Back to School Lunch Faves

Wow! It’s August! How is this possible?

Summer always seems to go by quickly, but something about this year seems to have flown by faster than usual.

So as we creep through August and closer to the start of the school year (with so many starting back this month!), I wanted to arm you with some great back-to-school snack and food tips. This is information I wish I had when I had little kids.

There are affiliate links in this post. This is just another way for me to support my family. I appreciate you using them if you decide to purchase any of these products.

Let’s start with the tools for school

Lunch boxes

You want something fun, not too complicated, and easy to wash. This key. Bento boxes are great because the whole thing just goes in the dishwasher, versus lots of different containers.

• This one is great for staying insulated and also not leaking. It has a small space for a small sweet snack or dip for veggies. I love that it has deep sides for sandwiches or stacking veggies.

1. This is another great lunchbox that has been in our home for 4+ years, so it’s worth the investment. I love that it is stainless steel and won’t leach plastic into your kiddo’s food.

• I wish we had gotten on the thermos bandwagon sooner, because it is a great way to send leftovers, soup, spaghetti, etc. to school. Hot tip: pour boiling water into it and let it sit with the lid on for several minutes. Dump it out and add the reheated food—it will stay warm much longer this way! I’m partial to Hydroflask because I can trust they work and I love their size options, but there are lots of good brands out there.

Packable Snacks

It’s essential to have non-perishable snacks to stash in lunch. Not only does this take the pressure off of you to have freshly prepped fruits and veggies, but it is a good segue into getting kids to participate in packing their own lunch. When I look for a good quality snack I look for protein, fat, and fiber content. The right mix of these will help keep your kiddos feeling satiated and ready to learn. Here are a few of my faves:

• Peanut butter crackers are a great way to provide fat and protein. These are great if your kid is a non-sandwich kid or one that gets distracted easily during lunch.

• Meat is of course, an excellent source of protein and is readily available energy for your kiddos! I’ve tried many, many meat sticks and these are by far my favorite. They taste the best and you can cut them up into small pieces if your child has a hard time chewing or biting into something chewy. I love that these are fermented and therefore also contain probiotics!

• I love the Simple Mills brand and these crackers are a healthy alternative to Wheat Thins. They are great for munching with cheese and pepperoni or all by themselves. These mini size packages are perfect for lunch.

• Protein bars are a dime a dozen and most are really fancy candy, but they do serve a purpose and we often rely on them here for when kids are sick of their normal lunches or need a quick dose of energy on the run. The GoMacro bars are a good source of protein with decent taste. I don’t love that they have added sugar as the first ingredient, but the added sugar is lower than Cliff Z Bars. For those picky eaters out there, this is a good option for lunch or snacks at school.

• Seaweed is a great source of iodine, which is essential for thyroid health. Unless you eat iodized salt most days, you and your kiddos are likely not getting enough of this nutrient. Seaweed is salty and crunchy, which makes it a perfect snack! I like this one because it’s made with olive oil instead of inflammatory oils such as sunflower.

• Trail mix is another great option to get some protein in. I personally love when something sweet helps offset the heaviness of the nuts, so I love this blend. It includes sweet and savory tastes that your whole family will love.

• Our family LOVES Skout bars. The fruit ones have a decent amount of fiber and taste awesome (Raspberry is my kids’ LEAST favorite, FYI, it's just less sweet than the others). The non-fruit flavors feel decadent but contain lots of good nutrition.

• Solely is another fave around here. I can only vouch for the mango, but we love them. They have a little fiber and protein as well. These are a great alternative to fruit snacks.

• These are a fun alternative to fruit snacks. This one has no added sugar and contains fiber. If your kiddo is used to Fruit by the Foot, this won’t appeal to them. So start weaning them off of the artificial flavors and their taste buds will begin to adjust.

• We also LOVE dried blueberries in our family. They are great alone or mixed with nuts. Make sure to look for a brand with no sugar added like this one. Blueberries have TONS of fiber and are a great source of antioxidants. They are also neuroprotective.

• I don’t pack sweet snacks every day, but 1-2x/week I will throw in something fun. I love these Rice Krispie treat alternatives from Blake’s. They feel decadent and the kids will never know you are sneaking in some nutrition.

Make it fun

Kids, especially elementary age, love fun meals. Here’s a way to “spice up” a typical lunchbox.

• Lunch Box Accessories These are great for making “pizza sticks” or placing pieces of fruit onto a stick. I also love turning sandwiches into fun shapes. Use the cookie cutters for turning meat, cheese, fruit, etc into a fun shape.

• Joke cards: My kids always loved these! It was a little something extra that let them know I was thinking about them.

• In the same vein, my kids LOVE when I include a little note to remind them how much I love them or that I’m cheering for them. Especially on the days when they have a test or something challenging they are worried about.

Now it’s time to practice

• Practice? Yes, practice. Especially if you have a kiddo going into Kindergarten. Unless your child has a diligent teacher who supports kids in eating their lunch, most kids are too distracted, rushing to play, and barely will touch their food. Most grades K-3 will provide snack time during the day, but not all. I love these timers to help kids get prepared for how little time they get for lunch. Start with 15 minutes and see how it goes.

• Most schools provide 30-40 minutes for lunch + recess. If you have a child that loves recess, this often means that he or she will race through lunch in order to get as much play time as they can. This is a difficult battle to face, but practicing at home to work on meal time pacing and focus, as well as opening and closing their lunchbox, can be really helpful. Packing foods that are easier to eat can also be a strategy. Sometimes you won’t know that until you practice though!

Other lunch ideas

Protein: pepperoni, sliced or whole hard-boiled eggs (get the ready-made ones from Costco as a time saver), ham and cheese roll-ups, banana + peanut butter rolled up in a tortilla. I love stacking sliced Paleovalley beef sticks with mozzarella balls/cut mozzarella sticks for “pizza on a stick.”

Fruit: I love sprinkling cut apples with cinnamon, it adds a little flavor and antioxidant power, while hiding the brown as the apples oxidize. Mandarins are a great easy fruit to include too. I definitely recommend peeling it first to save your child time. For the littles, I would also peel the pieces apart to save time.

Veggies: cut these thin so they are easy to eat, especially mini carrots and celery. I love these mini dip containers. Pro tip: aim for just the right amount of dip; kids can open these easily but often the lids don’t make it back on quite as securely. Sweet peppers are another great veggie to include in lunches because they stay fairly crisp and crunchy.

Carbohydrates: “pretty much any chip is my favorite” —Jaden, 10

On that note, avoid shying away from any food group during school lunch. Pack foods that you know your child will eat focusing on fat, protein, and fiber. Excess sugar is the only thing I recommend keeping an eye on when assembling a lunch because that can (and will) have implications during their day (and when they get home as well).

I hope this was helpful! I also hope it wasn’t depressing thinking about going back to school! If you enjoyed this or found it helpful, please share it with your friends. I appreciate you!