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Today is the day! My kids are going back to school which is mind boggling to me. I have no idea where the summer went and I have mixed emotions about watching them go back to school. I have one leaving the house at 6:00 am, one at 7:00 am, and two at 8:00 am which means it is a non-stop busy morning.

I am one of those Moms. I organize up a storm leading up to the first day of school and have a goal of packing healthy lunches all year long. By the time May comes around, their lunches barely resemble lunch. But I start off real strong! Haha!

I do have a theory though in our home and it works for us. My kids pack their own lunches. Here's the thing -- kids are fickle. One day, they love a certain granola bar and the next day they despise it, for some odd reason. They tire of certain foods and so I switch up their choices often. I give them a lot of different options to keep lunch interesting. So I am sharing a list of some healthy school lunch ideas for kids .

BACK TO SCHOOL KIDS LUNCH IDEAS:
OPTION #2
Hummus
Pita Bread
Grape Tomatoes
Cucumbers
Sliced Oranges OPTION #3
Cheese Quesadilla
Guacamole
Salsa
Tortilla Chips
Strawberries

Pita Bread + Hummus
Cheese + Crackers
Turkey + Cheese Roll-ups
Almond Butter + Jam Sandwich
Cheese Quesadilla
Hard Boiled Eggs
Pasta Salad
Meat + Cheese Kabob
Chips + Guacamole
Ham + Cheese Sandwich
Bagel + Cream Cheese
Veggie +Hummus Wrap

Water Bottle
100% Juice Boxes
Capri Suns
Bolthouse Smoothies
Milk -- Strawberry or Chocolate
Here are some suggestions for kids lunchbox containers:
Rubbermaid LunchBox Sandwich Kit and Rubbermaid Take Alongs Food Storage Container (Set of 6) and EasyLunchboxes 3-Compartment Bento Lunch Box Containers, Set of 4
Here is a suggestion for a kids lunchbox:
Rubbermaid LunchBlox Small Lunch Bag, Blue

KIDS SCHOOL LUNCH IDEAS PRINTABLE OPTION:

Melissa Stadler, Modern Honey

What do you love to serve in your kid's lunchbox? I would love to hear your favorite things! I hope this list of back to school kids lunch ideas helps you pack those school lunches. Have a great day, my friends! xo

Hope your kiddos have a fabulous first day!

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Published: · Modified: by · This post may contain affiliate links · Today is the day! My kids are going back to school which is mind boggling to me. I have no idea where the summer went and I have mixed emotions about watching them go back to school.

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Personal Health

Credit... Paul Rogers

Harding Senior High, a public school in St. Paul, Minn., has long been known as a 90-90-90 school: 90 percent of students are minorities, nearly 90 percent come from poor or struggling families and, until recently, 90 percent graduate (now about 80 percent) to go on to college or a career.

Impressive statistics, to be sure. But perhaps most amazing about this school is that it recognizes and acts on the critical contribution that adequate food and good nutrition make to academic success. Accordingly, it provides three balanced meals a day to all its students, some of whom might otherwise have little else to eat on school days.

For those who can't get to school in time for early breakfast, a substitute meal is offered after first period, to be eaten during the second period. Every student can pick up dinner at the end of the school day, and those who play sports after school can take the dinner with them to practices and games.

To Jennifer Funkhauser, a French teacher at Harding and a hands-on participant in the meal program, making sure the students are well fed is paramount to their ability to succeed academically. Ms. Funkhauser and the staff at Harding are well aware of the many studies showing that children who are hungry or malnourished have a hard time learning.

After she noticed that some youngsters were uncomfortable eating with hundreds of others in a large, noisy lunchroom, Ms. Funkhauser created a more private, quieter "lunch bunch" option for them.

The attitude and atmosphere at Harding are in stark contrast to the humiliating lunchroom experiences suffered by students at some schools, where youngsters are sometimes shamed in front of their classmates and their meals confiscated and dumped in the garbage when parents have an unpaid lunch bill.

A recent article in The New York Times pointed out this appalling practice. My Jewish friends and I called it "a shanda," which is Yiddish for a scandal, a disgrace, an embarrassment.

But current problems with school lunch go far beyond shaming innocent children. After major improvements championed by the Obama administration in the nutritional value of school meals were already underway, the Republican-dominated House of Representatives and now the Trump administration have begun to undermine them.

In 2010, spurred by the advocacy of Michelle Obama, Congress enacted the Healthy, Hunger-Free Kids Act, revamping the nation's school lunch program to increase servings of vegetables, fruits and whole grains, provide age-appropriate calories, remove dangerous trans fats and limit levels of sodium. Schools were given incentives in the form of meal reimbursement funds to prompt them to participate.

