Grocery Store

Discussion in 'Homeschooling' started by myfourmonkeys, Sep 27, 2009.

  1. myfourmonkeys

    myfourmonkeys New Member

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    Hi ladies,

    This is my first year homeschooling and I need some help.

    There are days where I will need to take the kids to the grocery store just for the sake of getting it done, it just isn't an option not to...so, I need some ideas on how to make this a scool event. I have a 9th and 2nd grader.

    Thanks a million!
     
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  3. TeacherMom

    TeacherMom New Member

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    oh cool! well for the 9th grader you can have him/her calculate how much you are spending and figure the tax before it gets to the register and see how close student is to the actual price.
    You can also look at the little lables that say how much per ounce and have them calculate how many ounces it will be for what you want etc\
    Younger child can learn weight at the vegie area, how much per lb? how many Lbs so how much will it cost - for older one -- have her/him explain to younger one.

    You can also have younger one subtract from amount of cash you will spend the amount owed and see how close she gets to the change.

    Home ec can be done by older one doing a menu for at least one meal, then making a list of what they need to cook it, then finding those things on own in the store.

    younger one can help find things by reading the store signs... allkinds of things!
     
  4. Emma's#1fan

    Emma's#1fan Active Member

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    I just glazed over the last post so forgive me if I am repeating anything.

    You can have your children write out the list. When you are shopping, have your oldest add up the groceries as you shop. The younger child can add up the number of items you are purchasing. Give your children a set amount of money they are allowed to spend for themselves and have them do the math as to how much they are spending. Have them look for items on sale and see if they can figure out how much they are saving per item.
    Compare prices. As long as you are around, have your son help the elderly carry their groceries to their car. Have you younger child compare expiration dates.
    When you get home, they can put the groceries away in an organized fashion. Have the younger child put can goods in alphabetical order.

    Have fun!
     
  5. chicamarun

    chicamarun New Member

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    Also have them figure out the value/better price of name-brand vs non-named brand :)
     
  6. Crunchy

    Crunchy New Member

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    You could also teach about the careers that made the grocery foods possible--from the farmer, to the truck driver, factory worker, to the purchaser, stocker, baker, butcher, manager etc..

    You could teach geography by making some kind of book or map, then putting marks or writing the names of the items in the store form that place or state. e.g. Ghiardelli chocolate--San Francisco, California..tobasco--Louisiana etc. Fruits & vegetables often have stickers that could be collected & made into a poster of some kind at home. How many things can they find that are made/grown in your state? Can you go visit those factories/farms?

    Often grocery stores offer tours to kids and will give them a coupon for a free something or other.

    I love the math ideas that the other Moms have suggested. I'll add that learning to estimate at the store really helped my son. It was difficult for him to walk with me and add, but the rounding and estimating worked great. That's the way I do it in my own head, too=)

    But sometimes, if you just want to shop and get it over with, it's okay. Don't concern yourself with what others may think of you walking around with school aged children. The rare time that someone may ask mu kids why they aren't in school, I jump in and say "We homeschool, so they are always in school" then smile really warmly like what I'm doing is divine and beyond reproach. Never has anyone said anything rude about hs to me--but then again I AM in Texas=)>
     
  7. skyecamp

    skyecamp New Member

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    Health/Nutrition: compare labels, look for foods low in fat, low in sodium, without high fructose corn syrup or dyes
    Science: learn about how many calories are in fats, proteins, carbohydrates and compare different brands
    Math: teach weights/measurements; create budget
    Home Ec: choose a recipe, find the ingrediants, make it at home
    Social Studies: choose another culture, learn what they eat and find foods in store for recipes to make
     
  8. BLeigh

    BLeigh New Member

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    So many great ideas!! Can't wait to try some of them.

    We've always taken our girls to the store with us and have used it as a learning tool from the beginning. They knew what almost all the fruits and vegetables were by the time they were two. Every now and then we see something unique and they get super excited to learn about it. One thing we're planning is making a platter of the exotic fruits in our local store. So many interesting tastes and textures that they've not experienced yet. Also are using trips right now to learn how to choose the best deal. It's fun for them to pick the lowest priced item. My hubby and I discussed letting each of them make a dinner menu and help with the whole process...especially the cooking part. They have had a great time looking through our cookbooks.
     
