Talia rhymes with malia").

Something at the table: During the meal, let the children know that you will describe something on the table and they can guess what it is. ("It is soft." Children guess. "It is small or tiny." Children guess. "It is green." Children guess peas.) Once children get the idea of the game, they can be the leaders and give the clues.

How old we are: During the meal, converse with children about their ages. Talk about how old they are, who is youngers or older, and the ages of their siblings (if they know). Try to use comments and then pause, rather than ask a lot of questions- this will encourage more language from the children. Adult: "Shannon, you said you are four, but your brother is just a baby." (The adult pauses.) Shannon: "Yes, he's just little." (The adult listens and pauses.) Micah: "My baby's bigger now. She's two." Adult: "Two is getting bigger." (The adult pauses.) Koby: "Yeah, but not as big as me- I'm three!"

***This idea might work with your open-ended question problem. When you ask the question, pause and just make comments, try not to ask a lot more questions.***

First, second, and third: As children get ready for lunch, talk with them about the concept of first, second, and third. Ask something like "What do you think you will eat first, then second, then third?" After children have eaten some of their food, say, "Do you remember what you said you were going to eat first? Is that what you ate first, or did you change your mind? What did you eat second and third?"

Learning about the author and illustrator of a book: Once the meal in underway, choose a book to read with the children. Before beginning to read the book, talk with the children about the author and illustrator and what their jobs are. For example, name the author, then say something like "What do you think an author does?" Listen to children's responses. Then say something like "An author is the one who write the words of the story."

Talking about the weather: During the meal, have fun talking about the weather. Converse with children about the weather and what the children like to do when it's sunny, rainy, snowy, windy, and so forth.

What I like to do at home: During the meal, talk with children about what they like to do at home. Ask open-ended questions and then pause, listening to children's responses.

My daily routine: Together with the children, create a story that recalls some of the children's experiences throughout the daily routine. You might start by saying "Let's tell a story together that starts like this: Once upon a time, there was a class of children. They came to school and they…." Be sure to let children contribute to the story. Children may find prompts about your daily routine helpful. ("After they looked through the tube and shared their plan, they went to work time. At work time they…." Or "After they clean up, they went to recall. At recall they….")

What I will do this weekend or what I did over the weekend: During the meal, ask children to share what they think they will do over the two no-school days. If you asked what they did, listen to what the children say, and repeat and restate their words to acknowledge their comments. ("You went to the laundromat and then say your new baby cousin.")

What I like to do: To find out more about individual children, talk with them about what they like to do at home. Ask open-ended questions and then pause, listening to children's responses. This strategy enables children to share their thoughts with you. 

What I did at work time: Use the mealtime to continue to talk with children about what they did at work time. After asking children an initial open-ended question, pause and listen carefully to their comments. You can add statements about what you saw children doing, drawing other children into the conversation. ("Marcella, I saw you with come blocks, too. Were you working with Ethan?")

Who I live with: During the meal, chat with the children about how many people (or animals) live in their home. If possible, once the meal is well underway, you may want to bring out a simple chart that you made ahead of time, with children's names and letter-linked pictures down one side and a simple stick figure drawing of people (or animals) along the top. After children have shared, you could put tally marks showing how many people (or animals) live in their home. Children may want to count and compare the tally marks.

"I spy" (with shapes, colors, etc.): During the meal, play the "I Spy" game using shapes (for example, by saying "I spy something round" or "I spy something in the shape of a circle"). Start with something clearly visible on the table, then "spy" something father away. Keep giving children hints until they guess the object. Once children catch on to the game, they can be the leaders.

Things outside: Talk with children about things they would find outside but not inside (for example, swings, rain, trees, cars, birds, and so forth). Children might expand the conversation by sharing what they like to do with these things outside, and this is fine! Supports children's thoughts by repeating and restating what children share and by acknowledging their contributions. ("Your mom has the blue van, but your dad's car is black." "You were disappointed because it rained and you couldn't go out on the swings.")