Alas, in the fiscal-year 2015 Agriculture Appropriations bill, the House included waivers allowing schools that had a six-month net loss of revenue for any reason to opt out of providing the healthier meals outlined in the 2010 act, Dr. Jennifer Woo Baidal, a pediatrician affiliated with Columbia University College of Physicians and Surgeons, wrote in The New England Journal of Medicine.

Now, just days into his tenure as Secretary of Agriculture, Sonny Perdue, former governor of Georgia, rolled back the timetable by at least three years for reducing the high levels of salt in school lunches. The rollback will also allow schools to serve refined grains and 1-percent-fat flavored milk, instead of nonfat. Will progress on vegetables and fruits, calories and other fats be next on the chopping block?

Providing adequate amounts of nutritious food in schools is more important than many realize. "Students who eat regular, healthy meals are less likely to be tired, are more attentive in class, and retain more information," Sean Patrick Corcoran, associate professor of economics and education policy at New York University's Steinhardt School of Culture, Education and Human Development, told The Atlantic.

In fact, well-designed studies have demonstrated that "students at schools that contract with a healthy school lunch vendor score higher" on statewide achievement tests, Michael L. Anderson of the University of California, Berkeley, and colleagues reported in April. They showed a 4-percentile improvement in test scores above those achieved in schools with less healthy meals.

"While this effect is modest in magnitude, the relatively low cost of healthy vendors when compared to in-house meal preparation makes this a very cost-effective way to raise test scores," the researchers concluded.

In Minnesota, where 10 percent of households are considered "food insecure" and one child in six risks hunger, Wilder Research reported in 2014 that improved school nutrition is a "major component of Minnesota's Statewide Health Improvement Program." The Amherst H. Wilder Foundation, in St. Paul, described studies showing that simply providing free breakfast can result in better school attendance, improved behavior and concentration and better academic performance.

Clearly, an expansive food program at schools like Harding Senior High bears replication nationwide, not cutbacks.

"Nutrition can affect learning through three channels: physical development (e.g., sight), cognition (e.g., concentration, memory), and behavior (e.g., hyperactivity)," the Berkeley team wrote. For example, they explained, diets high in trans and saturated fats have a negative impact on learning and memory, reducing substances in the body that support cognitive processing and increasing the risk of neurological dysfunction.

Schools have complained that children don't like the healthier meals and are more likely to throw the food away. However, an analysis of three large studies by the Pew Charitable Trusts found that under the improved nutrition rules, food waste actually declined in 12 Connecticut schools; children consumed more fruits and vegetables in eight elementary schools in southeast Texas; and in four elementary schools studied by the Harvard School of Public Health, children ate more of their entree and vegetable servings and more children took a serving of fruit.

A study conducted by Cornell University researchers at a New York high school in 2012 found that making healthier foods more convenient for students increased their sale by 18 percent and decreased the grams of unhealthy foods consumed by nearly 28 percent.

An earlier Cornell study found that simply moving the salad bar from a corner of the lunchroom to the center increased the sales and consumption of this healthier fare. Offering students a choice between two vegetable options and having them pay cash for unhealthy items like desserts and soft drinks, the findings suggested, may enhance consumption of healthier foods without reducing revenue or participation in school lunch programs. While the studies are not conclusive, they suggest that with a few simple steps, schools may have an impact on the foods students eat.

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Feeding Young Minds: The Importance of School Lunches

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Personal Health Harding Senior High, a public school in St. Paul, Minn., has long been known as a 90-90-90 school: 90 percent of students are minorities, nearly 90 percent come from poor or struggling families and, until recently, 90 percent graduate (now about 80 percent) to go on to college or a career.

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How the quality of school lunch affects students' academic performance | Brookings

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In 2010, President Barack Obama signed the Healthy, Hunger-Free Kids Act. The main goal of the law was to raise the minimum nutritional standards for public school lunches served as part of the National School Lunch Program. The policy discussion surrounding the new law centered on the underlying health reasons for offering more nutritious school [...]

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What are the best recycling websites for kids? The internet can be a great tool for teaching your kids more about the environment, and teaching kids about recycling. Here they are...

If you want your children to grow up to be environmentally conscious, you have to start teaching them while they are young. You can't expect them to just learn on their own. However, you'll find that there are a variety of great recycling websites and environmental sites out there where you kids can learn more about the environment and recycling, while having a great time. Wondering where to send your kids to learn more? Here's a look at 10 of the top recycling websites out there for kids that make excellent choices.

