How To Make School Lunches Fun And Functional

How To Make School Lunches Fun And Functional

My daughter is heading to school for the first time this fall. She is 3 years old and, in Ontario, that means it’s time for full-time Kindergarten. In some ways, I am fully prepared for her to go to school, but I am not quite as ready in others. Do you know what I mean? My little girl is growing up way too fast.

I devoted my post-secondary studies to education and received my Bachelor of Education degree in 2011. By that time, the province of Ontario had already implemented their Balanced School Day Program.

 The Balanced School Day is a new way of scheduling class time and break time that has been introduced in some Ontario schools. The traditional school schedule usually includes recess breaks in the morning and in the afternoon, and one hour for lunch at noon.

The Balanced School Day is different because it includes two breaks that are each 40-45 minutes long, with one break in the morning and one in the afternoon. There is no one hour break for lunch. Instead, these two breaks include time for eating and time for physical activity, usually about 20 – 25 minutes for each. Source (end block quote)

The Balanced School Day Program is completely different from what I experienced while I was growing up. We had two 15-minute breaks (one in the morning and one in the afternoon) and a 1-hour break for lunch. At lunchtime we would have a longer period of time in which to eat. While I was in my practicum for my Education studies, I realized how little time the kids had to eat. Let’s face it, break time was always the time where we could chat with friends at school and the same is still true.

How To Make School Lunches Fun And Functional

How To Make School Lunches Fun And Functional

From that experience I realized how important it is that I make my child’s lunch healthy, fun and functional. I do not want to worry about her being hungry because she did not have time to decide what she should eat first. Rubbermaid LunchBlox® is one of the tools I will be using to achieve that goal.

I really like the LunchBlox® system because it is very easy to use and the compartments are very distinct. My plan is to label one of the small compartments with the number 1 and the other with a 2. This will allow my daughter to easily identify which snack she should be eating at each break. Taking it one step farther, I will be creating two separate mini-sandwiches. She will have a nice balanced meal for each break.

In the pictures you can see I have divided one of the smaller compartments to hold both carrots and cheese sticks. The mini carrots at the perfect height to stand up in the containers (score!). I love how I can divide the areas to hold more than one type of snack. You can also divide each smaller compartment so your child can have the same snack twice.

How To Make School Lunches Fun And Functional

The middle section of the LunchBlox® system is a reusable Blue Ice Pack. Pop it in the freezer at night and it will keep the lunch cool all day. I not-so-fondly recall warm tuna sandwiches from my youth. My daughter will not have to suffer like I did.

I may not be completely ready for my daughter to go to school this fall but with LunchBlox® I feel a lot more prepared for the mealtime part.

I would love to hear what you would put in your LunchBlox®?

Better Lunch in a Snap! Rubbermaid LunchBlox® makes packing lunch easier than ever. Modular containers are perfectly portioned and snap together to stay organized in kids’ lunch bags. Rubbermaid.com

Rubbermaid LogoDisclosure: This post was brought to you by Newell Rubbermaid Inc via Mode Media Canada.  The opinions expressed herein are those of the author and are not indicative of the opinions or positions of Newell Rubbermaid Inc.

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