Health Promotion

Northern NSW Local Health District

Contact: Kate Collins

Email: kate.collins@ncahs.health.nsw.gov.au

Early Learning Service Implementation Guide

P a g e 1

This work was completed by Britney Koch as part of the requirements for the degree of Master

of Nutrition and Dietetics at the University of Wollongong under the supervision of Kate

Collins.

P a g e 2

Background .............................................................................................................................. 3

What is Crunch Time? .............................................................................................................. 4

How to Implement in your Service .......................................................................................... 5

What is a Serve? ...................................................................................................................... 6

Learning Experiences ............................................................................................................... 7

I’ve Tasted the Rainbow ........................................................................................................ 7

Vegetable Tally Chart ............................................................................................................ 7

“I Crunch Veg” Stickers.......................................................................................................... 8

Edible Art ............................................................................................................................... 8

How is Crunch Time going? ................................................................................................... 9

Recipes ..................................................................................................................................... 14

Beetroot Hummus ............................................................................................................... 15

Hummus .............................................................................................................................. 16

Guacamole .......................................................................................................................... 17

Tuna and Avocado Sushi Sandwiches ................................................................................. 18

Aloha Rice ............................................................................................................................ 19

Veggie Patties ...................................................................................................................... 20

Mighty Hulk Muffins ........................................................................................................... 21

Bread Base Quiches ............................................................................................................ 22

Pizza Muffins ....................................................................................................................... 23

Resources for Parents ............................................................................................................ 24

Evaluation .............................................................................................................................. 35

Record of Progress ................................................................................................................. 39

References ............................................................................................................................. 40

For More Information ............................................................................................................ 41

P a g e 3

Crunch Time is a program for children attending Early Learning Services (ELSs) in the

Northern NSW Local Health District (NNSW LHD). The program focuses on increasing the

amount of vegetables consumed by children. A program such as Crunch Time is warranted

in ELSs as only 10% of children aged 2-15 years in the NNSW LHD consume the

recommended serves of vegetables per day4. Research suggests that targeting children of

this age (2-6 years) is the best opportunity to instil healthy eating habits3. Overweight and

obesity are prevalent issues within Australia with over 22% of children aged 2-4 years being

overweight or obese1. A contributing factor to this health problem is the high intake of

discretionary foods, foods high in saturated fat, sugar and/or salt2. Replacing discretionary

foods with vegetables that provide essential vitamins and minerals in a child’s diet will help

to address this issue. Reducing obesity rates by 5% in 10 years is one of the Premier’s

Priorities and therefore the implementation of Crunch Time may assist in achieving this.

Crunch Time is a transition to primary school program that will be integrated into the

already existing Munch & Move initiative in participating ELSs. Crunch Time will aim to

replicate Crunch & Sip, however, with a strong focus on vegetable intake. The objective is to

create healthy eating habits in both children and parents which can be easily continued

once they enter primary school. A 8-10 week trial of Crunch Time found a relative increase

of 85% in the number of kids with vegetable snacks in their lunchbox and over 90% of kids

willing to try vegetables from a platter.

Crunch & Sip, is an initiative undertaken by NSW primary schools aimed to increase fruit,

vegetable and water intake. How and when this is undertaken within the school day is

dependent upon individual teacher and school discretion. Crunch & Sip can be a designated

time where students do a Crunch & Sip activity or while children continue working. Almost

70% of children aged 2-15 years are now meeting fruit intake, however, vegetable intake is

still extremely low4. A recent research paper conducted in Western Australian primary

schools supports these statistics in that children were mostly bringing in varieties of fruit for

their Crunch & Sip break5. This paper also demonstrated great support from teachers at

modifying Crunch & Sip to focus more on vegetable intake5.

Crunch Time will address the ‘eat more fruit and vegetable’ key message of Munch & Move.

It addresses healthy eating and child wellbeing which are focus areas of the Early Years

Learning Framework (EYLF) and the National Quality Standard (NQS).

EYLF Outcome 3: Children have a strong sense of wellbeing

- Children take increasing responsibility for their own health and physical wellbeing

Quality Area 2: Children’s health and safety (NQS)

Standard 2.2 Healthy eating and physical activity

E.g. the promoting of creative, cost-effective vegetable snack ideas as part of a healthy

lunchbox on displays and/or newsletters.

