The Eating Game and Kid Companions Chewelry Team Up for Promotion

From Nov 27 – Dec 10, 2010, order The Eating Game and receive a
FREE Kid Companions Chewelry

It is called a GAME but it is much more! The Eating Game, www.theeatinggame.ca invented by Jean Nicol  provides a very visual, structured, hands on tool that can be a fun way to plan healthy meals every day! Great to team up with the parent resource ~ The Eating Game ~ for a promotion. After a balanced meal, redirect chewing or biting urge to Kid Companions chewable fidgets. Child does not have to eat when he is not hungry just for oral gratification.

What is Kid Companions Chewelry

Kid Companions Chewelry was invented by Pierrette d'Entremont. These chewy fidgets, heart or circle shaped, worn around the neck, in belt hoops or clipped are bought online at www.chewelry.ca  or Special Needs stores. Kid Companions are COOL SENSORY ORAL-MOTOR TOOLS for kids and teens. Safe, stylish and effective, they are a perfect alternative to chewable, fidgeting toys less than discreet to be used at school, at home or during transitions allowing your special child to BLEND IN. More information see previous post here

About The Eating Game

As soon as you open the well packaged The Eating Game box, you know that great care went in preparing this meal planning tool. My grandchildren and I had fun getting to know The Eating Game. Here is what we wish to share with you.

Who is Jean Nicol

For more than 30 years, Jean was immersed in the field of education as an elementary and secondary teacher. In addition to dedicating 20 of those years to Special Education with a keen interest in working with children with Autism, Jean has served as an Autism Consultant and an Early Interventionist for families with children with special needs.

The inventor of The Eating Game, has a Bachelor of Education from St. Francis Xavier University. She also holds a degree in Nutrition from ST. F.X. and completed a Special Education Specialist program at the University of Ottawa. So YES she has all the experience and creditials needed to come up with this much needed resource.

Is The Eating Game Durable

Good quality paper has been laminated to withstand use by many little hands who will find pleasure in helping adults in their life plan healthy meals. The laminated pages, handily organized and protected in a ring binder can be easily removed and replaced.

What Age Group Would Use This Meal and Snack Planner

You will find nine laminated Daily Planning guides, one for each of the 9 categories of individuals (ages 2-3, ages 4-8, ages 9-13, females ages 14-18,… males ages 51+) Each guide follows Canada’s Food Guide by having the recommended number of food item servings per day needed for that age group and gender ( when applicable ).

Each Daily Planning guide has columns to plan three meals and three snacks eaten on one day. Everything, pictures and daily planning guides are color coded to correspond with the included Canada’s Food Guide.

Is The Eating Game Easy to Use

Yes, all is color coded and easy to use. For example:

* The vegetable and fruit products are GREEN in Canada’s Food Guide which says a child aged 4-6 should have 5 servings.

 *The Daily Planning guide for that age group has 5 GREEN squares here and there under the columns of meals or snacks.

*A laminated page with 63 clearly recognizable vegetables and fruits on a GREEN background is among the 4 food group pages. These small food picture squares are attached by Velcro

on the food group page and reattaches on the Daily Planning guides the same way.

Who Controls the Choices the User Will MakeThe parent or caregiver is in control of what choices the user (child) will see on the food group charts. Jean tells us to remove before hand, pictures of foods you never buy, foods the user will not eat and foods you do not have on hand. When the choices on the food group pages are presented, the user is in control, limited only by color matching to ensure all food groups are eaten everyday.

Who Benefits from The Eating Game
Jean Nicol thought of everything to make this kit durable, efficient and fun to use. Not only would Special Need families benefit from The Eating Game; but all families who want to encourage their children to eat healthily. Furthermore, it is a great way to introduce new foods, learn the names of new foods and learn to read them as they are typed under each picture.

Planning meals in advance during a stress free time, perhaps the evening before, will ensure happier meal times for all family members.

 Jean has an information sheet with suggestions for getting started and also another page with suggestions for using the kit… told you Jean was very thorough when she created this wonderful resource. Furthermore The Eating Game is available in English, French and Mi’kmaq.

Want more information see previous post:  About The Eating Game and Jean Nicol, the Inventor

What have been your tactics to get a problem eater to eat balance meals?

There is a New Kid Companion on Our Block

“Mothers know best” when it comes to their Special Needs children." This mantra has guided many decisions in families and hopefully in our school system. So naturally Pierrette d’Entremont, designer of Kid Companions, took seriously the pleas of distraught moms who told her no cool, sensory chewable fidgets were available for their older children, especially for boys. Kid Companions went to work and may we introduce you to “A new Kid on our Block"

Our new, Blue, fidget chewy, adds another choice to our circled, sensory oral-motor tool Kid Companions line. You now have three attractive color choices: black, white and our new,

Kid in Blue. The circled shaped rubbery, chewable fidgets are smooth and pleasing with a hard embossed “dot”.
Tweens, Teens and Cool little boys seem to favor our circle shapes. Stylish and very discreet, these circle shapes can blend in but be easily accessible as a chewing or fidgeting tool when you need it.

Still want to wear it like a fashionable necklace?

Our 18’’ or 20’’colorful lanyards are now 100% organic cotton! They are colorfast and pre-washed with plant-based ingredients. MUCH more durable than our original rayon/cotton ones and still washable!  

Our lanyards can be personalize with style, color and contact information. We can heat press name and information in three choices of fonts: print, typed or swishy. Example-John Smith 514- 2005 Autism. Moreover, the lanyards can be sold separately, can be used for any pendant or ID badge and can also be personalized. More about lanyards here

Do you have a lanyard chewer?

Our new undyed cotton is a good choice. These undyed lanyards 100% cotton and non-allergenic. Personalized printing looks GREAT on them too!

The comfortable lanyards have a custom breakaway clasp that will release and can be re-attached with ease. This means no more lost, dropped or thrown mouthing and fidgeting aids. The breakaway is small and lays flat. It was designed specifically for children and conforms to ASTM toy safety standard! It is also BPA, lead and phthalate free.

Another unique feature that renders Kid Companions attractive to tween and teens are the new clips. Clipping the fidget anywhere you want it to be…clothing, pocket, belt, school bag. Discreetly accessible at all times.

If circles are not your thing, you can always opt for our heart shaped pendants with an added oval dip similar in shape and function as a worry stone. We now have a NEW  black heart for TWEEN and TEEN girls to blend in!

All Kid Companions are safe, bpa, phthalate, pvc, lead and latex free. Our materials are economical as possible without compromising safety or social  responsibility.

All our products are durable, washable, and fashionable. Furthermore, we already have a CPSIA compliance certificate that covers our complete line.

Made in Canada, sourced in USA or Canada, Kid Companions allow special children to relax, to focus and to learn. Tweens, teens, their parents and their teachers will surely welcome the new Kid and all our Kid Companions, chewelry.

Tell us about your experience with chewies or fidgets as a tool for your Special Needs child.