School lunch has a lot of drama surrounding it. Chances are, your child’s school lunch program allots between $0.87-$3.00 per meal. We know that eating greener and healthier can be cheap, but school lunch programs lack the infrastructure nationally to make consistently healthy and frugal meals. Plenty of our favorite blogging parents have researched this issue to the core. They have all sorts of great ideas to fix our schools. Until then, many parents are packing the nutrition themselves. Here are some back-to-school lunch box tips that will satisfy their nutrition needs, pallet, and every school-kid’s need to look cool.
1. Rockin’ Lunch Boxes ONLY
Yes, the lunch box has to be cool. Paper sacks are not going to cut it. The greenest option is to reuse last year’s pail. Buying second hand items also reduces the need for new plastics and resins and keeps materials out of landfills. But reused items MUST be cool. Try decorating the old lunch pail with paints, goggly eyes, and other craft items. Salvaged decorations are even more eco-fabulous.
Encourage your child to choose a lunch pail that will be in fashion next year as well. Popular TV characters change so rapidly. Instead, check out a classic looking lunch box made from durable, recycled, or sustainable materials.
2. Food that Looks Cool
Kids share and trade lunches. They are curious about what their classmates eat. Lunch time is an opportunity for kids to learn that different families have different tastes and values. Lunches that look fun encourage healthy habits.
Wraps are a great way to make healthy foods look kid friendly. Veggie and hummus wraps can be sliced to make pinwheels. Rice wrappers make cool spring rolls out of fruit and nuts. Veggie sushi is also great for sophisticated lunch packers.
Fruits and veggies can be cut into fun shapes. Star fruit is easily sliced. Grab a V-blade slicer or food spiralizer to make salads more geometrically interesting.
3. Treats are Necessary
Always pack some kind of treat item so your child will be focused on his own lunch and not curious about the pizza and french fries across the table. A few teaspoons of carob chips and dried fruit might be a good treat for one child while a dill pickle spear (my life time personal favorite) would be ideal for another.
4. Special notes from Mom or Dad are ALWAYS good
Even for your high school student, a good luck charm for a test or a note that reminds them of a plan for a special weekend activity might be the boost your child needs.
This is so true. I have not allowed my kids to buy school lunch fir several years now. its just not worth the money. Finally this year the school system has put in a fresh fruit and salad bar but, who knows what the quality of the produce is like.