Homeschool lunches can be daunting. No sooner do you get cleaned up from breakfast and start lessons when someone says… “I’m hungry.” It’s then you realize that time passed quickly and it’s lunch time in your homeschool. What’s a homeschool mom to do when you are home and feel like you have to cook all the time? These 5 quick tips for back to homeschool lunches can help.
Wouldn’t it be nice to have a lunch lady working in your kitchen all day while you go about homeschooling the children? Big dream right? I can’t tell you the number of times I’ve imagine Alice from the Brady Bunch standing in my kitchen prepping all the meals. That said, I’ve learned a thing or two in my years of homeschooling that have helped me to ensure homeschool lunch isn’t full of struggle.
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5 Tips for Managing Homeschool Lunches
Tip #1 Make Sure Your Kitchen is Stocked
Make sure you’ve filled your fridge and pantry with all the basics you and your children need to put together quick and easy lunches.
- Deli meat
- Cheese, both sliced and sticks (or cubes)
- Yogurt cups
- Fresh fruit; grapes, apples, bananas, mandarin oranges, blueberries, strawberries, pineapple, etc.
- Convenient vegetables like; carrot sticks, celery sticks, snap peas, lettuce, and cherry or grape tomatoes
- Eggs, and I even sometimes buy pre-boiled eggs for convenience
- Mac & Cheese cups, (honestly I prefer to make my own and freeze these).
- Microwavable rice cups
- Pretzel sticks
- Graham crackers
- Vanilla wafers
- Protein bars
Tip #2 Prep Ahead
No one wants to eat a sandwich every single day in homeschool. And, since Alice isn’t there to make your lunches for you, nor do you have a homeschool lunch lady to take care of cooking, prepping meals ahead of time makes your homeschool day run much smoother.
- Double up when cooking dinner, then use the leftovers for lunch a day or two later.
- Prep some simple meals for lunch, place in containers and store in the fridge. Then, grab, heat in microwave and serve.
- Pack a lunch. What? Yes, who says that just because you are home you can’t pack your kids lunches for homeschool? Just decide ahead of time what you’ll pack, place in convenient containers like these easy lunch box bento boxes. Then, when it’s time for lunch your kids can just grab theirs from the fridge. SO SIMPLE!
- Prep all your homeschool lunch meals on Saturday or Sunday afternoon or evening. By doing lunch prep 1 day a week you’ll be free to focus on more important things during the homeschooling hours. Plus, you’ll be more likely to eat yourself if everything is prepped ahead. And, don’t forget it’s easier to eat healthy if you prep ahead of time.
My friend Monique has some great ideas for homeschool lunches you can prep ahead.
Tip #3 Set up a Snack Station
Kids go through eating phases. Sometimes they eat all the time and are always hungry. This is especially true with boys.
Other times, it might seem like they never want to eat.
But one thing is sure. You don’t want to stop in the middle of a math lesson with your 5 year old to make a meal or snack for your 12 year old.
So, setting up a snack station with healthy snacks, or even just filling snacks can eleviate the hungry grumbling complaint of “MOM! I’m hungry.” They can just grab a snack or drink whenever they need it.
- Applesauce cups
- Grapes
- Peanut butter
- Popcorn
- Tortilla chips
- Pretzel sticks
- Crackers
- Graham crackers
- Protein bars
- Fruit juice
- Water bottles
Tip #4 Teach Your Kids to Make Their Own
We all long for an Alice. But, we can just as easily teach our kids how to be independent and make their own lunches.
See my friend Judy’s Frugal Homeschool Lunch Ideas.
Tip #5 Don’t Over Complicate It
Lunch does not have to be complicated. A slice or two of deli meat wrapped around a cheese stick, with an apple and yogurt cup would be a sufficient lunch for most kids.
Remember, a child’s stomach is only about the size of their fist. So, it doesn’t usually take a lot to fill them up.
If your child is in the middle of a growth spurt where they need more fuel to energize their bodies and brains, keeping tip #3 set up will help to you to keep from over complicating meals.
Ok homeschool moms, you’ve got this! Don’t let yourself stress over lunch. Remember, that even if you find yourself unprepared on any given day, there is always Chick-fil-a. And, they have a drive thru! Seriously… there is nothing wrong with that.
In fact, you can call another homeschool mom friend to meet you there and utilize the play area for a little homeschool socialization time!
What homeschool lunch tips do you have to share? Tell me in the comments below.
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