Today's school lunch is an opportunity to create a healthy, colorful midday meal, far from the days of soggy PB&Js. Here are simple tips, a week of lunch ideas, and a shopping list to help you pack a lunch your child won't want to trade. Packing lunches ensures your child gets a well-balanced meal, and making it a team effort by having kids help can save time by packing the night before.
Nutritious Ideas
Main dishes
Lunch meat and low-fat cheese roll ups
English muffin pizzas
Sandwich wraps – meat, cheese and veggies in a whole grain tortilla
Pita pockets stuffed with grilled chicken and vegetables
Soup
Chef salad with spinach, veggies, cheese, lunch meat and dressing
Tuna or chicken salad on a mini bagel
Snacks and sides
Fresh or dried fruit
Natural apple sauce
Baked tortilla chips and salsa
Veggie sticks and hummus
Cheese slices or string cheese with whole grain crackers
Homemade trail mix with nuts, seeds and raisins
Pudding
Homemade fruit roll ups
Popcorn (add different toppings such as salt, garlic, cinnamon, sugar or cayenne pepper)
Drinks
Water
If you child doesn’t like plain water, try adding a few slices of fresh fruit (strawberries, lime, lemon) for more flavor.
School Lunch Menu: Day-By-Day
We’ve put together a week’s worth of colorful, fun and healthy school lunch ideas your kids will love. And we’ve also created a shopping list to help you easily locate all the ingredients on your weekend shopping trip.
Monday: Turkey BLTA Roll-ups
Roll-up Ingredients
Turkey, cold cuts
Bacon
Avocado
Tomatoes
Side Dish Choices
Blueberries
Cucumbers
Carrot sticks
Tuesday: Bacon & Cucumber Sandwich
Sandwich Ingredients
Whole wheat English muffin
Cucumber
Bacon
Side Dish Choices
Apples slices
Strawberries
Vanilla yogurt mixed with sprinkled cinnamon
Wednesday: DIY Lunchables
Lunchables Ingredients
Crackers
Turkey, cold cuts
Cheese
Side Dish Choices
Blueberries
Carrots
Cucumber
Thursday: Veggie Grilled Cheese
Veggie Grilled Cheese Ingredients
English muffin
Cheese
Tomato
Spinach leaves
Avocado
Side Dish Choices
Apples slices
Strawberries
Vanilla yogurt mixed with sprinkled cinnamon
Tomatoes
Friday: DIY Pizzas
DIY Pizza Ingredients
2 toasted English muffins
Pizza sauce
Cheese
Turkey pepperoni
Side Dish Choices
Celery
Black olives
Shopping List (under 20 items)
Cold section: Dairy
1 large container of vanilla yogurt 1 package of your favorite cheese
Cold section: Deli meats
1 package of turkey pepperoni
1 package bacon
1 package turkey cold cuts
Inside aisles
Whole wheat English muffins 1 can of whole black olives
This summer, as you enjoy the warmer temperatures with your windows open, you can help protect your children by using window precautions and best practices. We spoke with Jorge Montano-Figueroa, Pediatric Injury Prevention Specialist at Renown Children’s Hospital, to gather tips and best practices for window safety, including conversation starters to help prevent window falls.
High temperatures can pose serious risks, especially for children who are less able to regulate their body temperature. Infants are particularly vulnerable and may not show obvious signs of distress. Never leave a child unattended in a vehicle—even for a moment—as heatstroke can happen quickly and be fatal.
As this season beckons more time in the great outdoors for all ages, the risk of bug bites from simply being outside more often also increases. “While many bug bites cause nothing more than an annoying itch or bump, in some cases, they can pose more serious health risks if not treated promptly,” says Dr. Russell Stodtmeister, a family medicine physician with Renown Health.