Our artwork: During the meal, invite children to look around the classroom at their artwork. Talk with them about what media was used to make artwork. ("I wonder what Yolanda used to make her picture." "How do you think Brent got the beads to stick to his cardboard?") Be sure to pause and listen to children's thoughts and comments. Make extending comments to help children think about other ways to use materials. ("The beads area all gone. I wonder what else I could use with the glue if I wanted to do a picture like Brent's?")

Rhyming objects: During the meal, invite children to make up rhymes for things on the table. For example, you might say, "Let's play a rhyming game while we eat. I will start and then you can join in." Then you might say something like "Plate, gate- that sounds the same." Or you might say, "Spoon, moon- that sounds the same." Accept all answers given.

Who I played with: During the meal, converse with children about who they played with during work time and what they did together. Talk to children about working together and how they solved problems with what they were doing. If a child says that he did not play with anyone, offer an acknowledgement by saying something "You chose to do something by yourself today, Henry."

Where we are sitting: During the meal, talk with children about where they are sitting. Use descriptive words and phrases like between, in the middle, on the side, beside, across, next to, and so on. You might start by saying "There's lots of ways we could describe where we're sitting."

A story about our food: During the meal, name a food that the children are eating and invite the children to make up a story about that food. For example, you might start by saying "We're having broccoli today. Let's make up a broccoli story together. Once upon a time, there was a tall stalk of broccoli…." Be sure to pause to allow children to share their ideas about what happens in the story.

Describing what I'm eating: During the meal, converse with children about what they notice about the food they are eating. Children may share about the taste, he texture, what it looks like, if they have it at home, and so forth. You can use works like sweet, salty, sour, tangy, moist, crunchy, squishy, spicy, juicy, warm, chilled, baked, sautéed, and so forth.

Let us guess what you're thinking of!: During the meal, tell children that you are going to think of something (an animal, a shape, an item in the block area, one of the children, and so on), and give the children clues to guess what it is. For example, "I am thinking of a child who is a girl." Children guess. "She is four years old." Children guess. "She has braids." Continue until children guess who it is.

Comparing foods we like and food we don't like: During the meal, ask children what foods they like and what foods they don't like. If possible, write/draw these on a chart (for example, with one heading being "Foods We Like," and another, "Foods We Don't Like").

Talking about Story Characters: Read a book during the meal, discussing the book with the children as you read. Draw children's attention to the characters in the story. For example, you might say, "I wonder who the story is about" or "Who else is in the story?" and so on.

Guessing letter-linked picture: Describe several children's letter-linked pictures and see if they can guess whose it is.

My family: As you eat with the children, converse about who is in their family. You might start with a photograph, a statement about your own family, or offer an open-ended question or prompt. ("I'm curious about who lives with you.") Add contributions from your own experiences. For example, when asked about her own family, if a child responds by mentioning her brother Jeremiah, you might say, "I have a brother, too." This will help you get to know the children.

Objects with the same sound as my name: During the meal, ask children to look around the room and find things that start with the same letter sound as their name. You may need to provide an example ("Carolyn- /c/ crayon"; Marlin- /m/ markers").

Singing names: While getting ready for the meal, call children using segmentation- that is, call them by their name syllables. Do this by calling names to the first two pitches of "Rain, Rain, Go Away" (for example, "Gab-ri-ele, pass the juice" or "Ar-leen, take a napkin"). You may want to continue singing your conversations in this two-pitch style for the remainder of the meal.

Items on my plate: After children begin eating, invite them to count and compare the things on their plate, saying something like "I wonder how many crackers (or beans or whatever) you have now that you ate one? How many crackers (or beans or whatever) does Drew have?" Children will begin counting and comparing as they continue to eat.

What I hear: During the meal, ask children to just listen to sounds they hear. Children might notice things like the other group talking, chewing noises, someone walking down the hall, the clock ticking, a phone ringing, an airplane flying overhead, a bird outside, and so forth. Continue talking with children about the sounds they hear.

