How to plan a menu for long day care
When preparing meals for children it is important to plan ahead so that the meals provided offer the right variety of food to help children meet their nutrition and developmental needs.
Planning a menu makes preparing meals easier and also helps with shopping for ingredients, time management and budgeting.
The following steps will help you to plan a menu that meets Menu planning guidelines for long day care.
Before getting started
- Check how many children you are planning for
- Check for any special dietary considerations including allergies and intolerances
- Review your recipe collection and think about new meal ideas if necessary
- Plan a two-week menu using the Menu planning checklist and steps in this resource
Follow these steps and refer to the sample menu template on the next page to develop a menu for your centre.
- Print four copies of the sample menu template on the next page (or create your own). Label each menu according to season, date, and week number.
- Use two different two-week menu cycles to develop a seasonal menu that covers four weeks:
- A four week summer menu
- A four week winter menu
- Fill in all main meals using the criteria outlined in the Menu planning guidelines for long day care. Include details about ingredients used in recipes.
- Add morning tea, afternoon tea and drinks.
- Use the Menu planning checklist for long day care to ensure that morning tea, lunch and afternoon tea provide a balance of foods.
- If your centre provides breakfast or a late snack, add these to the menu template.
For more information please phone 1300 22 52 88 or email heas@nnf.org.au
Except where otherwise indicated, the images in this document show models and illustrative settings only, and do not necessarily depict actual services, facilities or recipients of services. This document may contain images of deceased Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples. In this document, ‘Aboriginal’ refers to both Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people. ‘Indigenous’ or ‘Koori/Koorie’ is retained when part of the title of a report, program or quotation. Copyright © State of Victoria 2016
Written and reviewed by dietitians and nutritionists at National Nutrition Foundation, with support from the Victorian Government.
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The Healthy Eating Advisory Service acknowledges the Traditional Owners of the land on which we operate. We pay our respects to them, their culture and their Elders past and present.
The Healthy Eating Advisory Service is delivered by experienced nutritionists and dietitians at National Nutrition Foundation, with support from the Victorian Government.
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