It’s August (already) – the time of year when people are relaxing and enjoying their summer holidays. Its also the time of year when some parents get very nervous and scared and even a bit weepy about the start of the school year. I remember myself last year – I was so nervous about my then 4 year old going to Kindergarten. I worried for weeks, about the smallest things:
- Would he make friends?
- Would he be sad when I left?
- Would he eat his snack?
- Would he be able to put on his coat on his own?
- Would he be able to wipe his own bum if he needed to?
Even thinking about it now, it makes me emotional and that was a year ago. But this year he is going into Grade 1, which means a full day at school. I’m more worried about this than anything I was worried about last year. The reason? Lunchtime. My son is the PICKIEST eater. Its painful – and its an entirely other post. I could go on and on about this kids’ eating habits, about his gag reflex and his refusal to even try something new, unless it looks like a cookie. His lunches at home are usually hot lunches, but I need help putting together lunch ideas for him, and that’s where you come in. I need to start implementing these now to get him used to what school lunches will look like.
I need your help. I need your advice and suggestions for lunches. What do you give your younger kids for lunch at school? The more ideas the better. Do I sound desperate? I am. Please leave your lunch help in the comments so that I can refer back to them – I have a feeling I will need to often. Thank you!
{ 22 comments… read them below or add one }
One thing that I learned was that it’s amazing what kids will eat when away from their parents. Unless his pickiness is based on a medical issue, you may be surprised by what new tastes he develops. I personally don’t send lunches with my daughter, she eats the lunch there. One thing you might try is to get your son to tell you what some of the other kids are bringing. If he talks enthusiastically about their lunches you may just expand his selections that way. And get to know the other mommies….and ask what they are sending with their children.
I would suggest (since you say that you give him hot lunches) to try whatever maybe left over from your dinner the night before. Pasta, macaroni and cheese, chicken nuggets. All of these are great ideas because 1. If he ate it for dinner then he would surely eat it for lunch 2. If heated really well in the morning and contained in something insulated it will still be warm but another plus is that they all taste descent at room temperature.
Try simple things that you know he likes, if its a cheese sandwich then that’s what you give him. Try to please his taste buds but remember that YOU are the mommy. If he is hungry he will eat it regardless. As a preschool teacher for about 6 years I will tell you that the previous responder is right, a child’s eating pattern can change drastically when they are not around mom and dad.
I have a 4 and 6yo both who I have been sending to school since they were 3. Though our school has provided hot lunch, they never really enjoyed the hot lunch and actually look forward to the “surprise lunch” we pack for them each day. What has worked really well has been…
1) leftover pasta (tomato, cheese, pesto) – even if its lukewarm (in a thermos), it is a favorite.
2) do-it-yourself sushi rolls – I make sushi rice and put it in a small container and put seasoned seaweed sheets in a bag. The kids can then make their own sushi rolls.
3) barbecued chicken legs – this is an easy one (again from the dinner left-over genre). Even cold, this is a convenient and tasty one.
4) left over cold pizza – get them started early for college! Again dinner/lunch left-over. Tastes good even the day after.
5) do-it-yourself lunchables – we pack a variety of small cold-cuts (ham, salami), cheese and an assortment of crackers. They enjoy the process of building their own lunch and it keeps the crackers from getting soggy
6) cheese roll-ups. In the morning, just before leaving, I will microwave cheese in a flour tortilla for about 30 seconds. Quickly roll it up and wrap it in a sheet of foil. This keeps the tortilla moist and relatively warm enough through lunch.
We also sometimes put in a personal note/recent photo of a special event into the lunch box, just to remind them that we are thinking of them.
Would love to hear other ideas.
I’ve got nothing because I’ve got the easiest eaters, so far. My girls were happy with PB&J every single day. If we had chicken noodle soup at home, they would eat the leftovers in their lunch the next day. I only let them buy lunch once a week, otherwise it is too expensive.
You’re on the right track by starting now though, if you want him to eat more things. Good luck!
This is sorta off topic, but…my kids are babies still, and I was just told by my pediatrician that at 6 months old we should start table food, and that the previous recommendations to feed one new food every 5 days and the delaying of food don’t do anything to prevent allergies. He said the delaying of the introduction of food seems to only lead to “picky eaters.” Have you ever heard of this? Seems to go against everything moms have been told about feeding small children for the past several years.