Website #1 - Kids Planet

Website Address: www.kidsplanet.org
This site has many great games for kids on the web of life, fact sheets on different animal species, and they provide excellent information on what kids can do to help protect and defend their own environment. They even have their own Wildlife Adoption Center on the site.

Website #2 - Kids for a Clean Environment

Website Address: www.kidsface.org/
The mission of this site is to provide excellent and education information to kids on environmental issues and to encourage them to work on improving the world around them. It provides information on how they can work in their own community and how they can work on recycling.

Website #3 - Eco Mentors

Website Address: www.ecokidsonline.com/pub/ecomentors/index.cfm
This is one of the best sites on the web that will teach your kids more about the environment while allowing them to have a lot of fun. It is actually an award winning site for kids, and provides interactive and innovation environmental education for kids and their families. Great activities and games are used on the site to help you child have a wonderful time while learning more.

Website #4 - Captain Planet Foundation

Website Address: www.captainplanetfdn.org/index.html
This foundation has the mission to help encourage kids from grades Kindergarten through 12th grade to learn more about the environment and they support many environmental projects that kids can get involved in, in a hands on manner. They also encourage activities that help kids all around the world to work together and on an individual level to help the environment. The site is easy for kids to navigate through, and it provides information on projects that the foundation has going. It also teaches kids great ways that they can have a good effect on their own environment.

Website #5 - National Geographic Kids

Website Address: http://kids.nationalgeographic.co.uk/
This is an excellent site for kids, with all the great options that you'd expect from National Geographic. It is an excellent resource for kids and it has information on a variety of topics, including the environment and how problems with the environment affect the world and animals around it. You'll find stories, quizzes, games, tips, and videos that your kids will enjoy while learning more about the environment and recycling.

Website #6 - EPA Student Center

Website Address: www.epa.gov/students/
This is the official site of the EPA in the United States. They include many great stories, games, and pictures. There are many funny cartoons that include facts about the environment that kids can enjoy. It also includes excellent ways that kids can improve the environment and keep nature alive as well.

Website #7 - Meet the Greens

Website Address: www.meetthegreens.org/
This website is all about a family, which is known as the Greens, and they are a family working hard to make sure that the do the right thing for the environment. It is a site based in the United States and it includes adventures of the family, which are animated, and they all have great environmental messages for them. Not only can they learn about recycling, saving animals, and more, but there is a blog that is interactive where your kids can have discussions about the programs.

Website#8 - Recyclezone

Website Address: www.recyclezone.org.uk/
The National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences in the UK actually sponsors this site. It provides a wealth of great information that is presented on a level for children. The site is brightly colored, it's easy for kids to use, and interactive to get them involved in learning. You'll find many great jokes, brain teasers, music, and games on the site that will keep your kids entertained while they learn.

Website #9 - Children of the Earth

Website Address: www.childrenoftheearth.org
The Children of the Earth website helps to provide information for kids that will allow them to understand and respect the world around them. Lessons are taught on plants, soil, energy, animals, and more. It helps them to learn about how their actions can either have negative or positive effects on the environment.

Website #10 - Environmental Education for Kids

Website Address: www.dnr.state.wi.us/org/caer/ce/eek/index.htm
EEK is an online magazine that is for kids. It is geared to kids in grade 4-8. They have articles about the environment and other issues, and they even have great activities for your kids to enjoy online as well.

The internet can be a great tool for teaching your kids more about the environment. With these excellent sites to help you out, you can help them to learn more about their environment, recycling, and all they can do to have a positive impact on their world. Explore the sites with them and enjoy learning and working together to save the earth.
No part of this article may be copied or reproduced in any form without the express permission of More4Kids © All Rights Reserved

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10 Best Recycling Websites for Kids - Parenting Tips and Advice

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What are the best recycling websites for kids? The internet can be a great tool for teaching your kids more about the environment, and teaching kids about recycling. Here they are... If you want your children to grow up to be environmentally conscious, you have to start teaching them while they are young.

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Raising kids to have good recycling habits is a very important role parents play in fostering sustainability. Here are some fun websites that help.

My kids know to recycle their empty yogurt containers, and they're good at bringing reusable water bottles to school and sports activities so they don't have to use disposable cups or buy bottled water. And they'd never dream of littering.

But while I'm proud that they have these environmentally responsible habits, sometimes I wonder how much they understand about how their actions help (or could hurt) the environment. At ages 7 and 10, they're old enough to learn more in-depth about recycling, sustainability, and the importance of reducing the amount of waste we generate - and of minimizing our use of energy and other resources. After all, they'll inherit this earth, and their generation will have its own set of environmental challenges!

