Snack Time Routine

Snack time in the 1st and 2nd grade is generally a time when we recharge our batteries, refuel our bodies, and practice good manners. In the morning, children are expected to wash their hands, sit at one table, and share communal bowls of food. We ask for bowls to be passed, and say either "yes, please," or "no, thank you." Conversation is usually excited chatter about what games to play at recess. In the afternoon, we usually eat in our classroom or even outside on picnic blankets. It is a more relaxed affair, and at this time children are also allowed to finish whatever is left from their lunch boxes. Of course, I may also make "Carpenter's famous popcorn" on a rare Friday afternoon. 

As in past years, we plan to have families take turns providing snack for the entire classroom. You will end up having about 4 turns as snack provider throughout the year.

I will provide snack the first week of school - after that, I'll continue with parent names. The first roster will be posted soon.

With our emphasis on being a healthy school, it is so important to educate our children of the importance of putting good things in their bodies. A great way to do this is to have your child be involved in the planning, shopping, and preparation of the snacks they bring in to share.

Most, if not all, of the snacks should be fruits and vegetables. Children simply do not get the recommended servings per day, so having 2 snack times where these are the only options is an easy way to encourage getting those in. Also, with fruits and vegetables, we don't have to worry about unnecessary additives, or - worse - sneaky nut contamination (remember - we are a nut-aware school).

With that in mind, here are some suggestions:

Fruits:
berries, bananas, apples, grapes, melon chunks, kiwi, clementines, oranges
frozen fruits are a nice change of pace - frozen grapes, frozen all-fruit bars
dried fruits, like apricots and raisins
natural applesauce (low sugar)

Vegetables:
carrot sticks, celery sticks, cucumbers, broccoli, red, green, yellow sweet pepper strips, cherry tomatoes (I know, I know - probably should have put it in the fruit section)

Besides fruits and vegetables, rice crackers and popcorn kernels (we have an air popper) are a nice occasional treat. Big containers of natural yogurt (please, no gogurts) and string cheese are fine!

So, with our class of 10 children, a shopping list may look something like this:

10 bananas, 10 small apples, 10 oranges, 4 big bunches of grapes, carrot and celery sticks with Sunbutter or Wowbutter, baby cucumbers, 10 raisin boxes, bag of mixed bell pepper strips, bag of popcorn kernels, stick of butter. (This is just a suggestion, of course - but many parents over the years have asked for a typical list.)

You can drop off all at once, on Monday morning, or a little each day - whichever is easiest. Thank you in advance for your help in keeping our children fueled up and ready to learn!