The special word game: During the meal, invite children to play "the special word game" with you. Tell children that when they hear the special word, they can tap their finger on the table. Tell them what the word is and then begin saying different words until you say the special word. ("The special word is pumpkin. When you hear pumpkin, tap your finger on the table. Ready? Cherries, watermelon, pears, grapes, pineapples, bananas, pumpkin.") Continue playing the game, changing the special word. Let children be the leaders- choosing the special word and then saying the string of words.

Objects on the table: During conversations with children, bring the children's attention to objects that are on the table, or are clearly visible from the table, that have similarities and differences. Invite children to describe similarities and differences by using comments and observations. For example, you might say, "Koby, your fruit looks different from Margaret's now," inviting Koby to notice and comment on the comparison.

Where my food is: While children are eating, use language that describes the position of things. ("You put your cheese on top of your bread." You cup is between the spoon and the plate." Jill, you are sitting across the table from Gena.")

Materials in classroom areas: During the meal, play a guessing game to help children get to know the materials in the different areas. Name a material and see if someone can guess what area the material is from. ("What area are the cars in?" "If I wanted to use the crayons, where would I find them?") Continue by having children take turns naming materials and guessing the area.
Silly same-sound sentences: During the meal, invite the children to join you in making up silly same-sound sentences starting with names. Use names children know, and come up with simple sentences and alliterative phrases (phrases with words having the same beginning sounds). For example, you might say, "Karla kicked kangaroos" or "David drove dinosaurs." Continue, pausing at the end and letting children come up with ideas. Adult: "Mary made…." Child: "Messes!" Adult: Nita needs…." Child: "Necklaces!"

          Children may or may not offer words that start with the same beginning sounds. Accept children's idea's, but if you find this happening often, you may want to ass the sound hint; Adult: "Mary made… /m/…/ m/…" Child: "Monkey's!"

Stories about large-group time: Together with the children, create a story that recalls some of their experiences at large-group time. You might start by saying "Let's make up a story about what we like to do at large-group time. Once upon a time, there were some children. They came to school and they loved large-group time. At large group time, they…." Be sure to let children contribute to the story. Children might want to include their favorite songs, rhymes, movement, and so forth.

I found these Tasty Talk: Mealtime Conversation Starters for a teacher who I cam coaching. I tried to attach it, but I'm having difficulty. Sorry for the long post :)

Tasty Talk: Mealtime Conversation Starters

Stories I like: During the meal, converse with children about stories they like. The stories could be from books or they could be stories the children have heard. Invite children to recall and talk about the characters in the books and what the characters do.

Food I like: During the meal, talk with children about the kinds of food they are eating and what foods they like to eat. Be nonjudgmental in your responses, adding your own comments to extend children's thinking. ("Some people do like candy. I also love apples- they are very crunchy.")

Changing the first letter of my name: During the meal, ask children to replace the first letter of their name with another letter. For example, you might say something like "Pete starts with a /p/. What if we put a /b/ first? How would you say his name now?"

Rhyming my name: During the meal, play a rhyming game with children's names. Ask children to give you a word or nonsense word that rhymes with their name (for example, "Chris rhymes with hiss, Sally rhymes with valley, Talia rhymes with malia").

Something at the table: During the meal, let the children know that you will describe something on the table and they can guess what it is. ("It is soft." Children guess. "It is small or tiny." Children guess. "It is green." Children guess peas.) Once children get the idea of the game, they can be the leaders and give the clues.

How old we are: During the meal, converse with children about their ages. Talk about how old they are, who is youngers or older, and the ages of their siblings (if they know). Try to use comments and then pause, rather than ask a lot of questions- this will encourage more language from the children. Adult: "Shannon, you said you are four, but your brother is just a baby." (The adult pauses.) Shannon: "Yes, he's just little." (The adult listens and pauses.) Micah: "My baby's bigger now. She's two." Adult: "Two is getting bigger." (The adult pauses.) Koby: "Yeah, but not as big as me- I'm three!"

***This idea might work with your open-ended question problem. When you ask the question, pause and just make comments, try not to ask a lot more questions.***

First, second, and third: As children get ready for lunch, talk with them about the concept of first, second, and third. Ask something like "What do you think you will eat first, then second, then third?" After children have eaten some of their food, say, "Do you remember what you said you were going to eat first? Is that what you ate first, or did you change your mind? What did you eat second and third?"