P a g e 4

Crunch Time is a specific time throughout the day where children have the chance to eat

vegetables. This time can be decided by educators of ELSs. It may run at the start of morning

tea, with ‘Crunch Time’ being allotted for children to crunch vegetables before progressing

to their other snacks, or it may be after rest time.

“We have found that Crunch Time works best at our preschool just before

home time. The children were always ready for an afternoon snack and

parents often witness their child being adventurous and trying vegetables

that they wouldn’t usually eat.”

The focus of Crunch Time is to encourage children to eat fresh vegetables. For this reason,

all fresh vegetables are allowed, however vegetable chips, vegetable juices or baked

vegetable breads / cakes / fritters etc. are best left to be eaten at other times in the day.

Crunch Time may also be a designated time where children do a Crunch Time activity or eat

vegetables whilst continuing to play. Educators should model behaviour and are encouraged

to also crunch on a vegetable at the same time as children.

Allowed – all fresh vegetables

P a g e 5

1

Staff

• Register with your Munch&Move contact or by emailing kate.collins@ncahs.health.nsw.gov.au

• Notify staff and discuss strategies for implementation

• Run pre-evaluation

2

Parent / Carer

• Provide parent/carer with Crunch Time handouts

• Include Crunch Time information in newsletters, snippets on Facebook and on display boards

• Opportunistically discuss parent/carers role within Crunch Time

3

Children

• Explain what Crunch Time is how this will be incorporated into the daily routineAnd/or

• Play intro video at https://vimeo.com/210350511

4

Launch

• Have a BIG CRUNCH

• Veggie taste testing day

• Dress in the colour of your favourite vegetable

5

Learning

• Use learning experiences/activities to teach children about vegetables

6

Policy

• Incorporate into service's Nutrition policy

7Evaluation

• Reflect on the progress of Crunch Time

• How could Crunch Time be improved next year?

• Complete post evaluation

P a g e 6

This resource explains what a standard vegetable serve looks like. It is useful

for educators to be familiar with this. It can be used as a reference if and when

parents may ask for more information.

½ Cup cooked green/orange vegetables (broccoli,

spinach, carrot, pumpkin)

½ Cup cooked, dried or canned beans, peas, or lentils

1 Cup green leafy or raw salad vegetables

½ Cup sweet corn

½ Medium potato or other starchy veggie (sweet potato, taro, cassava)

1 Medium tomato

5 serves of vegetables

Daily Requirements:

2-3 years – 2.5 serves/day

4-8 years- 4.5 serves/day

I’ve Tasted the Rainbow

- What you need:

o 1 sheet per child

o Crunch Time vegetable stickers

- How to use:

o Identify what vegetable has been brought in

o Place a tick in the box indicating the vegetable and

taste response

o Stickers may also be used as incentives for trying all of

the vegetables

- This is an ongoing activity and may be stored in the child’s

journal until complete. Once finished, sheets can be taken

home for children to show their family

Taste testing was very popular with the kids and parents were

surprised by what their children had tasted and liked! Many reported

their kids eating more veg at home as well!

Vegetable Tally Chart Directions:

- At Crunch Time, tally the total number of each vegetable

brought in by all children at the service

- Depending on the size of your service this may be done each

day or may be accumulated across a week

Each week the kids got excited about the tally chart and wanted

to beat the previous record. If we forgot at morning tea time

they would often remind us to count before they ate.

P a g e 8

“I Crunch Veg” Stickers Directions:

- Use at your discretion. The main aim of these is to encourage

children to eat more vegetables. They may be used for taste

testings, as encouragement or even stuck on lunchboxes as a

reminder.

We encouraged our kids to put the “I Crunch Veg” stickers on their

lunchboxes. It was a nice reminder to them and their parents to

pack veggie snacks.

Edible Art Get Arty with vegetables by challenging kids to make edible

art. Some great ideas include:

- Hungry Caterpillar: made from cucumber, tomato,

capsicum and green leafy vegetables.

- Rice Cake faces: using a spread such as hummus,

beetroot dip or guacamole, use vegetables to make

crazy faces.

