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Supermarketing
by
Carol J. Castellano
Reprinted from Future Reflections
My
daughter Serena loves our weekly trips to the supermarket.
Her fun begins outside the store, where she chooses
just the right basket to sit in. Then we make the automatic
doors open. This must seem like some sort of magic to
a child, opening onto an interesting world of smells
and sounds and tastes and people and, from a parent's
point of view, learning opportunities. Serena was three
years old when we began our supermarket routine. You
can adjust your "lessons" to the level and age of your
child.
"Serena,
Daddy needs some pears," I announce as we enter the
produce department and we begin to choose a few. "Is
this a good one?" I ask her. "Does it have a good smell?
See how it feels. Here's the stem. Oh, look, there's
a leaf on that stem! Let's get a plastic bag to put
our pear in." Serena helps me peel a bag off the roll
and helps to tear it along its perforated edge. As we
put in the pears, we count them. "One, two, three, four.
That's one for Daddy, one for Mommy, one for Serena,
and one for John. Do you think that's enough pears?
Let's feel them through the bag. Can you feel four pears
in there?"
On
to the apples. "Hmmm, these apples feel different from
the pears, and they smell different, too. But look,
they have stems. Apples and pears both have stems."
We
go on through the produce department discussing each
of the fruits and vegetables that our family eats. I
find that giving Serena a personal fact or two about
each item makes it more meaningful to her. "Mommy likes
Delicious. Daddy likes Macintosh." Or we might sing
a song (Apples and Bananas or Day-O) or talk about the
guacamole we're going to make out of the avocado. I
also use storybook details to expand Serena's world.
Look, here is parsley, just like Peter Rabbit was looking
for in Mr. MacGregor's garden. In these circumstances,
Serena is very willing to handle and explore things
she ordinarily might be reluctant to touch, such as
lettuce or broccoli.
In
order to give her an idea of how much food a supermarket
sells, I tell her to lean over and reach out her hand.
"This is a long aisle! Serena, they have cookies and
cookies and cookies and cookies and cookies and cookies
in this aisle!" I tell her as her hand passes over package
after package. We do this in several aisles, using items
that she is particularly fond of or interested in. I
include as much incidental information as I think Serena
can absorb while still having fun. If the new information
can build on something already known, it will be easier
for the child to learn. For example,"The bread in this
package is made from wheat. Do you remember when we
saw the wheat at the farm?" You could include whatever
information would be relevant to your child. Think about
what knowledge he or she already has that could be added
to.
Serena's
favorite aisle after cookies, is the dairy aisle. She
loves to handle and count the packages of cheese, the
containers of milk and orange juice, the eggs in the
carton. All kinds of learning can go on here, "This
carton of milk is much smaller than the carton of orange
juice." (Use the terms quart and half- gallon if your
child is ready for them.) "Wow, the orange juice is
so heavy I can hardly pick it up." We drop it cautiously
into the cart behind her and listen for the thud. "The
juice inside the container comes from oranges just like
the ones we chose before. You have to cut the orange
open and squeeze it to get the juice out. Serena, help
Mommy check the eggs. We don't want to bring home any
broken ones. Let's count them. Twelve, that's a dozen.
We'll have these eggs for breakfast tomorrow."
I
try to let Serena take each item from the shelf. If
she cannot reach, I put it in her lap so she can look
at it. Then I say, "Let's put it in the basket BEHIND
you." Heavy emphasis on the "behind" got Serena to learn
that particular preposition and its meaning very easily.
The supermarket cart seat is also good for "beside you"
and "next to you" and Mommy is standing "in front of
you." You can practice memory skills by asking "Do you
remember where we put the bananas? Yes, they're on the
seat next to you."
Throughout
the store we talk about shapes and sounds and textures.
"The peanut butter jar is round." "The macaroni
in this box makes a lot of noise when you shake it.
When the macaroni is cooked, does it still make noise?
No, soft things don't make much noise." "These potatoes
are dusty with dirt. They grow in the ground, right
in the dirt. We'll have to scrub them really well before
we cook them."
We
make a stop at the courtesy desk. "Mommy has to get
the check approved. Here, Serena, could you hold the
checkbook for me? Now hand it to me, please, and hold
my pen." I think using proper terms such as "courtesy
desk" and "approved" gives the child the best exposure
to the activity and expands the vocabulary as well.
Finally
to the checkout. "Serena, do you hear the cash registers
ringing? We're at the checkout counter now. Mommy is
putting the groceries on the conveyer belt. Do you want
to feel it move? Look, here are the pretzels we took
off the shelf before. I took them out of the basket
and put them up here. Now the cashier will tell me how
much money our groceries cost. As soon as I pay we can
take our groceries home."
Usually
by this time three packages of snacks are open, we are
both tired, and we can't wait to get home. But I know
the fatigue is worth it, because after every trip to
the market, Serena has learned at least a few things
and has further solidified the knowledge she had before.
She is more understanding of and drawn into the comings
and goings of the world around her.
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