My son is as picky as they come, but I agree with the above. My son started trying new things when he started school, especially if the teacher gave them a snack he had never had, he would try it. For a whole year all my son ate was a turkey sandwich no mayo and fruit snacks in his lunch, then it was plain peanut butter sandwich the next year….but last year I volunteered a lot and ate lunch at the school. Every time I would get lunch and eat with him, we would end up trading my lunch for his packed lunch because he liked what they were having once he tasted it, so you might want to try eating with him at school. Lunchables are always great too.
One thing that worked well with all three kids when they were small was to get cookie cutters and cut the bread for their sandwiches into fun shapes. Everyday they would get so excited to see what kind of sandwich they had. A huge favorite was the gingerbread man shaped one.
I also got them fruit leathers and those fun yogurt things. Taking them shopping and letting them pick stuff out for their lunch always helps too. Those lunchables were good, I usually let them take one once a week. ~my kids also like carrots and ranch and celery and pb. They aren’t that picky.
Hope this helps, Good luck!
There is some great advice here! Oscar’s not even close to school age, but I love these ideas. From everything I’ve read I think offering him a variety of different foods is a good idea, with no pressure to eat it all. Cold chicken nuggets sound good, my niece loves those. And I agree with the suggestion to have him look around at what others are eating and request some things that look good to him.
You are such a good mom! I can tell that you are very loving and care a lot about your son’s happiness.
My son had a lot of texture issues. We also did the cold pizza thing, we made our version of lunchables with healthier options like whole grain crackers and reduced sodium lunchmeat, etc. I also would make canned (gag) ravioli because he loved it. I would put super hot water in the thermos while heating it dump the water and put the ravioli in and close it up. It was always stayed warm enough. I also let him choose what was for lunch for each day. On Sunday, we sat down with the school menu and our family dinner menu and looked at what was in the fridge and he chose what was for lunch each day. It cut down on the amount of food returning home because he did not want it/like it.
G is just starting kindergarten this year, so I’ve just started thinking it through. I plan on getting a little thermos to put mac&cheese and soups in. My kids love carrots w/hummus to dip it in. When I was teaching I know my students liked anything that was cut in fun shapes.
My son was by far the most picky eater I have ever seen. When he was 1 yr old he stopped eating almost everything. After a few trips to the Dr we figured out there was nothing medically wrong, and was told he would eat what ever I put in front of him if he got hungry enough. That led to having to give him pediasure because he was so stubborn he almost starved himself! Needless to say, I was VERY worried when he started school full time. But once he was around other kids every day and saw that they are lots of different things, he soon became less and less picky. I let him bring a lunch once a week, but the rest of the time he eats a school lunch. All the schools in our area have a lunch bar with different offerings of hot and cold foods. Things like pizza, pasta, PB&J pockets, fresh fruit, and more. I would call the school and get an idea of what they have to offer and then let him choose what he wants. I would bet you dollars to doughnuts his eating habits will change once around other kids more.
I found a great article a couple of years ago where they heated some things and put them in one of those smaller, insulated thermos type things. My son was fine with me putting chicken nuggets, left over pasta, SMALL pieces of cheese pizza, things like that in there. He even took beans and rice on occasion. Okay fine, once. Otherwise, my guy doesn’t like sandwiches, except for peanut butter but he will take the meat and cheese on it’s own with crackers or yogurt, string cheese, things like that. Oh and if he likes fruit, always include some fruit. And baby carrots… I could go on…
I understand your fear. My oldest started grade 1 last fall and that was the biggest concern on my list. My daughter isn’t a picky eater so that’s a bit of a blessing, but it’s surprising how much influence peers can have on kids, even in grade 1 (both good and bad).
Leftover pasta, vegetable and beef stir fry, ploughman is a favourite (meat, cheese, hard boiled egg, chutney & bread).
My problem is not getting my daughter to eat, but getting her to stop talking so she can eat. I’ve heard the social aspect of school lunch results in a lot of kids with uneaten lunches so don’t be too surprised. Good luck.
Hot stuff
Grilled cheese, pizza, Eggo Waffles,Toast w/cheese whiz on it, bacon strips (I wrap it in tin foil)
Cold stuff
Crackers & cheese slices, yogurt with Rice Krispies in it.