- Traffic Lights: on a grain cracker make traffic lights

using cucumber, carrot and tomato slices

- Edible animals: with a range of different vegetables,

ask children to create their favourite animal

Edible art was a great way to get kids familiar with vegetables that

they were reluctant to try. Many were happy to have a taste after

they had made their very own edible creation.

P a g e 9

How is Crunch Time going?

It is great to reflect on how programs like this go in your

service. To evaluate Crunch Time you can use a nutrition

learning experience similar to the one below. We’d love to

hear how it is going so feel free to share your results with us.

Around the table before you start morning tea ask the

following questions:

- Who has a vegetable in their lunchbox?

- Hands up if you like vegetables?

- Why do / don’t you like vegetables?

- Does anyone have a favourite vegetable?

- Are vegetables every day or sometimes foods?

You can record responses in a table at the back of this manual so you can

compare across the year. You may also want to record kids responses in

daily journals.

Ask these questions before you commence Crunch Time and then at the end of

each term to see if it is having an impact at your service.

There are more evaluation forms at the back of this manual if you

would like to conduct a more in depth evaluation. We have also

included a table that you can record results in over the year.

Name: _______________________________

I tried: And what I thought about it was:

Red

Yummy I like it

My taste buds aren’t ready for it

Comments

Red capsicum

Radish

Tomato

Orange

Yummy I like it

My taste buds aren’t ready for it

Comments

Carrot

Pumpkin

Sweet potato

Yellow

Yummy I like it

My taste buds aren’t ready for it

Comments

Yellow capsicum

Squash

Corn

Brown and white

Yummy I like it

My taste buds aren’t ready for it

Comments

Cauliflower

Mushrooms

Potato

Green

Yummy I like it

My taste buds aren’t ready for it

Comments

Broccoli

Cabbage

Green capsicum

Celery

Cucumber

Lettuce

Peas

Baby spinach

Zucchini

Beans

Warrigal greens

Blue/ Purple/Black

Yummy I like it

My taste buds aren’t ready for it

Comments

Beetroot

Purple cabbage

Purple carrots

Eggplant

c

Picture Tally Number

Cucumber

Carrot

Celery

Tomatoes

Beans/Snow

Peas

Corn

Capsicum

Other

Recipes

P a g e 15

Beetroot Hummus

Serves: 25 to taste Difficulty: Easy

Equipment: 1 can opener, 1 food processor, 1 medium bowl to serve, 2 chopping boards, 2 knives

INGREDIENTS

450g can chopped beetroot, drained

400g can chickpeas, rinsed, drained

2 garlic cloves, roughly chopped

1 tablespoon tahini

1 tablespoon lemon juice

1 tablespoon of olive oil

Vegetable sticks to serve

METHOD

1. Place beetroot, chickpeas, garlic, tahini and lemon

juice into a food processor and blend until

ingredients are combined

2. Slowly add oil and blend until mixture becomes

smooth

3. Cut up vegetables into long sticks

4. Serve a small amount of hummus to each person

either on a small saucer or in a small cupcake case,

with a selection of cut vegetable sticks

P a g e 16

Hummus

Serves: 25 to taste Difficulty: Easy

Equipment: 1 can opener, 1 food processor, 1 medium bowl to serve, 2 chopping boards, 2 knives

INGREDIENTS

2 x 400g tins chickpeas

½ cup tahini

2 cloves garlic

Juice 1-2 lemons

3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil

Salt & pepper to taste

Vegetables and flat bread cut into strips for dipping

(such as carrots, snow peas, capsicum, beans,

cucumber).

METHOD

1. Drain chickpeas and place into blender and process

briefly

2. Add tahini, garlic, lemon juice, olive oil and salt and

pepper and process again

3. Add a small amount of water to achieve a soft

creamy paste

4. Cut up vegetables into long sticks and flat breads to

dip into hummus

5. Serve a small amount of hummus to each person

either on a small saucer or in a small cupcake case,

with a selection of cut vegetable sticks or bread

strips

P a g e 17

Guacamole

Serves: 25 to taste Difficulty: Easy

Equipment: 2 chopping boards, 2 knives, 1 spoons, 1 bowls, 1 forks, 1 manual juicer

