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Trying to get your child to eat more lunch at school can seem hopeless but these 10 tips will change that!

Hi friends,

If your little one is struggling to eat a good portion of their lunch and you’re concerned, I have a few helpful tips for you!

First, you should know that you’re not alone!

There are many reasons why your child might not be eating much at school but thankfully there are also a few easy ways to troubleshoot the problem! Let’s get into it..

This post is all about important tips to get your child to eat more lunch at school!

How to get your child to eat more lunch at school

1. Have a trail run

If this is your child’s first year in school, this is a must!

Preferably before the first day of school, have a trail run lunch.

Pack a lunch, sit them down and set a timer. Take this time to let them know what to expect during lunch time at school!

Even if your little one is already in school, this is a great practice to revisit if they’re struggling with eating their lunch.

2. Go over the basics

Okay, this is a big one that just might make or break a successful lunch time at school!

Make sure they know the basics of how to eat their lunch.

This might sound a little silly but I promise some of these basics things are overlooked without us even noticing.

Here are six things they should know:

How to unzip their lunch bag and open their lunch box on their own
Peel fruits like bananas and oranges
Take off and on their water bottle lid to refill
Open a straw wrapper and pierce a juice/milk box
Unwrap items in packages/twist caps off of pouches
Clean up and put everything away

During your trial run lunch, be sure to go over all of these!

You might surprised to find out that they struggle with opening or doing something on their own.

If they have to wait till they can get a teachers attention, this is most definitely eating up at their already limited time to eat. Luckily, it’s an easy fix!

3. Limit wrappers

As an adult, this is easily overlooked as well!

Opening a bunch of individually wrapped items and peeling different foods can be extremely time consuming for a younger child.

When possible, try to limit these types of items to help save time!

Still, teaching them how to do these things is important for when it’s unavoidable.

4. Use a bento box

There’s a reason bento boxes are so dang popular these days!

Yes, they’re super cute but more importantly, they’re also super convenient for kids!

Two big perks of using a bento box?

It gives them plenty of options
Keeps unwrapped foods fresh – limits need for wrappers

The most popular bento lunch box options for kids are from the brand Bentgo Kids, Yumbox and Omiebox. Personally, I use one called Munchbox but I’ve previously used Bentgo Kids as well.

Best bento boxes:

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5. Include things you know they’ll like

One of the great things about using a bento box is there is plenty of room for a wide variety of options.

As parents, we always try our best to feed our kids the healthiest options! This great of course but sometimes it can be too much for little ones.

We want to be sure to include “safe foods” in their lunch. Foods they know, are familiar with and enjoy!

Do I mean candy and muffins? Well.. yes, in a way.

I always try to include at least one or two healthier staple “safe foods” but I almost always include a small treat too.

Remember that there are plenty ways to revamp safe foods! Consider using whole grain bread instead of white, make muffins with hidden veggies, etc.

6. Get them involved

Next, have your kiddos get involved in the process of packing their lunch.

There was actually a study done about how children tend to eat more of a food they prepared themselves!

Let them cut their fruits and veggies, add cute food picks, place the food in their box, etc.

7. Make their lunch cute

If you’ve ever scrolled Pinterest looking for lunch ideas, chances are you’ve stumbled across some pretty cute lunches!

Psst: We have some great lunch inspiration here too!

These fancy lunches can look complicated but honestly, it’s so easy to spruce up your kids lunch.

It really doesn’t take much extra effort if you have the right items.

Cut their sandwich into a fun shape, place some food picks in their fruit, etc.

Be sure to check out my must have bento lunch box essentials to step up your lunch game. These are products I swear by and make creating fun lunches super easy!

8. Ask them about their lunch

Communication is key!

Even when it comes to lunch, don’t forget to check in with them.

I know at the end of the day there are a million and one things going on. It’s easy to see they didn’t eat something, throw it away and feel disappointed.

I encourage you to take a quick second every now and then and ask them how their lunch was. Maybe they didn’t eat the apples because they were brown or the food had gotten too warm, etc.

Sometimes these can be the easiest fixes that make a huge difference in how much is eaten!

9. Keep it interesting

Don’t be afraid to try new things and switch it up a bit.

An easy way to do this without making it too daunting is to incorporate “safe foods” in a new way!

For example, if your little one is big into mac and cheese, consider adding hot dog pieces into it. Or maybe, if they have a new found love for Nutella, add it to something they’re weary of like rice cakes!

10. Know their appetite

Lastly, something you may be overlooking!

Remember that growing kids appetites change all the time – it’s completely normal!

Did your child have a couple weeks of eating their entire lunch and still coming home hungry to then not finishing their lunch the next week? Perhaps they were going through a growth spurt and now have slowed back down.

Did they eat a larger than normal breakfast that morning or even just eat more of their breakfast than they usually do? That can play into how hungry they are at lunch too!

Some days they may eat more or less depending on how hard they played or if they had P.E that day.

Make sure you’re paying attention to these factors. Also, don’t forget that this is only one meal in their day. There are plenty of other opportunities to get more or healthier foods in so try not to stress – you’ve totally got this 🙂