Of course we at Recyclebank strive to be an informative resource, but besides us, there are also some great sites geared especially to help kids better understand some of the complex issues surrounding sustainability. For parents like me, or even for those who want a super-understandable way of learning about the environment, here are a few to check out:

1. A Bag's Life uses the point of view of a disposable plastic shopping bag to educate kids and adults about recycling plastic bags and other plastic film. The site includes information about what kinds of plastic you can recycle, a video about recycling, and information about holding a recycling event at your school.

2. Keep America Beautiful has a fascinating feature on its site that takes you on the recycling journey of various recyclables, from a shampoo bottle to a steel can. You'll learn how these products get sorted and processed, and what sort of products they might become. There's also a game on the site that simulates a Materials Recovery Facility (MRF), where you can test your ability to properly sort different types of materials.

3. Learn about clean air on the Environmental Protection Agency's site, which explains the color-coded air quality levels and what they mean for you. A storybook about a lizard with asthma, viewable online or downloadable, explains what causes air pollution and what can be done to prevent it.

4. The Environmental Education for Kids site, from the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources, is chock-full of information about natural resources, presented with lots of photos and illustrations, quizzes, games, and even poems. An extensive list of videos includes a tour of a landfill, a music video about trees, and a tutorial about making your yard more bird-friendly.

5. Meet the Greens is a stylish site featuring a fictitious animated family that teaches kids about reducing their carbon footprints. Kids can watch short cartoons about the Green family's efforts to live more sustainably. Kids can also calculate their carbon footprint with information about how their own family lives - an eye-opening measure of how everyday acts, like how you get to school, or how often you shower, can impact the earth.

6. The National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences is a helpful resource for middle-grade kids to learn more about the environment and its impact on our health. The site includes articles, interviews, tips and how-tos. Whether it's learning about vermicomposting or reading about the science behind pollution, the information is presented in a clear, informative way.
What are your favorite ways to teach kids about the environment? Share your suggestions in the comments below.
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The List: 6 Websites to Teach Kids About Recycling and Sustainability

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List of websites for education of children in sustainability and recycling. Learn more about how to make your Lifestyle sustainable with Recyclebank. Earn Recyclebank points by recycling and taking green actions and use points for rewards, and towards sustainable green products on One Twine.

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Today is America Recycles Day!

In the hustle and bustle of everyday life, recycling isn't always the number one priority. But, with our environment in need of greater awareness and care, it's important that we teach our kids about the importance of taking care of the world in which we live.

According to GreenWaste, the average person generates 4.5 pounds of trash every day - about 1.5 tons of solid waste per year. And the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) estimates that 75 percent of solid waste is recyclable, only about 30 percent is actually recycled.

There's no better day than today to talk to kids about recycling, why it's helpful and what we can do as families to make our own positive footprint on Mother Earth. Here are a few cool recycling websites and games geared towards kids:
Recycle Roundup on National Geographic Kids
Kids can help Gus the Gorilla clean up the park and sort trash according to where it belongs. The more kids are able to throw away or recycle, the more points they get.
Ollie's World
Ollie provides lots of fun information on everything related to environmental sustainability. The 4 Rs - reduce, reuse, recycle, rethink - are the main messages throughout this website and there are fun games and activities for kids as well.
Meet The Greens
Meet The Greens is a creation of WGBH Public Television in Boston with a goal of getting kids to think about the world and how they can contribute to it through "informed choices and meaningful changes." There are animated episodes of the Green family, games, activities and information on green living and sustainability. The "Light it Right" game is also available as a free app in iTunes.
MyGarbology
Created by NatureBridge, an environmental education non-profit, MyGarbology is a new site that teaches kids about recycling, waste management and conservation. The game features items that kids have to place in the appropriate waste/recycling bins and then provides fun facts on what they've just discarded - did you know that Americans make enough plastic each year to shrink-wrap the state of Texas?
Recycling Coloring Pages
If your kids prefer to take their recycling learning offline, Color Me Good offers fun printable coloring pages that kids can get creative with. Options include recycling symbols, recycling trucks and even animals who recycle for kids to color. We all know that slugs recycle, right?
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Fun Websites for Teaching Kids About Recycling and Sustainability

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Today is America Recycles Day! In the hustle and bustle of everyday life, recycling isn't always the number one priority. But, with our environment in need of greater awareness and care, it's important that we teach our kids about the importance of taking care of the world in which we live.

