At Lincoln Heights, we encourage children to be aware of their food choices, both at school and at home. Ultimately, we want our children to make decisions that take into account the nutritional value of the foods they choose to eat.
As a school community, there are a number of ways that we are trying to reach this goal. Our physical education teacher discusses how different foods help power our bodies. Our cafeteria follows certain nutritional guidelines, and is offering lower sodium, sugar, and fat foods than they did several years ago. In support of these ideas, our classrooms teachers encourage their students to make healthy choices regarding the snacks that they bring from home.
The following list contains snack suggestions that have solid nutritional value and would be good choices for school. Many of these foods can be purchased in larger packages that you can then separate into individual servings using plastic bags or reusable containers, making them good economical choices as well. If you opt for prepackaged snacks, check out the serving size. Sometimes, these single serve packages contain two or more servings.
*Fresh fruits and vegetables *Unsweetened applesauce *Fruit cups served in their own juices or light syrup *Dried fruits (raisins, prunes, cranberries, mangoes, blueberries, apricots, etc.) *Natural fruit leathers (varieties with no added sugar or corn syrup) *Hummus or bean dip with pita crackers or vegetables *Hard boiled eggs *Whole grain/low sugar breakfast cereals, such as Cheerios or Chex *Whole grain crackers or rice cakes *English Muffin *Baked tortilla chips and salsa *Whole grain granola or cereal bars *Cliff Bar, Luna Bars, breakfast Bars, Trail Mix Bars, Nutri-grain Bars, Power Bars *Low salt pretzels *Plain popped popcorn *Low fat/Fat free Yogurt or smoothies *Low fat cheese *Low fat pudding *Trail Mix (your child can create his/her own special blend with cereal, dried fruits, pretzels, nuts, and small amounts of chocolate) *Sandwiches made with lower fat cuts of meats and cheese
Ideally, your child’s beverage of choice should be water. Water helps hydrate the body and assists in brain functioning. It also contains no calories. One hundred percent juices are preferred over most juice boxes/pouches which are mainly sugar and water. However, recent government recommendations suggest limited juice consumption to 6-8 ounces daily.
**Please also remember the Lincoln Heights policy on birthday snacks/treats, which states in the Lincoln Heights Parent Handbook:
We adhere to Board Policies 5125.3 & 2420 and do not host birthday or any rewards celebration with food (e.g. birthday cakes, brownies, cupcakes, candy).
Thank you for your assistance and cooperation in providing snacks that appeal to the senses and help the body grow strong!