INGREDIENTS

2 avocados

1/2 lemon, juiced

2 tablespoons finely diced onion (optional)

1/2 teaspoon salt

Natural yoghurt (optional)

2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil

Vegetable sticks to serve

METHOD

1. Cut the avocados into halves, remove stones & scoop

out the flesh into a bowl

2. Use a fork to mash the avocado

3. Stir in lemon juice, onion, salt & yoghurt if using

4. If not using immediately, cover & refrigerate until

ready to serve

P a g e 18

Tuna and Avocado Sushi Sandwiches

Serves: 5-6 children, or 20-24 as a taster Difficulty: Easy

Equipment: 3 chopping boards, 3 knives, 3 spreading knives, 1 grater, 1 can opener, 2 rolling pins

INGREDIENTS

1 loaf whole-meal bread

1 small tub reduced fat cream cheese

Medium (approx. 400 g) can tuna in spring water,

drained)

1 medium avocado, thinly slice

2 medium carrots

(Any combination of ingredients and vegetables

could be used such as capsicum, cucumber, lettuce,

ham, chicken)

METHOD

1. Place bread slices on chopping

board. Remove crusts and flatten with a rolling pin

2. Spread 1 side of each slice of bread with cream

cheese

3. Thinly slice avocado

4. Peel and grate carrots

5. Arrange tuna, avocado and carrot in rows next to

each other on the bread leaving a 1cm border along 1

edge

6. Roll up bread from opposite edge to enclose filling.

Cut into bite sized pieces and place on serving

platter

P a g e 19

Aloha Rice

Serves: 5-6 children, or 20-24 as a taster (1/4 cup each) Difficulty: Easy

Equipment: 1 grater, 3 chopping boards, 3 knives, 1 large bowl, 1 can opener, large spoon to mix

and serve, microwave to cook rice, plastic cup or bowls to serve

INGREDIENTS

½ carrot

½ celery stick

½ small red or green capsicum

2 shallots

1 can pineapple rings in natural juice

2 slices low fat & low salt ham (optional)

4 cups cooked rice (brown rice is the best option)

4 tablespoons sweet corn kernels

Pepper to season

2 tablespoons reduced fat salad dressing (purchase

already made or make up using olive oil, balsamic vinegar,

lemon juice)

METHOD

1. Grate the carrot and put into a mixing bowl

2. Slice the celery finely and add to the bowl

3. Remove the seeds from the capsicum. Cut into small

squares and add to the bowl

4. Cut the root end off the shallots. Slice finely, then

add to the bowl

5. Drain the pineapple. Cut rings into small pieces and

add to the bowl

6. Slice the ham into small squares and add to the bowl

with the cooked rice, sweet corn, pepper and

dressing

7. Using a spoon, mix thoroughly

8. If not using at once, cover with cling wrap (or

transfer to a storage container) and refrigerate

until needed

P a g e 20

Veggie Patties

Serves: 20 fritters Difficulty: Easy

Equipment: 3 graters, 3 chopping boards, 2 knives, 1 large bowl, 1 can opener, electric frypan, egg flip,

large spoon to mix, spoon measures, cup measures, 1 egg whisk

INGREDIENTS

1 medium zucchini

310g can sweet corn kernels

1 small carrot

1 small red onion

¼ cup wholemeal self-raising flour

½ teaspoons ground cumin

3 eggs

Olive oil cooking spray

Tzatziki to serve (optional)

Salad greens and cherry tomatoes to serve

(optional)

METHOD

1. Grate zucchini, carrot and onion into a large bowl

along with the drained corn. Add flour and cumin.