  9. chicamarun

    chicamarun New Member

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    I let my kids know we have a budget as well. So we have to make SMART decisions (which we don't always do - but we are working on it). For our kids though some things I have to teach because we raise our own meats so they don't always account for that in the budget.
     
  10. ABall

    ABall Super Moderator

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    have them help you put together a menu using the store ad. Write down the price on your list and use it to compare price of other brands the same item. (like store brand VS: Hunts tomato sauce)

    Have one keep up with coupons and compare how much you save VS: how much you saved (this week we spent $51 and saved $58) ---- keep a little chart and find out if you see better coupons or better ads during a certian time of the month, ---- our therory is that there are better sales at the end of the month. (but we have not written it down)

    how much area is your cabinet or pantry? can you stock up on ceral when its on sale? how much space will it take up if you buy 6 boxes of Kix cereal? (in my cabinet I can stack the boxes of cake mix laying flat but where I can see the top so I know what flavor they are but it takes less space than having them standing up singly)

    Have the kids figure out how they can cut down on the grocery bill (if its possible) and let them divide that savings between them to get a game or something they want at the end of the month with the savings.

    if they are savy with the computer have them write companies (ones of brands you really like) and send them an E-mail ( most of the brand websites) have automatic forms) and say how much they like the product, include your (mom's) name and your address...... see what happens .............. most the time you will get cents off coupons or even free stuff.
     
  11. Deena

    Deena New Member

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    As you teach them comparison shopping, remember to ahve them look at amounts. Sometimes one thing LOOKS like a better deal, and the containers are the same size, but if you look at amount (like ounces), one is often smaller than the other, just made to look bigger! Have them turn bottles of things upside down and see how far up the bottom actually goes! Some have flat bottoms, some go quite a ways up inside, making it look likemore than it really is. Help them know how to look for things like that!

    My ds, who just turned 16, knows all about shopping, where everything is in the stores we use, how to find the best price, and read the label for ingredients. We use as little corn syrup as possible, and try not to use anything with MSG in it. He is a GREAT shopper. Then he comes home and cooks whole meals. He makes a mean banana bread too! People at church were always asking him to bring it to church potlucks!

    He learned all that just from going shopping with me (all three kids), and we'd talk about it, I'd ask them to tell me which one to get, based on label, ingredients and size, etc. It was like a game, and all three of them are quite good at it! In fact, sometimes I get in a hurry and don't take the time to read the lael, and they'll catch me on it, and show me why a different brand would be better to get! I tell them their spouses will love them! :)

    Also, have your older explain things to the younger--peer tutoring. They both seem to learn better that way!

    Make it fun, and they'll learn lots!

    Oh, and remember to have you and the kids prepared for nosy people saying, "What? No school today?" or something like that. You can say, "Oh yes, we're homeschoolers, and you should see all the things we're learning on this trip! Did you realize that......" and launch into some explanation of some product or size differences, or why it's better to get vegetarian fed, free-roaming, hen eggs, etc.! :)
     
  12. Jackie

    Jackie Active Member

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    (Not having read what everyone else wrote....)

    I would have them help compose the grocery list, plan meals, etc. You might even want to turn your entire food budget over to them for a few weeks, and see how they are able to handle it....
     
  13. myfourmonkeys

    myfourmonkeys New Member

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    Thank you all for all of the excellent ideas! There is enough here to make the shopping interesting for quite a long time!
     
  14. Snipet

    Snipet New Member

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    My 11 year old daughter goes to the store with me all the time and here lately it is like this - "Ok, we have $15.00 to buy stuff until we get paid on next Friday." We will sit down and see what we have and make out a menu that will get us through to the next payday based on what we have and what we can buy for $15.00. Then we go to Aldi's (of course) and buy the things on our list - don't forget the outragious tax 9% - 10% depending on where you shop. It helps to teach her to live within a budget and plan ahead for when things are lean.
     
  15. Jackie

    Jackie Active Member

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    A few years back, we were boycotting P&G products, which REALLY made a change for us, since we bought so much of their stuff to begin with. Rachael would grab someting, like TIDE or CREST, to put in our cart, and I would stop her. "P&G makes that. Let's see if we can get a different brand...." So she learned quickly to notice the company, too. She'd start asking before picking it up if it were P&G, and then look to see who it was.
     

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