Hi, parents! This week, I am still stressing over the “what ifs” of preparing my kiddo (and myself) for the big leap into preschool. This week my mind is stuck on the food of it all. I’m looking for the best snacks for preschoolers.
Does your kiddo need a packed lunch for preschool? There is so much to get into. Let’s do it!
The Snack
I am a big fan of the simple fallback snack when necessary: A little bag of gold fish and some fruit snacks. To be clear, there is no parent shame allowed around these parts! We are all doing our very best. And there is nothing wrong with grabbing something packaged from the pantry.
For my kiddo, he can be picky with no notice. One day he loves goldfish and the next he can’t even look in their direction.
New, Exciting, Yummy
I would like to incorporate more fresh fruits and veggies into his diet, though. So I’ve been looking at some simple alternatives to keep his preschool snacks new, exciting and still yummy.
An easy one to start with is cheese and fruit! Grab some cheese cubes or string cheese from the grocery store. You can pair the cheese with halved grapes or quartered strawberries.
Organizing
A great tip for these snacks is to pick up some of the reusable bento-style containers. They keep everything separate and tidy but easily accessible for your kiddo when it’s snack time.
Another snack I’m planning: Crackers and deli meat. Like a lunchable but made by kiddo’s parent! Throw some crackers in there for the crunch and a couple of slices of deli meat (I like turkey) folded into squares to fit the cracker.
In the words of my son: Ta -Da! A delicious snack for preschool.
Easy Lunches
Next up, lunch time! Remember, we are attempting to keep things simple for us caregivers. So first up, the tortilla sandwich.
Those little ones can be hard to convince to eat a whole sandwich. But, roll up those same ingredients in a tortilla? It’s a whole new meal!
Tortillas can replace bread so easily. You could do a banana pb&j in a tortilla. Or try a classic turkey and cheese roll up. You can cut the rollups into smaller bite-sized pieces as well.
Another way to utilize the tortilla is to make a quesadilla. Tip: Make it the night before and leave the lunch ready in the fridge to grab on your way out the door! No one wants to make a quesadilla at 7am.
If you are going down the quesadilla route, try cheese and apples. They are flavors your kiddo is already used to, just in a different form. You can add sliced cucumbers or shredded carrots on the side to get some veggies in there too.
Trying New Foods
The overall message here is that we don’t have to get stuck in the same rotation of the same few meals.
Kiddos can be creatures of habit and when they like something, they LIKE it. Until all the sudden they don’t at all.
It can be easy to just do what you know they will like. But I’ve noticed recently is that my own child hasn’t wanted to try new things. So, we're inching our way there.
One new meal at a time.
Just in time for preschool lunch!
Sophie Hamel is a freelance writer and works as a crisis responder. Her son is three years old.
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