2. Whisk eggs and stir through vegetable mixture.

Season with freshly ground black pepper

3. Spray a large frying pan with olive oil and heat over

medium heat

4. Place two tablespoons of the mixture into the pan

and cook for two minutes on each side, or until

golden

5. Remove the fritters from the pan repeat the

process with the remaining mixture

6. Serve with tzatziki, cherry tomatoes and mixed

green leaves

P a g e 21

Mighty Hulk Muffins

Serves: 12 muffins Difficulty: Medium

Equipment: 1 food processor, cup measures, spoon measures, 1 large bowl, large spoon to mix, 1

muffin tin, oven

INGREDIENTS

½ cup self-raising flour

½ cup whole grain flour

¼ cup sugar

1 teaspoon baking powder

¼ teaspoon salt

2 tablespoons oil

½ cup milk

1 mashed banana

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

75g of baby spinach

METHOD

1. Preheat fan forced oven to 180 degrees Celsius and

grease a 12 cup muffin tin

2. Place wet ingredients (oil, milk, banana and vanilla)

along with spinach in a blender and blend on high for

30 seconds or until smooth

3. Add dry ingredients to a large bowl and stir until

well combined

4. Transfer blended liquid to the bowl with the dry

ingredients and mix gently until well combined

5. Fill each muffin cup and bake for 18-20 minutes. You

can tell that they are cooked by inserting a skewer

into the centre of a muffin. If it comes out clean,

the muffins are ready

P a g e 22

Bread Base Quiches

Serves: 12 quiches, cut each in half for a class taster Difficulty: Medium

Equipment: 2 chopping boards, 2 knives, 1 rolling pin, 2 graters, 1 muffin tin, measuring cup, 1

egg whisk (or fork), dessert spoon

INGREDIENTS

12 slices bread

Margarine

6 eggs

75 mL low fat milk

3 slices low fat ham

½ cup low fat cheese

¼ cup shallots

½ cup zucchini

½ cup corn kernels

Pepper to taste

METHOD

1. Preheat oven to 180

degrees Celsius

2. Trim crusts off bread and flatten with rolling pin

3. Spread one side of flattened bread with margarine

and push this side of bread down into the base of

the muffin tin

4. Mix eggs and milk in a bowl and add pepper if

desired

5. Finely slice ham, grate cheese and zucchini and chop

shallots

6. Divide evenly into each bread cup the ham, shallots,

zucchini, corn and grated cheese

7. Pour egg milk mixture to just below the level of the

muffin tin

8. Place in oven and cook for 15-20 minutes

P a g e 23

Pizza Muffins

Serves: 10, or cut in half and 20 as a taster Difficulty: Medium

Equipment: 4 chopping boards, 4 knives, 4 spoons, 2 oven trays, oven or sandwich toaster

INGREDIENTS

1 packet English muffins (halved)

½ cup tomato paste

2 tablespoons of oregano

1 capsicum

5 mushrooms

2 tomatoes

1 onion

1 small can of pineapple

Reduced fat cheese (grated)

METHOD

1. Chop up all

vegetables and pineapple into small pieces

2. Lay halved English muffins on oven trays. Spread

with tomato paste

3. Cover each muffin with vegetables, cheese and

sprinkle with oregano

4. Cook in sandwich toaster with lid half open, or under

a griller until cheese has melted

P a g e 24

Resources for

Parents

What to Pack

What to Pack

Crunch Time is a time in the day where children have a

chance to eat veggies packed in their lunchbox.

Water

All fresh vegetables

Crunch Time is a time in the day where children have a

chance to eat veggies packed in their lunchbox.

Water

All fresh vegetables

Crunch Time is a time in the day where children have a

chance to eat veggies packed in their lunchbox.

Water

All fresh vegetables

Crunch Time is a time in the day where children have a

chance to eat veggies packed in their lunchbox.

Water

All fresh vegetables

P a g e 27

Image Caption Did you know… our kids aren’t

getting enough veggies each day. Veggies make great snacks for lunchboxes #CrunchTime

What is Crunch Time? A chance to eat veggies packed in our lunchbox!

Struggling for ideas as to what to pack for Crunch Time? Here’s a few you might like to try

P a g e 28

Carly the carrot often gets left at home. Carly makes great veggie sticks for lunchboxes. Bring Carly to Crunch Time tomorrow!

Eating more veggies can turn Tom the tomatoes frown upside down.

Don’t forget Peter the pea at Crunch Time. He’s doesn’t cost much and tastes great frozen.

Here’s a short intro to Crunch Time. Check out the video at https://vimeo.com/210350511 #Zuc #veggies #healthyeating

Our kids at ______ loved helping cook ______today #kidsinthekitchen #veggies

Insert

photo’s here

P a g e 29

What do 5 serves

of veggies look like?