School lunches are so hard. We go through phases – first thing though is buy yourself a good lunch bag and good containers. Most important! We would do simple ham sandwiches for a while, then near the end my daughter switched to toasted bagels with butter. And I toasted them in the morning and yes, she ate it at lunch! I always try to do 2 fruits, either strawberries and an apple or orange – one that is cut up and one that can be carried. I do either minigo yogurts or yogurt tubes or cheese strings but normally 2 of those. Then I stock up on the staples that are peanut free from the grocery store, like cereal bars, bear paws, goldfish, vegetable thins, that sort of thing. So its always a sandwich or bagel, 2 fruits, 2 dairy and normally something not so healthy, like a cereal bar or bear paw or crackers. And always water, no juice. I have had no complaints. Its tough! But schools start so early these days (mine starts at
so I feel I need to give them foods that will get their energy up. He’ll get used to it, especially when he sees what other kids take.
No no no! MY almost 5-year-old is THE pickiest eater. He peels all the toppings off a pizza, along with any pieces of onion or garlic in the sauce. He will only eat grilled cheese with the crusts cut off. Of course he will never say no to anything made with chocolate but get him to eat a piece of meat and he’ll run under his bed.
Give him stuff he likes and hopefully one day he’ll outgrow it.
Ideas: Cheese strings (roll a piece of deli meat around it), sliced cheese, whole wheat bread, yogurt, fruit, carrots and dip.
Now you have ME stressed out! For kindergarten, we have to provide snacks, and I think I’ll do okay with that… but for lunches when he starts school? Yikes! I guess like some other comments, leftovers would be good – pasta, pizza… etc. My son loves Greek salad so I wonder if we could make that work so the salad still tastes good at noon? What else.. grilled cheese sandwiches? Ham and cheese on a bagel? Etc. Fruits, and yes, cookies! Granola bars, carrots sticks with dip… good luck!
Ok so I went a bit different on this one. I asked my kids what they love to eat when the go to school (they are 3 and 6)this is what they said:
Pasta-any pasta taste good luke warm
peanut butter and jelly
any fruit
ham sandwiches and soup
brownies (told you I asked the kids lol)
spagehetti O’s
Pizza, corn
red, beans and rice
and then they ended it with “I like when you come and pick us up from school mommy” I told them that is not a food but they said I know I am just telling you
My son is a bit younger, but lunch is the hardest meal I find.
We have success with hummus or babaganoush and pita. Also, like others have said, cheese slices etc.
I’m lucky because he likes sandwiches, but sometime I just offer a plate of everything – some raw veggies, cheese, crackers or tortilla pieces.
Nachos and salsa are a fav. but if you prefer to avoid the nachos (we buy a lower salt, multigrain) you could also toast pita until crunchy and use salsa to dip.
Good luck, food is one of the most stressful things about being a parent! I still struggle each day.
Also, I forgot, one of our go-to snacks that I use for lunch on picky days is yogurt with crunchy cereal and frozen berries. The frozen berries keep everything cold in their lunch (and for some reason he prefers frozen to fresh in this case) and for cereal we use kashi. But it’s for crunch, so any cereal mashed up would do!
Maria, I think the do-it-yourself lunchables are a good idea. I do that for Alexandra. I’ll pack some crackers or bread, some cheese, fruit, and a yogurt. Sometimes I’ll even include some deli meat like turkey or honey ham. Some days she’ll eat most of it; other days she’ll eat only the yogurt. It’s better than nothing I guess. If he likes cereal, put some in a baggie for him to snack on as well. You’ll get a better idea of what works and what doesn’t as the school year progresses.
My son is incredibly picky too…and he doesn’t fall for the “I’m at school, I’ll try something different away from Mom and Dad.” He just refuses to eat it and then he’s starving by the time he gets home from school at 3:30.
So, I got him a small thermos that can keep foods hot and cold. I send in mac and cheese, chicken nuggets and chicken noodle soup. Rollups using cheese and lebanon bologna (only lunchmeat he’ll eat), cold pizza, and peanut butter sandwiches. Those are the only main foods he’ll eat for lunch.
For sides, I send in string cheese, crackers, fruit snacks, frozen yogurt (unthaws by lunchtime), a banana or popcorn.
Yep, that’s all he will eat for lunches. Nothing else. And he’s going into 2nd grade. My son has a serious gag reflex and texture issue.