Nifty ways of getting ready for school lunch packing
Back to Packing School Lunch
Here in South Carolina, many schools return to classes in August. In Charleston County that’s August 16. Hard to believe that summer’s over for school children and parents in this part of the world. Many years I, too, was preparing to return to the classroom. I taught special education classes to children, later going on to be a Master Teacher instructing students at The College of Charleston. However, nowadays, my focus is on Slather Brand Foods and my twin passion, promoting healthful eating for families.
If you’re like me, you’d rather your kids eat lunches that help them stay healthy. Planning your children’s lunches on a weekly scheduling and shopping for all that you need at one time will help you stay on track. Also, making sure you have the right lunch kit or lunch box or bag can help keep hot foods hot and cold foods cold.
Superheros Superseded by Japan
Back when I was going to school, everyone wanted a metal lunchbox with their favorite superhero or Barbie stenciled on the exterior. A great idea that has crossed the Pacific is the use of a Bento Box to contain packed lunches. These nested boxes present food like a gift (which is what it is—a gift of health for your children.) Today there are insulated bags, Thermos bowls, and frozen gel packs to help keep lunches to the appropriate temperature. With all the handy ways to pack lunch, you’re only limited by your creativity!
If your child who likes soup, you can pack their insulated bowl with some of your homemade soup. OR you can portion out leftovers from your yummy homemade dinner and heat that up and pack. If your kids will only eat sandwiches, roast a hen on Sunday then slice from it to build freshly roasted chicken sandwiches. You can also experiment with wonderfully flavored hummus and crispy veggies in a sandwich. And there are other nut butters other than peanut.
I love that Disney has some great lunch ideas. The most intriguing to me is the one for Sesame Peanut Noodles (Providing your child doesn’t have allergies to peanuts and gluten!) And the Chicken Ravioli Soup will have your kids licking their Thermoses.
7 Tips to Help You Pack Healthful Lunches for Your Kids
- Shop for a snazzy lunch box for your kids
- Get freezable gel packs to keep food cold
- Get Thermos lunch bowls to keep hot food hot
- Review interesting lunch ideas across the web
- Make a weekly shopping list for school lunches
- Plan each day’s lunch and stick to it
- Don’t cave in to demands for too many processed foods
Superman Lunchbox Photo credit: flickr user hyku