Learning about the author and illustrator of a book: Once the meal in underway, choose a book to read with the children. Before beginning to read the book, talk with the children about the author and illustrator and what their jobs are. For example, name the author, then say something like "What do you think an author does?" Listen to children's responses. Then say something like "An author is the one who write the words of the story."

Talking about the weather: During the meal, have fun talking about the weather. Converse with children about the weather and what the children like to do when it's sunny, rainy, snowy, windy, and so forth.

What I like to do at home: During the meal, talk with children about what they like to do at home. Ask open-ended questions and then pause, listening to children's responses.

My daily routine: Together with the children, create a story that recalls some of the children's experiences throughout the daily routine. You might start by saying "Let's tell a story together that starts like this: Once upon a time, there was a class of children. They came to school and they…." Be sure to let children contribute to the story. Children may find prompts about your daily routine helpful. ("After they looked through the tube and shared their plan, they went to work time. At work time they…." Or "After they clean up, they went to recall. At recall they….")

What I will do this weekend or what I did over the weekend: During the meal, ask children to share what they think they will do over the two no-school days. If you asked what they did, listen to what the children say, and repeat and restate their words to acknowledge their comments. ("You went to the laundromat and then say your new baby cousin.")

What I like to do: To find out more about individual children, talk with them about what they like to do at home. Ask open-ended questions and then pause, listening to children's responses. This strategy enables children to share their thoughts with you. 

What I did at work time: Use the mealtime to continue to talk with children about what they did at work time. After asking children an initial open-ended question, pause and listen carefully to their comments. You can add statements about what you saw children doing, drawing other children into the conversation. ("Marcella, I saw you with come blocks, too. Were you working with Ethan?")

Who I live with: During the meal, chat with the children about how many people (or animals) live in their home. If possible, once the meal is well underway, you may want to bring out a simple chart that you made ahead of time, with children's names and letter-linked pictures down one side and a simple stick figure drawing of people (or animals) along the top. After children have shared, you could put tally marks showing how many people (or animals) live in their home. Children may want to count and compare the tally marks.

"I spy" (with shapes, colors, etc.): During the meal, play the "I Spy" game using shapes (for example, by saying "I spy something round" or "I spy something in the shape of a circle"). Start with something clearly visible on the table, then "spy" something father away. Keep giving children hints until they guess the object. Once children catch on to the game, they can be the leaders.

Things outside: Talk with children about things they would find outside but not inside (for example, swings, rain, trees, cars, birds, and so forth). Children might expand the conversation by sharing what they like to do with these things outside, and this is fine! Supports children's thoughts by repeating and restating what children share and by acknowledging their contributions. ("Your mom has the blue van, but your dad's car is black." "You were disappointed because it rained and you couldn't go out on the swings.")

Our artwork: During the meal, invite children to look around the classroom at their artwork. Talk with them about what media was used to make artwork. ("I wonder what Yolanda used to make her picture." "How do you think Brent got the beads to stick to his cardboard?") Be sure to pause and listen to children's thoughts and comments. Make extending comments to help children think about other ways to use materials. ("The beads area all gone. I wonder what else I could use with the glue if I wanted to do a picture like Brent's?")

Rhyming objects: During the meal, invite children to make up rhymes for things on the table. For example, you might say, "Let's play a rhyming game while we eat. I will start and then you can join in." Then you might say something like "Plate, gate- that sounds the same." Or you might say, "Spoon, moon- that sounds the same." Accept all answers given.

Who I played with: During the meal, converse with children about who they played with during work time and what they did together. Talk to children about working together and how they solved problems with what they were doing. If a child says that he did not play with anyone, offer an acknowledgement by saying something "You chose to do something by yourself today, Henry."

Where we are sitting: During the meal, talk with children about where they are sitting. Use descriptive words and phrases like between, in the middle, on the side, beside, across, next to, and so on. You might start by saying "There's lots of ways we could describe where we're sitting."

