Drink More Water

StartSmart Pilot School : Telford Garden Kindergarten

《The Magical Aqua Formula of the Witch》
Drink water instead of chemical beverages

Stage 1: Introduction

Most people like buying beverages in convenience stores or beverage chains when they are thirsty. In fact, has it ever come to your mind that most beverages are merely composed of water, sugar and other chemicals, and that they will affect the health of children and even adults?

Children need 6 to 8 cups of fluid every day. Water is the best choice while low-fat milk, low-fat soya milk and soup are also preferred. A lot of people think that fruit juices are healthy and can replace fruit. Yet drinking too much fruit juices will easily cause tooth decay and might as well lead to obesity. Therefore, eating the whole fruit is recommended.

Teachers in Telford Garden Kindergarten first conducted outdoor games with the pupils. They felt thirsty and were encouraged to drink water together. In this way, they could directly experience the benefits of drinking water and practise what they had learnt. Also, through the ‘Magical Aqua Formula of the Witch’ story-telling session, children learnt that soft drinks and other sugary beverages (like fruit juices) have adverse effect on our body. They realised that a healthy eating habit begins with drinking water and eating fresh fruit.

Stage 2: Start Smart!

Live: The Witch’s Harmful Beverage

Objective: As water is the most convenient and preferred choice of drinks, children should learn the benefits of drinking water to the human body and hence its importance, then they can develop a regular habit of drinking 6 to 8 cups of water every day.

Time: 30 minutes

Materials: Balloon parachutes, pictures of the story ‘The Magical Aqua Formula of the Witch’.

Let’s GO!

1. Stimulate motivation: The teacher first set off the balloon parachute with the children in an outdoor area. Children will then feel thirsty after the game and drink water together in the classroom.
2. Activity time:
   1. Ask children what they want when they feel thirsty. How do they feel after drinking water?
   2. The teacher shows the pictures and tells the story ‘The Magical Aqua Formula of the Witch’. Children learn from the story that water is a thirst quencher, and that they should drink enough water and eat fresh fruit every day.
   3. The teacher then discusses with the kids: When should we drink water every day? How many cups of water do we need? Apart from quenching thirst, what are the benefits of drinking water? The teacher should also explain that soft drinks and tetra-pak fruit juices have high sugar content, which may cause tooth decay. Fresh fruits contain more dietary fibre and less sugar than fruit juices. Therefore, whole fruit is more recommended.
   4. The teacher continues to explain that water is the best option. He/she also reminds the pupils that we should drink boiled water only and that water not boiled contains bacteria and germs, which can lead to illnesses.

Conclusion

Throughout the activity, children drank water more frequently and succeeded in building a habit of drinking 6 to 8 cups of water every day. They can now tell the benefits of such a habit and, and they understand that water is more healthy than other sugary beverages such as fruit juices and soft drinks. Water contains no sugar, fats or calories and will not cause tooth decay.