Vegetarian Kids, Teens, and Family

"Well-planned vegetarian diets are appropriate for individuals during all stages of the life cycle, including pregnancy, lactation, infancy, childhood, and adolescence...."

—Position of the American Dietetic Association: Vegetarian Diets
2009

Categories

1. Teen FAQs
2. Nutrition Information
3. Videos
4. VRG's Annual Essay Contest
5. How many kids are vegetarian?
6. Recipes
7. Educational Materials and Lesson Plans
8. Books for Young Vegetarians
9. Camps
10. Become a VRG Intern
11. Vegetarian Merchandise
12. Vegan Nutrition
13. Powerpoint
14. Additional Links
15. Veg Game

Teen FAQs

Click here to read answers to frequently asked questions from teenagers.

Nutrition Information

• Feeding Vegan Kids
• Vitamin A and Breastfed Babies
• Vegan Nutrition in Pregnancy and Childhood (PDF)
• Vegan Nutrition in Pregnancy
• Tips for Parents of Young Vegans
• Lactation and the Vegan Diet
• My Vegan Plate - Full color handout (vegan version of the USDA MyPlate)
• My Vegan Plate - Coloring Page (vegan version of the USDA MyPlate)
• Position of the American Dietetic Association: Vegetarian Diets (2009)
• Preventing Childhood Obesity
• The Vegan Teen Athlete
• Vegan Nutrition for Teenagers (PDF)
• Should Toddlers Be on a Low-Fat Veggie Diet? (March 16, 2016)
• A Dozen Excellent Websites for Nutrition and Health Information If Doing Research for School Papers or Nutrition Internships
• It's not just human toddlers that are fussy eaters (Colin Barras; April 3, 2017)
• Healthy Vegan Pregnancy Tips by Reed Mangels PhD RD

Also see Raising a Vegetarian Family, which contains materials from our Vegetarian Journal series Family Matters

Videos

• Vegetarian Videos

VRG's Annual Essay Contest

• Essay Contest Rules and Previous Winners
• Essay Contest Lesson Plan

How many kids are vegetarian?

Read more here: Eating Habits of Youth, ages 8 to 18

Recipes

• Can A "Real" Birthday Cake Be Vegan?
• Let's Party!
• Vegan Foods for Non-vegetarian 10-12 Year Olds

You can access our recipe sections at www.vrg.org/recipes, www.vrg.org/journal and www.vrg.org/nutshell/faqrecipes.htm.

VRG also publishes several cookbooks with quick and easy recipes. These including Simply Vegan, Conveniently Vegan, and Meatless Meals for Working People.

Our Guide to Fast Food might also be helpful.

Educational Materials and Lesson Plans

These materials are available. Send your mailing address and request to The VRG, PO Box 1463, Baltimore, MD 21203.

• I Love Animals and Broccoli Coloring Book
• El Arco Iris Vegetariano (Spanish coloring book)

These materials are available as a free download from our site. (Paper copies may also be available; please contact us for more information.)

• Lesson Plan for I Love Animals and Broccoli
• Teaching Youth about Veganism (lesson plan)
• Water Usage Math Worksheet (Middle/High School Level)
• Lesson Plan: Clean Water for Everyone Today and Tomorrow with Good Food Choices
• Veggie-Friendly Memory Cards for Kids (the classic game of Memory, with a veggie twist!)
• Veggie Counting Game for Kids
• Social Justice and Veganism (poster by JoAnn Farb - PDF)
• Vegetarianism in the Montessori School
• How to Do a Vegan Class at a Girls Inc.
• Making a Difference as a Vegan School Teacher
• Lesson Plan: Veggie Health for Kids (October 31, 2016)
• Being Vegan in a Foodservice Class (The VRG Blog; January 03, 2017)
• Wee Can Too Veggie Sidewalk Chalk-The Original
• I Love Animals and Broccoli
  • Puzzle
  • Shopping Basket
• Summer Camp Lesson Plan

Books for Young Vegetarians

The following list of veggie-friendly books was compiled by Dasha Bushmakin, Debra Wasserman, and Reed Mangels, PhD, RD with assistance from parents on The Vegetarian Resource Group's Parents Email list:

Young People's Books with Vegetarian or Animal Rights Themes (PDF)

Camps

• Vegan Camps - FAQs
• Vacations - Camps

Become a VRG Intern

VRG has intern openings. The job depends on your background, major, and interests. Tasks may include research, writing, and/or community outreach.

Journalism, English, Nutrition, and Business majors can gain valuable experience. Activists can learn new skills and knowledge, and share your expertise. Positions are open throughout the year for all ages. VRG internships are unpaid.

If interested, please send a current resume, writing samples, and a cover letter including the following information:

1. Why you want to intern for The Vegetarian Resource Group.
2. The type of experience that would interest you.
3. Your qualifications.

to:

Intern Position
The Vegetarian Resource Group
PO Box 1463
Baltimore, MD 21203

Vegetarian Merchandise

We have a few bumper stickers, buttons.

• 'Vegetarians Are Sprouting Up All Over' bumper stickers
• 'Vegetarians Have Good Hearts' envelope stickers
• 'Be Kind to Animals - Don't Eat Them' t-shirt
• VRG's merchandise on Zazzle (mugs, t-shirts, magnets, keychains & buttons)
• VRG Catalog (vegetarian and vegan cookbooks, nutrition information, and the Vegetarian Journal)

Vegan Nutrition

• Vegan Diets in a Nutshell
• Vegan Nutrition for Teenagers
• Healthy Vegan Pregnancy Tips by Reed Mangels PhD RD

Powerpoint

• Other Resources

Additional Links

• Vegetarian Parenting links
• Youth & Educator Resources
• Dr. Reed Mangels continues talking about the Vegan Life Cycle (The Dr Don Show)
• School-age children and vegetarian/vegan diets with Reed Mangels, PhD, RD
• VRG's Nutrition Advisor Reed Mangels, RD, PhD, was on the Dr. Don Show to speak about vegetarian diets in infants.
• Intro to Plant-Based Eating (pdf by Suzanne Sorensen, RD, LD, CDE)
• 13 Great Vegetarians From History
• What do home schoolers and vegetarians have in common?
• The Best Vegan Mac N Cheese According to the Kids