Maltese primary school children's breakfast habits : an exploratory study and pilot teaching programme

Abstract

The aim of this study was to explore Maltese children's breakfast practices and to encourage them to consume a healthy breakfast daily. Group-Interviews were carried out with Year 3 and Year 6 students to uncover their breakfast preferences and reasons for such choices. Results indicated that most of the children consumed breakfast daily but few took a balanced breakfast. Factors influencing consumption included family members, food products in supermarkets and grocery shops as well as food advertisements among others. Based on the outcomes of the interviews and using a cross-curricular approach, 10 lesson plans with worksheets (5 sets for each of Year 3 and Year 6) on the theme 'Breakfast' were developed and trialled. Feedback was sought from the teachers involved and this was considered in conjunction with the researcher's own critical reflection. Overall, the lessons were effective and teachers gave some useful suggestions for improvement. Given that parents/caregivers have a strong influence on children's food choices and are commonly the providers of food, a leaflet was produced to encourage more parents/caregivers to give their children a healthy breakfast. This leaflet was distributed to 110 parents/caregivers of Year 3 and Year 6 children and feedback was also sought from them. Most parents/caregivers had very positive comments about the leaflet and perceived it to be a practical source of information.