My kids have their daily lunches included in their tuition, but of course there is always the option to bring something packed at home. I used to take advantage of the meal plan all the time, since the menu looks fairly balanced at first glance, and there are lots of healthy and delicious menu items that my kids still eat on a regular basis. There are also some terrible menu items that I don't want them to eat at all so I end up packing lunches 1-2 times a week. These are the guidelines we follow for balancing a school menu and packed lunches.
- Get the nutritional information guide from the cafeteria or catering company at the beginning of the school year, and go through it with your kids to help them recognize the good choices and the not-as-good choices. We used to print out and colour code the menus for our oldest daughter (green = go for veggies and fruit, yellow = slow down for grains, meats, cheese, and soups, & red = stop and think for the desserts, heavy entrees and other not so good choices) since it made lunch time so much easier for her and reminded her that the same rules at home about veggie/meat/side portions applied at school.
- Identify the really bad choices and steer clear of them by sending full packed lunches with your kids that day. (Particularly helpful if your school has an online or digital menu that you can sync with your calendar or PDA so you know what is being served when.)
- Pack snacks or entrees to replace the menu items you'd rather not have your kids eating. (My kids always go for the chocolate chip muffins at school, which are made with white sugar, white flour, chocolate flavoured wax chips and are 390 calories. IMHO, that is way too many calories for my 1st, 3rd and 4th graders to be eating as a snack or dessert, and too much white, refined cr@p. I usually send homemade whole wheat banana chocolate chip muffins or mini-muffins and my kids are equally happy.)
- Use leftovers. Frozen in individual portions and thawed in the fridge overnight, they'll be ready to microwave at lunch time. This are my kids favourite lunches since I usually freeze the leftovers of only their fave dinners and then they end up with something they really like.
- Pack the things your kids really like. My kids look forward to having packed lunches because they really like the food they're getting instead of eating from a menu of foods they sort of like. It keeps them content to eat the food you want them to eat and lets you have more control over their school lunches.
- Let them eat their school favourites too, but pack the sides or desserts to make the meal a little more complete if it's one of those yellow or red menu items. My son loves the mac and cheese at school, but doesn't like the sides served with it(and frankly, neither do I), so I send fresh or steamed veggies with him to eat. Otherwise, the school gives him a double portion of M&C.
