Kitchen & Garden

Nutritious Snack Ideas 

From Erin, Kristen & Tess, the Stephanie Alexander Kitchen Garden Program Team

Healthy meals encourage healthy minds and bodies. As children's lunch fuels their day, we have some NMPS sandwich and snack ideas to help you jazz up term 4 lunchboxes that your children can help create at home. We encourage nutritious options that provide children with a range of fruit, vegetables, grains, and dairy. 

As children adapt back to the routine of school, we do encourage packing a larger lunch than normal to support their increased energy use and concentration. Snack ideas could be cheese cubes, vegetable sticks, fruit pieces, and sandwiches cut in different shapes. Remember it doesn't have to be fancy, leftovers are a great option. Cutting foods into little pieces also supports small hands and slower eaters.

Encourage your children to help with the preparation. Spreading butter or cream cheese, get them to count pieces or quarters, cut shapes in bread or use the rolling pin to flatten bread are all ways they can feel part of the process. Teaching our children to choose healthy foods not only supports their growing bodies but encourages healthy eating choices in the future. Packing our lunches also supports reducing plastic and foil wraps, creating a healthier schooling environment for everyone.