At Warrnambool Primary School encourage students to have a healthy lunchbox to sustain them for a day at school and help enhance their learning. We know sugar highs and lows caused by food with high sugar content, especially artificial colours and flavours, can have a negative impact on children’s ability to concentrate and learn efficiently.

School is a time when children start to make independent choices about their life. This is an important time to talk about and encourage healthy food habits. Involving children in planning and preparing their own lunchboxes gives them the opportunity to learn about healthy eating, and also gives them a chance to make decisions about what they will be eating during the day.

We also promote the “no rubbish” lunches at school, and encourage lunchboxes to be full of “nude food” without packaging, or if packaging is sent to school it is expected students to take this home in their lunchboxes. A bento-box style lunchbox is a great idea to help, that way compartments are used to hold smaller items. As well as being better for the environment, as an added bonus it is much cheaper to buy products such as pretzels, popcorn and sultanas to be added to lunchboxes in large packages rather than the small multipacks.

What to put in healthier school lunches

The six key parts to a healthy lunchbox include:

Fruit - best choices include fresh or tinned fruit. Dried fruit is sticky and high in sugar, so have it occasionally.
Vegetables - try fresh crunchy vegetable sticks with dip or a small container with mixed vegetables such as cherry tomatoes, carrot sticks, capsicum and cucumber.
Milk, yoghurt or cheese - you can use reduced-fat options for children over the age of 2 years. For children who cannot tolerate milk products, offer appropriate daily alternatives like calcium fortified soy or rice drink or soy yoghurt.
Meat or meat alternative foods - try lean meat (like chicken strips) or a hard-boiled egg.
Grain or cereal foods - like a bread roll, flat bread, fruit bread or some crackers (wholegrain or wholemeal options).
Drinks - tap water is best.

Grow your own fruits and vegetables

Children can learn new skills, have fun, play and develop self-confidence by spending time in the garden tending plants and growing their own food. Most children enjoy being outdoors and love digging in the soil, getting dirty, creating things and watching plants grow.

There are many benefits for growing your own fruits and vegetables including cost savings on weekly grocery bill. You will also find that children may be more inclined to eat these healthier options if they have been a part of the growing process.

Now is the perfect time to be looking at where you could possibly start planting for Spring.

Many different vegetables will grow well in over the spring season, like carrots, capsicums, cucumbers, chillies, cabbages, cauliflowers, and celery, and that’s just the ones that start with the letter ‘c’. Some of the other favourites include:

Beetroot
Broccoli
Eggplants
Parsnips
Rocket
Sweet corn
Endives
Leeks
Lettuces

Check out the Bunnings website for some great handy tips. https://www.bunnings.com.au/diy-advice/garden/planting-and-growing/beginners-guide-to-starting-a-vegetable-garden

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