A story about our food: During the meal, name a food that the children are eating and invite the children to make up a story about that food. For example, you might start by saying "We're having broccoli today. Let's make up a broccoli story together. Once upon a time, there was a tall stalk of broccoli…." Be sure to pause to allow children to share their ideas about what happens in the story.

Describing what I'm eating: During the meal, converse with children about what they notice about the food they are eating. Children may share about the taste, he texture, what it looks like, if they have it at home, and so forth. You can use works like sweet, salty, sour, tangy, moist, crunchy, squishy, spicy, juicy, warm, chilled, baked, sautéed, and so forth.

Let us guess what you're thinking of!: During the meal, tell children that you are going to think of something (an animal, a shape, an item in the block area, one of the children, and so on), and give the children clues to guess what it is. For example, "I am thinking of a child who is a girl." Children guess. "She is four years old." Children guess. "She has braids." Continue until children guess who it is.

Comparing foods we like and food we don't like: During the meal, ask children what foods they like and what foods they don't like. If possible, write/draw these on a chart (for example, with one heading being "Foods We Like," and another, "Foods We Don't Like").

Talking about Story Characters: Read a book during the meal, discussing the book with the children as you read. Draw children's attention to the characters in the story. For example, you might say, "I wonder who the story is about" or "Who else is in the story?" and so on.

Guessing letter-linked picture: Describe several children's letter-linked pictures and see if they can guess whose it is.

My family: As you eat with the children, converse about who is in their family. You might start with a photograph, a statement about your own family, or offer an open-ended question or prompt. ("I'm curious about who lives with you.") Add contributions from your own experiences. For example, when asked about her own family, if a child responds by mentioning her brother Jeremiah, you might say, "I have a brother, too." This will help you get to know the children.

Objects with the same sound as my name: During the meal, ask children to look around the room and find things that start with the same letter sound as their name. You may need to provide an example ("Carolyn- /c/ crayon"; Marlin- /m/ markers").

Singing names: While getting ready for the meal, call children using segmentation- that is, call them by their name syllables. Do this by calling names to the first two pitches of "Rain, Rain, Go Away" (for example, "Gab-ri-ele, pass the juice" or "Ar-leen, take a napkin"). You may want to continue singing your conversations in this two-pitch style for the remainder of the meal.

Items on my plate: After children begin eating, invite them to count and compare the things on their plate, saying something like "I wonder how many crackers (or beans or whatever) you have now that you ate one? How many crackers (or beans or whatever) does Drew have?" Children will begin counting and comparing as they continue to eat.

What I hear: During the meal, ask children to just listen to sounds they hear. Children might notice things like the other group talking, chewing noises, someone walking down the hall, the clock ticking, a phone ringing, an airplane flying overhead, a bird outside, and so forth. Continue talking with children about the sounds they hear.

The special word game: During the meal, invite children to play "the special word game" with you. Tell children that when they hear the special word, they can tap their finger on the table. Tell them what the word is and then begin saying different words until you say the special word. ("The special word is pumpkin. When you hear pumpkin, tap your finger on the table. Ready? Cherries, watermelon, pears, grapes, pineapples, bananas, pumpkin.") Continue playing the game, changing the special word. Let children be the leaders- choosing the special word and then saying the string of words.

Objects on the table: During conversations with children, bring the children's attention to objects that are on the table, or are clearly visible from the table, that have similarities and differences. Invite children to describe similarities and differences by using comments and observations. For example, you might say, "Koby, your fruit looks different from Margaret's now," inviting Koby to notice and comment on the comparison.

Where my food is: While children are eating, use language that describes the position of things. ("You put your cheese on top of your bread." You cup is between the spoon and the plate." Jill, you are sitting across the table from Gena.")

