At the very beginning, I would keep my goals simple and work slowly as the children become more comfortable with the format, increasing the meaty content as time goes by. Expect children to be shy at the beginning and hesistant to respond. Perhaps learning a rhyme might be a nice ice breaker.
En este almuerzo, [At this lunch]
hacemos el esfuerzo [we make an effort]
de hablar español [to speak Spanish.]
¡Sí, sí, sí! [Yes, yes, yes!]
Model simple useful phrases like "Please use your napkin." "Please, sit up straight." "Please clean up the table." "Did you wash your hands?" and have children practice them in a fun way around the table. Essential vocabulary includes eating utensils, food names, and parts of the meal – beverage, dessert, etc.
Consider making the target language luncheon a privilege, something to work as a reward within the classroom format. Consider limiting the group to six older children at the beginning, pulling names out of a hat and keeping track of who has/has not attended. Once the word spreads that it is a good thing, you will have children clamoring to be in that special group and will have to come up with an invitation-only method. Perhaps creating special stickers out of mailing labels and colorful clipart to wear the day of the lunch would make the experience something to look forward to in the middle of the busy school day. An attractive sign at the table would be a plus. Most children at my small PK-4 school (200+ students) really love to eat lunch with former and present teachers. Our former principal used to have a birthday lunch once a month with those children born in that month. The children really look forward to these privileges. You might use birthday months as a selector.
I would focus on the foods the children are actually eating. Using the cafeteria menus ahead of time, simple questions and exchanges might center around colors, textures (soft/hard), preferences (I like/don't like), food groups in the Food Pyramid, where foods originally came from (New World vs. Old World), where food grows (place in US, tree vs. bush vs. ground) etc. while children eat. Extra interest would be found in any brought-from-home-food.
Nutrition resources for conversation starters appear on
With César Chávez's birthday coming up on March 31, it would be wonderful to mention the farm workers who toil daily in the fields to bring us our fruits and vegetables. "Can this food be harvested by machine or must it be done by hand?"
I think then it would be good eventually to have a special conversation extender -- some authentic cultural object (toy, game, artifact) to talk about.
Bringing in a new food to share would be another option, provided you have no allergic children in the group.
Of course, do allow time for the children to eat in a relaxed atmosphere. Don't have a real solid agenda, but watch for opportunites to build upon.
However, the only problem I foresee is the noise level in the cafeteria. Would it be possible to arrange to meet in some other quiet space as children need to use their listening abilities to be able to respond effectively?
¡Buen provecho! Enjoy your meal!
