School Lunch

A well-packed school lunch is many things. When your little one helps to prepare a bagged lunch, it’s a lesson in nutrition and a task to encourage independence. When time is spent perfecting a sandwich in the shape of a cat’s face, it’s a food-inspired love letter to your child. And when packaged, processed foods are passed over for healthy, whole foods, it’s a commitment to your child’s health and future.

Consistently preparing nutritious, creative lunches that your child wants to eat can be daunting. With a bit of preparation, imagination and investment, however, the task can be made easy.

Let Kids Cook

For Bridget Henry, a Columbus-based food and prop stylist and mother, teaching her 3-year-old daughter Bianca about food is an important part of her family’s daily routine. In the kitchen is a stool, which Bianca climbs atop to help in tasks like cracking and whisking eggs, which Bridget then scrambles.

For food-inspired creative play, Bridget has fashioned an enviable play kitchen for Bianca. A chalkboard above the lustrous white wooden structure notes “Bonka Boo’s Bakery,” and inside are plastic loaves of bread, a tiny toy barista set and fashionable play dishes for a French-themed café. When day-tripping to the zoo or park, Bridget prefers to pack Bianca’s lunch. As a food stylist, this task is made fun with a slew of creative supplies.

“I love the bento box concept for kids,” Bridget says, reflecting on the reusable Japanese-style single-portion lunch boxes fashioned with individual food compartments. “They are great for packing a variety of finger foods.”

As children age and routines grow increasingly hectic, packing lunch the night before or preparing supplies for the week ahead in advance can save time, money and stress. Engaging children in lunch preparation also fosters an understanding of healthy food choices.

“I am a big proponent of teaching kids to pack their own lunches,” says Sally Kuzemchak, a Columbus-based mother of two boys, ages 10 and 14, a registered dietitian and the author of the popular blog, “Real Mom Nutrition.” “Even young kids can do this.”

Sally keeps bins with yogurt, nuts, dried fruit and other lunch supplies in the refrigerator and on the counter at her house. Her sons know that they must pack an item from each bin in their lunch bags. “It lets them be independent and helps us to share the work,” she says.

According to Sally, a common mistake often made for both parents and children is packing too much for lunch. “Especially with younger kids who may be in the cafeteria for the first time,” she says. “They may feel overwhelmed. It may be the only time that they get to sit and talk with their friends so they may not eat a lot.” When a nearly full lunch bag returns home at the end of the day a parent may feel frustrated. Sally recommends talking with your child about whether they were hungry or full after lunch to better gauge the appropriate portion size needed to satisfy appetites on a busy school day.