Practical School Lunch Packing PRINCIPLES

Packing lunches! Maybe you love it, maybe you dread it; either way it is the easiest way to ensure your kiddo (of any age) gets a nutritious and filling meal at lunch time.

1. Keep it simple
School can be stressful for kids and lunch rooms are chaotic. Having a lunch that is easy to open, eat, and put away is going to help lunch be more restful and refueling. Reusable containers tend to be the easiest to open and close. Your kids will thank you, and so will the lunch attendants.

Keep the choices simple. It’s okay if they eat the same two to four things every day. Nutritious lunches from home do NOT need to be elaborate or complicated. 

Sliced vegetables OR fruit. Maybe include hummus or guacamole if your child needs more calories or will only eat with a dip. Ranch dressing works too. 

Add some crunch. Things like pretzels, potato chips, tortilla chips, or crackers. 

And then dessert. A small dessert - two small chocolate chip cookies, chocolate chips with nuts and dried fruit. It’s OKAY to have a little treat at lunch. 

2. Know how much to pack. 

Big eaters or grazers; fast and furious or slow to finish; when packing lunches try to meet their eating style and get them the level of nutrition they need for the rest of the day – don’t forget overpacking food can cause stress too.

If you have high schoolers who play sports after school, consider packing them two separate meals, one for lunch and one for before practice. 

3. Try “deconstructed”

For little kids, add a fun element of simple foods or deconstructed foods; older kids will appreciate quick and easy food they can consume in the limited time they have. 

Instead of making a sandwich, make a homemade “lunchable.” Crackers, sliced up ham or turkey, cheese, veggies, hummus, or guacamole. 

For picky eaters - try Bento Box lunch boxes to separate all their foods. These are a fun way to deconstruct a meal or add lots of different elements but keep it all from touching.

4. Make it the night before

Getting lunches prepared and ready to grab and go in the morning, can make mornings a little less rushed. We are all looking to simplify our lives and doing the lunch prep during dinner clean up helps streamline the process. Leftovers from dinner get packed into serving size containers. 

5. Get the kids involved in making lunch

Elementary school isn’t too young to start having kids participate in making lunch. They can pack their crunch part and dessert. Give them a limited number of choices and let them put it into the containers themselves.

Middle School kids will be ready to make most of their own lunches with some guidance and assistance. 

High schoolers are on their own. They may make very interesting lunches for themselves, but it fosters their development into becoming a young independent adult. So, encourage them. Remind them to think about their nutritional needs in a day, especially if they play sports or stay after school for other activities.