It’s that time of the year again…back to school! Summer always seems to fly by leaving us parents in a frenzy to get some new ideas for school lunches.

Last year, I gave you some fun school lunch ideas like this one, so this year I am giving three practical tips to engage your children in the school lunch process.

Research shows that involving children in the meal planning and prep process increases the likelihood of trying the foods. I think that’s a pretty great reason to get your kids more involved in the process of planning, preparing, and packing their lunch and snacks.

It’s easy for us parents to fall into a routine and mindlessly make the same lunch and pack the same snacks everyday only to find the entire lunch box returned completely untouched.

Here are 3 tips to increase the likelihood of your children enjoying their back to school lunches!

1) Involve Your Kids In The Process

It’s easy for us parents to quickly make a grocery list and either place an order online or go food shopping without our kids. I believe it’s worth the extra time and effort to involve your kids in the process.

From as young as age 2, your kids can get involved! Older kids can literally write out the grocery list, contributing any ingredients for a new lunch box recipe they are excited to try.

Either proceed to take your kids with you to the grocery store, or do the online order together! I personally think it’s more fun to make a field trip out of it and bring your kids along to the store (I know, I know, it can get chaotic, but it’s so worth it!). It becomes a whole sensory experience for your kids where they can see the produce, smell the ingredients, touch the fruits they want to try this week.

When you’re at the grocery store, let your kids pick out one or two new fruits and veggies for the week they are excited to add to their lunch box. Let them also pick out a fun item that you can throw in their lunch box as a surprise :)

2) Make Lunch Together

Whether you’re the type of parent who makes lunch the night before or you wait and do it the morning of school, get your kids involved!

Again, take a few extra minutes to bring out cookie cutters, fun utensils they can chose from, and lay out all of the lunch options. Then, let your kids get busy deciding what they want to pack in their lunch box!

For example, my son loves to bring cream cheese on a slice of Ezekiel bread and then use a cookie cutter to turn it into a bus or a star or a heart! He literally jumps with excitement and can’t wait to try what he made!

3) Incorporate The Five Food Groups

When it comes to lunch, you want to ensure that you are giving your kids an option from all five food groups in your their lunch box. That doesn’t mean they are going to eat everything, but at least offering it to maximize their nutrients and exposure to these foods. Like I mentioned here, it can take up to 10-15 times before a child tries a new food.

Give kids choices! Think of two choices from each food group and let your kids choose which one they want in their lunch box.

For example, you can say “Would you like an egg or turkey in your lunch box today?”, “Would you like grapes or strawberries…or how about we mix it up and give you both?”, etc.

Kids love being given choices. Giving kids choices makes them feel like they have power and control over what they do, further increasing their confidence and independence. Your kids will be proud to create their own lunch box creation and it’s another great way to increase the chance of them trying the foods.

The goal is to ensure your kids have enough energy to fuel their day and be active and involved at school. Making most of your child’s lunch box whole foods is the main way to 1. expose them to as many foods as possible 2. increase the likelihood of them trying the foods 3. give them the foods that nourish their bodies well and make sure they are growing nice and strong!

What are some lunch box challenges you face at home? I want to hear from you! Leave me a comment :)