Materials in classroom areas: During the meal, play a guessing game to help children get to know the materials in the different areas. Name a material and see if someone can guess what area the material is from. ("What area are the cars in?" "If I wanted to use the crayons, where would I find them?") Continue by having children take turns naming materials and guessing the area.
Silly same-sound sentences: During the meal, invite the children to join you in making up silly same-sound sentences starting with names. Use names children know, and come up with simple sentences and alliterative phrases (phrases with words having the same beginning sounds). For example, you might say, "Karla kicked kangaroos" or "David drove dinosaurs." Continue, pausing at the end and letting children come up with ideas. Adult: "Mary made…." Child: "Messes!" Adult: Nita needs…." Child: "Necklaces!"

          Children may or may not offer words that start with the same beginning sounds. Accept children's idea's, but if you find this happening often, you may want to ass the sound hint; Adult: "Mary made… /m/…/ m/…" Child: "Monkey's!"

Stories about large-group time: Together with the children, create a story that recalls some of their experiences at large-group time. You might start by saying "Let's make up a story about what we like to do at large-group time. Once upon a time, there were some children. They came to school and they loved large-group time. At large group time, they…." Be sure to let children contribute to the story. Children might want to include their favorite songs, rhymes, movement, and so forth.

I found these Tasty Talk: Mealtime Conversation Starters for a teacher who I cam coaching. I tried to attach it, but I'm having difficulty. Sorry for the long post :)

Tasty Talk: Mealtime Conversation Starters

Stories I like: During the meal, converse with children about stories they like. The stories could be from books or they could be stories the children have heard. Invite children to recall and talk about the characters in the books and what the characters do.

Food I like: During the meal, talk with children about the kinds of food they are eating and what foods they like to eat. Be nonjudgmental in your responses, adding your own comments to extend children's thinking. ("Some people do like candy. I also love apples- they are very crunchy.")

Changing the first letter of my name: During the meal, ask children to replace the first letter of their name with another letter. For example, you might say something like "Pete starts with a /p/. What if we put a /b/ first? How would you say his name now?"

Rhyming my name: During the meal, play a rhyming game with children's names. Ask children to give you a word or nonsense word that rhymes with their name (for example, "Chris rhymes with hiss, Sally rhymes with valley, Talia rhymes with malia").

Something at the table: During the meal, let the children know that you will describe something on the table and they can guess what it is. ("It is soft." Children guess. "It is small or tiny." Children guess. "It is green." Children guess peas.) Once children get the idea of the game, they can be the leaders and give the clues.

How old we are: During the meal, converse with children about their ages. Talk about how old they are, who is youngers or older, and the ages of their siblings (if they know). Try to use comments and then pause, rather than ask a lot of questions- this will encourage more language from the children. Adult: "Shannon, you said you are four, but your brother is just a baby." (The adult pauses.) Shannon: "Yes, he's just little." (The adult listens and pauses.) Micah: "My baby's bigger now. She's two." Adult: "Two is getting bigger." (The adult pauses.) Koby: "Yeah, but not as big as me- I'm three!"

***This idea might work with your open-ended question problem. When you ask the question, pause and just make comments, try not to ask a lot more questions.***

First, second, and third: As children get ready for lunch, talk with them about the concept of first, second, and third. Ask something like "What do you think you will eat first, then second, then third?" After children have eaten some of their food, say, "Do you remember what you said you were going to eat first? Is that what you ate first, or did you change your mind? What did you eat second and third?"

Learning about the author and illustrator of a book: Once the meal in underway, choose a book to read with the children. Before beginning to read the book, talk with the children about the author and illustrator and what their jobs are. For example, name the author, then say something like "What do you think an author does?" Listen to children's responses. Then say something like "An author is the one who write the words of the story."

Talking about the weather: During the meal, have fun talking about the weather. Converse with children about the weather and what the children like to do when it's sunny, rainy, snowy, windy, and so forth.

What I like to do at home: During the meal, talk with children about what they like to do at home. Ask open-ended questions and then pause, listening to children's responses.

My daily routine: Together with the children, create a story that recalls some of the children's experiences throughout the daily routine. You might start by saying "Let's tell a story together that starts like this: Once upon a time, there was a class of children. They came to school and they…." Be sure to let children contribute to the story. Children may find prompts about your daily routine helpful. ("After they looked through the tube and shared their plan, they went to work time. At work time they…." Or "After they clean up, they went to recall. At recall they….")

