The best way to raise vegetarian children is to start them early—the younger, the better. You definitely give your children a healthy lifestyle from an early age when you raise them vegetarian. Since younger children usually adapt to different foods better than older children, the young ones are more willing to try something new.

Look at any two-year old. You will soon realize that children do not remain adaptable and open to new things for long. This means most parents must "convert" an older child to vegetarianism.

Vegetarian parents of older children normally face four problems:

Visit a Farm or Farmer's Market.
Visit a farm if possible. If not, take a trip to a nearby farmer's market. Go during a slow time of the day so farmers can talk. Have a list of questions to ask the farmer while your kids listen. Let your child ask questions, too. Most farmers are "child friendly" and more than willing to explain the farming process to your child.

Grow a Garden.
Let your kids see the entire growing process of vegetables. Even a very  small garden plot can supply many vegetables for your family. Expect your children's involvement in the gardening process from planting seeds, to composting, to harvesting the veggies.  If you do not have a few square feet for a garden, grow some herbs and vegetables in containers.

Never lie!
Children know a veggie burger is not a hamburger. Do not tell them it tastes or even looks the same. Do provide extra helpings of condiments to mask the taste for the first few months of your family's  "switch."

Go slow; be subtle.
Most parents know pressuring children to do anything can send them rushing down the opposite path. Place two bites of one new vegetarian food on their plate at a meal. Ask them to taste it. That’s all. If possible, do not tell them what it is until they have tasted it.

Keep servings small and let them ask for second helpings rather than heaping a plate with food.

If you keep their foods looking as much the same as possible, your children will be more likely to try new foods without thinking.

Examples:

• Use your blender to disguise any food for inclusion in a sauce.
• Add TVP to a pasta or marinara sauce. 
• Serve tofu in a stir-fry or fruit smoothie.
• Mix new greens such as kale or collard with romaine lettuce in a salad or chop greens quite fine for a stir-fry or pasta sauce. 
• Add new veggies to a bean and vegetable taco.
• Condiments like soy sauce, catsup, salsa, mustard, relish, and pico de gallo add customary tastes to new foods.
• Use a favorite salad dressing or even salsa over cooked or raw vegetables.
• Use vegetables for dips such as hummus or salsa.
• Oil makes foods taste good. Add extra olive oil at first, cutting back gradually.
• Chunky peanut butter and honey, dissolved in hot water (never cook honey) with a touch of soy sauce, make a good sauce for new vegetables--kind of a sweet and salty Thai taste.

Let your children choose.
Take your children to health food store, farmer's market, or vegetable section of the super market. Let them choose what they want to eat. Many foods have similar   nutrients. Let your children choose their meals at first, even if it means cooking, different meals for different children during the conversion.

Children also prefer different brands of products like veggie burgers, soy sausage, and other meat analogs. Indulge their special tastes for a few months, at least.

Evolve healthy!
Although your final goal is a diet of whole, unprocessed, and fresh foods, first go all vegetarian.  Keep potato chips, canned fruits, white rice, chocolate almond milk, and cookies in your child's diet from time-to-time. Slowly evolve to whole grains,  fresh fruits, new vegetables, legumes, and unprocessed foods.

Remain positive!
You are working against old habits, some peer pressure, and the personalities of your children. Don't expect this conversion to happen quickly. Keep trying. The lifelong health of your child is the prize here!