Culture and community of children's mealtimes: A constructed grounded theory of mealtimes in early childhood education and care settings

The majority of Australian preschool aged children attend Early Childhood Education and Care (ECEC) services, and mealtimes are a feature of every child's day at ECEC. However, little is known about how guidelines are interpreted in practice, how mealtimes are enacted or how children and educators interact during mealtimes. This PhD research examined mealtime practices in ECEC services, children's behaviours during mealtimes and the perspectives of educators of mealtimes in ECEC services. The results were used to develop a grounded theory to explain the unique culture and community created by children and their educators during mealtimes