Fun Lunch Ideas to Connect With Kids at School

Packing Notes, Smiles and Love in Children’s Lunches

Aug 17, 2009 Tamiko Nicholson

Parents try to pack lunches with love for their family, and here are some fun and easy ways to reach out and show their love.

With parents working and kids going to school all day, it can seem hard to make time for meaningful moments. One way is to pack some fun into their lunches, so kids can think about their parents while they are enjoying their snack or afternoon meal.

Text a Message With Fruits

Use a regular ballpoint pen or a black marker to write a note on a banana. Parents can do play-on-word messages like “I am bananas about you!” to “I am sweet on you.” Parents can even write little messages on the banana ranging from memories like “Remember when we sang Bananaphone together?” to reminders like, “Call me when you need a ride home after school.”

Another easy one is to draw a happy face on a banana or the peel of an orange. If fruit is cut up or put into plastic containers, parents can put a sticker on the container or a piece of tape and write a little message on it. Parents can make little corny jokes based on what is in the container like “You are berry delightful” for strawberries to “you are the grapest!” for grapes.

Make Kids Smile With a Sandwich

Use a knife to cut out eyes and a smile on the top piece of bread in a sandwich or cut up vegetables to make eyes and a mouth on the sandwich. Olives, cucumbers, pickles, carrots and peppers can be used, and toothpicks can be stuck into them to keep them in place. Parents can also use cookie cutters to cut the sandwiches into the shape of hearts or stars. Tape on a little note to their container or plastic wrap that says “Enjoy a hearty lunch” or “You rate four stars in my books.”

Muffins With a Message

If parents have time to make muffins or cupcakes, they can write a message with frosting. They can write anything from “Sweetie” to their child’s name. Another idea is to cook a message right into the muffin or cupcake. After scooping the batter into the tin, put in chocolate chips to write a message or make a happy face. Chocolate chips can be replaced by raisins, cranberries or nuts. It will show up nicely once they are cooked.

Write Notes the Old-fashioned Way

Kids use technology to send information to each other, from text messages to Facebook. Parents can talk to their kids about how back in the “old days,” kids would pass notes in class. Go "old school" on kids, and use notebook paper to write a note to them. Parents can write about how they are proud of their latest mark on an English test or how they will be cheering them on for the basketball game after school. They can recount a funny or touching moment or memory. If parents remember, fold the note up like they did back in high school.

If parents know or want to learn to do origami, put in a little frog or bird to surprise a child in their lunchbox.

Sometimes parent don’t have time to do much, but it takes mere seconds to grab a yellow sticky note and write “I love you!” or “I’m thinking about you!” on it. Just stick the note inside their lunchbox.

Make lunch with love and a little humour to reach out to the kids when they are at school. Parents can write about how they are bananas for their kid on a banana, make a happy face with condiments on a sandwich, and write “Sweetie” with chocolate chips on a muffin. If parents have time, tuck a note into their pack or just a simple sticky note with “Love from Mom.”

Parents can read about more about green ideas for making lunches for kids, going green with school supplies for kids and staying connected with kids as they get older.

The copyright of the article Fun Lunch Ideas to Connect With Kids at School in Parenting Methods is owned by Tamiko Nicholson. Permission to republish Fun Lunch Ideas to Connect With Kids at School in print or online must be granted by the author in writing.

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