When Asher ate eggs for the first time at 9 months old and immediately broke out in hives, I knew we were likely starting a food allergies journey. He was later diagnosed with a peanut, tree nut, and severe egg allergy. We’ve been fortunate that he’s been able to pass quite a few food challenges in the past couple of years and has “eliminated” a few of these food allergies. Aiden has also had some food allergy issues due to FPIES (Food Protein Induced Enterocolitis Syndrome).
In general, we’ve planned to stay pretty nonchalant about the boys’ food allergies and have mostly tried not to bring undue attention and stigma to it. However, as the both get older, Asher needs to know a few more basics about his allergies and Aiden’s. We want him to be prepared in case of an exposure whether he is with us or somewhere else. We also want him to be aware of the things that Aiden can’t eat so that he doesn’t sweetly offer to share those foods with him. The more I thought about it, I realized we could teach him about food allergies in the same way he’s learned about many things so far- in a straightforward, Montessori-inspired, practical way! So, these are some of the Montessori-inspired allergy resources we’re using right now:
Montessori-Friendly Allergy Books for Kids
one | Trade-or-Treat Halloween: This series is the cutest! In this book, a group a friends trade their Halloween treats they’re allergic to for other surprises. This is a great conversation-starter!
two | Dairy-Free Dino-Licous Dig: Another book from the “No Biggie Bunch” series. The kids in this book have a fun dino dig together and enjoy allergen-free snacks while they dig.
three | Sports-Tastic Birthday Party: This is another great book for food allergy conversations with toddlers! It teaches kids about food allergies at birthday parties and that while they are serious, they still can have fun with their friends!
four | Peanut-Free Tea for Three: Another of the “No Biggie Bunch” series. In this book, three friends enjoy allergy-friendly snacks together at a tea party. Asher loves all of the books in this series and I love that they help show that food allergies don’t have to get in the way of fun!
five | Food Allergies: This is such an informative book for toddlers! It goes over the basics of food allergies and teaches kids about EpiPens, possible reactions, and allergy sensitivity. Asher likes all of the real photographs and factual information!
six | Can I Have Some Cake Too?: A sweet book that tells about a girl who wonders if she can eat the cake at her friend’s party. She waits and follows her mom’s directions to see if she can have the cake, but it isn’t easy for her. This one has been great for teaching about how friends can help with food allergies and how patience is important.
seven | Why Can’t I Have a Cupcake?: I love that this one helps kids to see that other kids have to avoid certain foods, too!
eight | Ok 4 Me 2 Eat: This one gives a great explanation of the top 8 food allergens and examples of foods they might be in (all from the perspective of a young kid with multiple food allergies!) This has been one of my favorite resources.
nine | Starting School with a Food Allergy: This book uses real photos to tell the story of a boy who is starting kindergarten but has a peanut allergy. It gives awesome tips on how kids can stay safe and have fun at school, and even has places for kids to put a picture of their own food allergies and the tools they use if they have an allergic reaction.
Montessori-Inspired Allergy Language Cards
These food allergen language cards have been perfect for giving Asher some visuals of the food he is allergic to, as well as what Aiden is allergic to! He’s been able to verbalize his allergies for awhile now, but I recently realized that certain foods like tree nuts are tricky to have a visual construct of, especially since we don’t keep them around the house. As he gets older, he will need to be aware of not only what his allergies are, but also what they look like. These Montessori-inspired language cards help to give him those visuals. I printed the cards on cardstock, used a corner rounder for the corners, and then laminated with my home laminator. Many food allergens are also found as ingredients in multiple foods, so the cards don’t give kids all of the possible scenarios, but they give a few good basic ideas.
This card set I made includes his allergies as well as some forms of the other top 8 food allergens (and a few random foods that Aiden has FPIES reactions to). To get a free download of these food allergen language cards we’ve been using, head on over to my subscription page or use the form below. Signing up will give you access to the free printables library which includes these cards and so much more!
Sign up to access the free, Montessori-inspired food allergen cards:
Montessori-Inspired Allergy “Tool” Cards
Thankfully, we’ve never had to use Asher’s EpiPen and I pray we never have to. Either way, I’d like him to know what it looks like and just have a general sense of what it is just in case. From my years of teaching special education, I truly believe that giving kids preparation or “front loading” beforehand is a valuable strategy in so many situations. I think this also applies to allergic reactions- if we have to use the EpiPen it would all happen very quickly and I think it will be helpful if Asher has at least seen some images of it before. We’ve used a set of language cards I created for that, and simply say that these are the items or “tools” that can help to keep him safe.
This card set is also available for free download using the sign-up form above. Once you have confirmed your sign-up, you’ll receive an email that will give you a password for the free printables library. You can use the sign-up form above or go to the subscription page. This set includes images of Benadryl, an EpiPen carrying case, EpiPens, and a generic Adrenaclick injector.
Overall, we don’t bring a lot of attention to the boys’ allergies, but as they both get older I want them to have enough education and awareness about it for safety purposes. These Montessori-inspired allergy resources have been helpful in exposing Asher to some basics, but also showing that food allergies don’t have to interfere with fun! How do you help your young kids to be aware of food allergies?
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