What I will do this weekend or what I did over the weekend: During the meal, ask children to share what they think they will do over the two no-school days. If you asked what they did, listen to what the children say, and repeat and restate their words to acknowledge their comments. ("You went to the laundromat and then say your new baby cousin.")

What I like to do: To find out more about individual children, talk with them about what they like to do at home. Ask open-ended questions and then pause, listening to children's responses. This strategy enables children to share their thoughts with you. 

What I did at work time: Use the mealtime to continue to talk with children about what they did at work time. After asking children an initial open-ended question, pause and listen carefully to their comments. You can add statements about what you saw children doing, drawing other children into the conversation. ("Marcella, I saw you with come blocks, too. Were you working with Ethan?")

Who I live with: During the meal, chat with the children about how many people (or animals) live in their home. If possible, once the meal is well underway, you may want to bring out a simple chart that you made ahead of time, with children's names and letter-linked pictures down one side and a simple stick figure drawing of people (or animals) along the top. After children have shared, you could put tally marks showing how many people (or animals) live in their home. Children may want to count and compare the tally marks.

"I spy" (with shapes, colors, etc.): During the meal, play the "I Spy" game using shapes (for example, by saying "I spy something round" or "I spy something in the shape of a circle"). Start with something clearly visible on the table, then "spy" something father away. Keep giving children hints until they guess the object. Once children catch on to the game, they can be the leaders.

Things outside: Talk with children about things they would find outside but not inside (for example, swings, rain, trees, cars, birds, and so forth). Children might expand the conversation by sharing what they like to do with these things outside, and this is fine! Supports children's thoughts by repeating and restating what children share and by acknowledging their contributions. ("Your mom has the blue van, but your dad's car is black." "You were disappointed because it rained and you couldn't go out on the swings.")

Our artwork: During the meal, invite children to look around the classroom at their artwork. Talk with them about what media was used to make artwork. ("I wonder what Yolanda used to make her picture." "How do you think Brent got the beads to stick to his cardboard?") Be sure to pause and listen to children's thoughts and comments. Make extending comments to help children think about other ways to use materials. ("The beads area all gone. I wonder what else I could use with the glue if I wanted to do a picture like Brent's?")

Rhyming objects: During the meal, invite children to make up rhymes for things on the table. For example, you might say, "Let's play a rhyming game while we eat. I will start and then you can join in." Then you might say something like "Plate, gate- that sounds the same." Or you might say, "Spoon, moon- that sounds the same." Accept all answers given.

Who I played with: During the meal, converse with children about who they played with during work time and what they did together. Talk to children about working together and how they solved problems with what they were doing. If a child says that he did not play with anyone, offer an acknowledgement by saying something "You chose to do something by yourself today, Henry."

Where we are sitting: During the meal, talk with children about where they are sitting. Use descriptive words and phrases like between, in the middle, on the side, beside, across, next to, and so on. You might start by saying "There's lots of ways we could describe where we're sitting."

A story about our food: During the meal, name a food that the children are eating and invite the children to make up a story about that food. For example, you might start by saying "We're having broccoli today. Let's make up a broccoli story together. Once upon a time, there was a tall stalk of broccoli…." Be sure to pause to allow children to share their ideas about what happens in the story.

Describing what I'm eating: During the meal, converse with children about what they notice about the food they are eating. Children may share about the taste, he texture, what it looks like, if they have it at home, and so forth. You can use works like sweet, salty, sour, tangy, moist, crunchy, squishy, spicy, juicy, warm, chilled, baked, sautéed, and so forth.

Let us guess what you're thinking of!: During the meal, tell children that you are going to think of something (an animal, a shape, an item in the block area, one of the children, and so on), and give the children clues to guess what it is. For example, "I am thinking of a child who is a girl." Children guess. "She is four years old." Children guess. "She has braids." Continue until children guess who it is.