P a g e 30

Don’t

leave me

at home!

P a g e 31

Pick me

as a

snack for

your

lunchbox

P a g e 32

At _____________ we

Crunch at Crunch Time

Insert

photo here

Insert

photo here

Insert

photo here

Insert

photo here

P a g e 33

P a g e 35

P a g e 36

Postcode of Early Learning Centre: _______________

Using the table provided use this evaluation process as a nutrition learning experience. It

works well as a discussion point at morning tea. For vegetables to be counted and included

in this evaluation they must meet Crunch Time guidelines. Additionally, if your centre

provides a fruit and vegetable platter at snack times please answer the two questions below

the grey line.

Asking questions like the examples below will help engage children with this process.

Who has vegetables in their lunchbox today?

Hands up for who likes vegetables?

Why do you or why don’t you like vegetables?

What’s your favourite vegetable?

Are vegetables every day or sometimes foods?

Who can tell me how many serves this is?

Day 1 Day 2

Number of children with vegetable snacks

Number of children who like vegetables

Number of children that can identify vegetables as an

everyday food

Total number of children (3-5yrs) present

Number of different types of vegetables on snack platter

Number of children that try vegetables from a platter

P a g e 37

Postcode of Early Learning Centre: ___________________

Please answer the following questions by placing a circle around your response using the

scale: 1 for much less confident, 3 for no change, & 5 for great improvement in confidence.

1. Please indicate how your confidence in providing nutrition learning experiences to

children around vegetables has changed over the term as a result of Crunch Time:

Less confident 1 2 3 4 5 Great improvement

2. Please indicate how your confidence in promoting vegetable intake to parents/carers

has changed over the term as a result of Crunch Time:

Less confident 1 2 3 4 5 Great improvement

3. Are you planning on continuing “Crunch Time”?

Yes / No

4. Would any further support have been useful to support Crunch Time? (for example;

a new resource each month, monthly newsletter with ideas, support visits etc)

Yes / No

Please specify:

___________________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________________

5. Other comments?

___________________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________________

P a g e 38

This term we piloted the Crunch Time program. It was aimed at increasing the amount of vegetables that children eat by encouraging them

to have a veggie snack in child care. We are looking for some feedback on the program.

Did Crunch Time prompt you to pack more vegetables in your child’s lunchbox? (place a

tick in appropriate column)

Did you like the idea of the Crunch Time program? (place a tick in appropriate

column)

Do you have any other feedback

Yes No Yes No

P a g e 39

Date Total number of children (3-5yrs) present

Number of children with

vegetable snacks

Number of children who

like vegetables

Number of children that identify

vegetables as an everyday food

Number of children that

try vegetables from a platter

Pre Crunch Time:

P a g e 40

1. Australian Bureau of Statistics. Australian Health Survey: Updated Results, 2011-

2012. 2013 [cited 2017 March 10], ABS publication 4364.0.55.003. Available from;

AusStats

2. Australia Bureau of Statistics. Australian Health Survey: Nutrition First Results- Foods

and Nutrients, 2011-2012. 2014 [cited 2017 March 10], ABS publication

4364.0.55.007. Available from; AusStats

3. AUSVEG. Vegenotes 51. 2015 [cited 2017 March 15]. Available from:

http://www.ausveg.com.au/intranet/publications/vegenotes.htm

4. Centre for Epidemiology and Evidence, NSW Ministry of Health. NSW population

health survey 2014-2015. Available at:

http://www.healthstats.nsw.gov.au/Indicator/beh_veg_statage

5. Sharp G, Pettigre S, Wright S, Pratt IS, Blane S, Biagioni N. Potential in-class strategies

to increase children’s vegetable consumption. Public Health Nutrition. 2017 Jan:1-9.

P a g e 41

Munch & Move website

http://www.healthykids.nsw.gov.au/campaig

ns-programs/about-munch-move.aspx

The Australian Guide to Healthy Eating &

Dietary Guidelines for Children and

Adolescents in Australia

http://www.eatforhealth.gov.au/guidelines/a

ustralian-guide-healthy-eating

NNSW LHD website

http://nnswlhd.health.nsw.gov.au/health-

promotion/healthy-eating-recipes/

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