Recently I had the opportunity to share how I use third grade skills in my everyday life. I recorded a video of myself for my son’s third grade class and discussed the importance of information writing. I shared my process for researching, gathering information, interviewing experts, and publishing my work. I was shocked with how interested the kids were and psyched that my son wasn’t embarrassed by me. Maybe I am a cool mom?

I learned a ton from them, too. For instance, I learned that one of their favorite parts of my discussion was when I spoke about an article, I had written that discussed foods for eye health. I mentioned that carrots can help them to see at night. They loved it!

They loved my talk so much that they had a list of follow-up questions. The first question was if other foods can help them see at night. I responded that foods containing certain compounds, lutein, and zeaxanthin support eye health, like focusing and seeing at night. These compounds are found in foods such as, broccoli, Brussels sprouts, cauliflower, cabbage, kale, spinach, sweet potatoes, summer squash, winter squash, apricots, avocado, blackberries, blueberries, orange, pumpkin, and strawberries.

The next day my third grader ran out of school saying how his class loved my answers. For those of you who work with kids, have kids, or have even been a kid (I guess that’s all of us!) you know that kids can be a challenging audience. I considered this a mom win.

This specific school age group appreciated the fun and juicy facts, but younger children may not get it. They need to know how foods taste, smell, and feel. If you are trying to get your child to eat a new vegetable explain how it tastes, smells, looks and grows. Let them touch it, smell it, nibble it and dare say, “play with it.” Try not to get frustrated if it takes time to get them to try new things. How you speak to children about fruits and vegetables really depends on their age.

Pro-tip: Follow @kids.eat.in.color for wonderful age-appropriate tips on how to talk to kids about fruits and vegetables.