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The school cafeteria can feel like a battleground. Students get ushered in, let off lots of steam, make a mess and leave. If we want our students to abide by healthy habits and make good nutritional choices, it's time to make our school dining areas a pleasant and inspiring place to be. Here's a hint! Your cafeteria walls can be prime real estate for local artists and, of course, student artists to takeover and shine.

Here are 13 schools that transformed their cafeterias into havens filled with art, color and style. They're now places in which students not only want to eat but also go back to class and do their best afterwards!

1. Food for thought

2. Eat a rainbow

McKay Elementary School in Beaverton, Oregon used a grant via the Oregon Dairy Council to send an important message (in connection with the school nutrition program). Their decor encourages students to follow the golden rule of nutrition and eat a variety of brightly colored fruits and vegetables-that is, a Rainbow.

3. Sunny day

4. A warm welcome

5. Healthy living inspired by students

6. Lunching under the sea

7. A garden of their own

"It's a passion," says artist Joe Wilson of Mobile, Alabama. "I paint not really for the profit of it." He's created nearly 40 murals in Alabama schools but perhaps his most impressive is the three wall mural he painted in the cafeteria of Leinkauf Elementary School in Mobile. It features scenes from Bellingrath Gardens and Home an d Mobile Bay plus a wall of historic local homes and a streetside cafe.

8. Little town charm

At Mary B. Austin Elementary School Mobile, Ala, Wilson incorporated the school's history and location into the mural in their cafeteria. It pays homage to "Old Ann," an ancient oak tree, and the original Spring Hill school building-both still on the campus. The mural wraps around the entire cafeteria, incorporating the windows and doors.

9. A smart take

10. On the farm

11. Cafe Style

12. Natural lighting

At East Hamilton Elementary School in Tennessee, natural light makes all the difference in this bright, open, airy and inviting design they have in their cafeteria. The wall of windows look out over trees and the playground.

13. An open design

Join our Facebook group for more conversation about and insights into the challenges of school leadership.

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13 School Cafeterias that are Truly Works of Art for Students to Dine In

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The school cafeteria can feel like a battleground. Students get ushered in, let off lots of steam, make a mess and leave. If we want our students to abide by healthy habits and make good nutritional choices, it's time to make our school dining areas a pleasant and inspiring place to be.

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How is your school's cafeteria designed now? Start by making notes about what's working and what isn't working with the existing design.

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Schoolyard Blog | Teacher Resources | School Specialty

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21st Century Learning School Specialty *

There is only one room in a school that brings in revenue every day - the cafeteria. Yet they are often an afterthought when designing or renovating a school. Not only can they be made into valuable, versatile spaces, but they can also be made into such an inviting place that they become a center for the community as a whole.

Seating

The traditional seating for a cafeteria is benches arranged like picnic tables. Making these easy to move with wheels and a folding design means the cafeteria can be used for many more purposes than just food.

That being said, new cafeterias are incorporating the seating elements you would see at a restaurant, such as booths and more comfortable materials. These make the space more inviting and provide another place for students to collaborate on their studies.

Preparation

These days, restaurants tend to favor open kitchens that allow their diners to watch their food being made, engaging the customer in the experience. The same can be done in a cafeteria, with the added benefit of providing an educational experience at the same time.

Many schools have started gardens as a way to teach sustainability, science, and math concepts. Although it would take a schoolyard farm to feed 1,000 students, making fresh fruits and vegetables available to the cafeteria is a great way to demonstrate the food cycle from start to finish.

With more variety in the foods you serve comes the possibility for a food court and snack kiosks made available around campus. Both of these have the chance to increase revenue and provide a more modern feel to your school's dining programs.
This article is a summary of "New Cafeteria Designs for Healthy, Productive Learning." from our 2017 Projects by Design Idea Book.
Just as classroom strategies and methods have been revolutionized in the past decade or so, so too has the concept of what a cafeteria and food service can mean to a school and, more broadly, the local community.

Download the Idea Book for FREE to read the full article.
Download the Idea Book for FREE
The Idea Book is about one thing - inspiration. Click here to see what other useful articles and information is included in the book.

Learn More

For assistance with cafeteria layouts and design, visit www.ProjectsByDesign.com.To contact us, please call 800-305-0174 or email projectsbydesign@schoolspecialty.com.

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Designing a Cafeteria that Works for You

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21st Century Learning School Specialty * There is only one room in a school that brings in revenue every day - the cafeteria. Yet they are often an afterthought when designing or renovating a school.

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Voices at a level 1 or watch the pbs show.