Comparing foods we like and food we don't like: During the meal, ask children what foods they like and what foods they don't like. If possible, write/draw these on a chart (for example, with one heading being "Foods We Like," and another, "Foods We Don't Like").

Talking about Story Characters: Read a book during the meal, discussing the book with the children as you read. Draw children's attention to the characters in the story. For example, you might say, "I wonder who the story is about" or "Who else is in the story?" and so on.

Guessing letter-linked picture: Describe several children's letter-linked pictures and see if they can guess whose it is.

My family: As you eat with the children, converse about who is in their family. You might start with a photograph, a statement about your own family, or offer an open-ended question or prompt. ("I'm curious about who lives with you.") Add contributions from your own experiences. For example, when asked about her own family, if a child responds by mentioning her brother Jeremiah, you might say, "I have a brother, too." This will help you get to know the children.

Objects with the same sound as my name: During the meal, ask children to look around the room and find things that start with the same letter sound as their name. You may need to provide an example ("Carolyn- /c/ crayon"; Marlin- /m/ markers").

Singing names: While getting ready for the meal, call children using segmentation- that is, call them by their name syllables. Do this by calling names to the first two pitches of "Rain, Rain, Go Away" (for example, "Gab-ri-ele, pass the juice" or "Ar-leen, take a napkin"). You may want to continue singing your conversations in this two-pitch style for the remainder of the meal.

Items on my plate: After children begin eating, invite them to count and compare the things on their plate, saying something like "I wonder how many crackers (or beans or whatever) you have now that you ate one? How many crackers (or beans or whatever) does Drew have?" Children will begin counting and comparing as they continue to eat.

What I hear: During the meal, ask children to just listen to sounds they hear. Children might notice things like the other group talking, chewing noises, someone walking down the hall, the clock ticking, a phone ringing, an airplane flying overhead, a bird outside, and so forth. Continue talking with children about the sounds they hear.

The special word game: During the meal, invite children to play "the special word game" with you. Tell children that when they hear the special word, they can tap their finger on the table. Tell them what the word is and then begin saying different words until you say the special word. ("The special word is pumpkin. When you hear pumpkin, tap your finger on the table. Ready? Cherries, watermelon, pears, grapes, pineapples, bananas, pumpkin.") Continue playing the game, changing the special word. Let children be the leaders- choosing the special word and then saying the string of words.

Objects on the table: During conversations with children, bring the children's attention to objects that are on the table, or are clearly visible from the table, that have similarities and differences. Invite children to describe similarities and differences by using comments and observations. For example, you might say, "Koby, your fruit looks different from Margaret's now," inviting Koby to notice and comment on the comparison.

Where my food is: While children are eating, use language that describes the position of things. ("You put your cheese on top of your bread." You cup is between the spoon and the plate." Jill, you are sitting across the table from Gena.")

Materials in classroom areas: During the meal, play a guessing game to help children get to know the materials in the different areas. Name a material and see if someone can guess what area the material is from. ("What area are the cars in?" "If I wanted to use the crayons, where would I find them?") Continue by having children take turns naming materials and guessing the area.
Silly same-sound sentences: During the meal, invite the children to join you in making up silly same-sound sentences starting with names. Use names children know, and come up with simple sentences and alliterative phrases (phrases with words having the same beginning sounds). For example, you might say, "Karla kicked kangaroos" or "David drove dinosaurs." Continue, pausing at the end and letting children come up with ideas. Adult: "Mary made…." Child: "Messes!" Adult: Nita needs…." Child: "Necklaces!"

          Children may or may not offer words that start with the same beginning sounds. Accept children's idea's, but if you find this happening often, you may want to ass the sound hint; Adult: "Mary made… /m/…/ m/…" Child: "Monkey's!"

Stories about large-group time: Together with the children, create a story that recalls some of their experiences at large-group time. You might start by saying "Let's make up a story about what we like to do at large-group time. Once upon a time, there were some children. They came to school and they loved large-group time. At large group time, they…." Be sure to let children contribute to the story. Children might want to include their favorite songs, rhymes, movement, and so forth.