Healthy snacks for Kindergarten?

Question

My kid is in half-day kindergarten. The teachers have requested for a healthy snack and water to be sent in daily. Examples of healthy snack: crackers, carrots, fruit, string cheese. Of these only crackers and grapes would work for us.

I am new to the U.S. and need some more ideas of healthy snacks other than crackers and fruit, that can be bought in Target, Walgreens or Albertsons.

At the Kindergarten orientation I understood that cookies were considered not healthy.

I badly need a list of as many healthy snacks as possible, including the actual name of the snack. It might sound strange, but I stand in the snacks aisle and am totally lost.

So, please help me with:

1. What are healthy snacks for 5 year olds.

2. Crackers - what are these? Anything that is labelled crackers? barnum animal shaped, graham, ritz - are all these crackers healthy?

3. Are all cookies considered not healthy for school snack?

4. Rice crispies, pretzels - healthy or not?

5. Fruits - other than grapes, how do you pack them? apple cut into slices gets dark? oranges peeled get soggy?

they only have about 5-10 min of snack time and kids want to finish snack quickly and go play.

Any, literally, any suggestions of healthy, easy to pack, snacks most appreicated. Store bought only, not home made.

Answer 1

Try something like mandarins or satsumas rather than oranges, and put the segments in a little plastic box. The segments of those hold together much better than full size oranges.

The moment you specify "store bought only" you are reducing the healthy quotient, I'm afraid. Store bought things have to contain preservatives, and their ingredients are always compromised by commercial and manufacturing restraints. You want healthy? Find yourself a muffin recipe book - you can make a big batch all at once, freeze them, and take out one a day. Make two or three batches of different flavours and you can ring the changes.

Answer 2

Okay, first of all, graham crackers are great for kindergardeners. They're honey flavored crackers, which comes in big slabs.

They also make graham cracker sticks, which are just the crackers in stick shape.

Your questions:

1. What are healthy snacks for 5 year olds.

Carrot sticks, celery sticks, applesauce (put a plastic spoon with it), and cheese.

2. Crackers - what are these? Anything that is labelled crackers? barnum animal shaped, graham, ritz - are all these crackers healthy?

Most crackers are good. Animal crackers aren't too healthy, but they're not awful.

3. Are all cookies considered not healthy for school snack?

No, cookies aren't all that healthy

4. Rice crispies, pretzels - healthy or not? Yes! Those are good! Cheerios are good to back in a little plastic baggie as well as Rice Krispies.

5. Fruits - other than grapes, how do you pack them? apple cut into slices gets dark? oranges peeled get soggy?

Just pack fruit in Ziploc sandwich bags. Apple slices will darken, so I don't recommend them. Bananas will also get disgusting, very dark and mushy. Peeled oranges won't get mushy though.

Answer 3

Actually I think that is a good question to ask the teachers. Send an email, since most teachers prefer to communicate that way.

I would suggest crackers. By far the easiest and cheapest.

Types that I have heard about being brought to school:

graham crackers including shaped ones such as Teddy Grahams. Target's marketplace brand graham crackers are pretty inexpensive.

cheese type crackers such as Cheeze-its or Pepperidge farm goldfish crackers.

Other plain type crackers such as Club or Ritz, doesn't have to be wheat.

I would not mess with fruit at all. It is expensive and most schools do not want food that has be "made" at home-homebaked items for example, so they may not want your sliced up apples. Fruit gets soggy, is hard to prepare and store, so just forget it, unless you want to spring for some juice boxes, or little cups of fruit or applesauce or pre-packaged bags of apples.

Pretzels would probably suffice as a healthy snack, again Target's marketplace brand is pretty reasonable I believe.

Animal crackers would probably suffice as healthy if they are not iced. Schools are so picky who knows, but it would probably work.

I'd send in a box of one of the crackers I mentioned and not worry about it.  

Answer 4

My son was in Kindergarten last year and I used to buy sliced apples packaged in the produce department at Walmart. They come packaged in separate little bags, great for sending to school.

I also did grapes, bananas, peaches and pears in the little Dole cups

I would send Nilla Wafer cookies, those are good or animal crackers. Pretzels are healthy, so is popcorn. Goldfish are a great snack too.

Answer 5

1.  we did this from kdg until 3rd grade for my sister. i know every snack in the book. despite this i babysit kidswho arent allowed to eat sugar really.

2. crackers...cheeseits, goldfish, ritz, saltines, animal are prolly ok

3. yes

4. pretzals are ok.  try ricecakes (quaker) too those are good.

5. rasins, banana, clementine (peel it and put in sandwich bag)

Answer 6

Twinkies

Answer 7

Are you providing the daily snack for your child only?   Or, are the parents suppose to take turns sending a snack for the entire class to enjoy.    At our school, the parents take turns.       If I were you and was not clear on that, I would ask.  

Grapes (you could freeze them and take them out of the cooler and put into a plastic container so they won't get mashed and they will be really cold by snack time).    Blueberries are also a good option.     Strawberries are good.     Oranges (for school, I wash the  orange off and cut into wedges and my kids just eat the orange off of the rind.   Do not send an unpeeled or uncut orage).     Bananas (most kids do not like-they get smashed too easily and won't want to eat if they are bruised).     Apples (cut them into quarters and give them a quick soak in in some apple juice or Sprite soda to keep them from turning brown).    Buy some watermelon or cantaloupe or honeydew melon and send some chunked up pieces in lunch.   Put all fruit in an airtight plastic container.   I usually put the container in the fridge the night before to get it cold.

Dried cereal.   Cheerios, Corn Chex, Rice Chex, Crispix.   Most kids like these cereals dry.  

Granola Bars/Cereal Bars.     Special K has some good tasting bars (chocolate drizzle; honey nut) and are relatively healthy--These will most likely be found in the cereal aisle or on the bread aisle.      Quaker brand breakfast cookies are good-high in fiber, etc.  

Rice Krispy Squares are not the most healthy snack but isn't the worst either.     Every now and then won't hurt anything.  

Whole wheat bread spread with peanut butter.  

Wheat Thin brand snack crackers.    Triscuit brand snack crackers.    Reduced fat Cheese Nips crackers.    

Deli meat.    Roll up a few pieces of ham or turkey.      Or canadian bacon pieces (already cut in circle shapes and  found in the prepackaged lunch meat section).  

Raisins, Nuts, Prunes (suprisingly most kids like them if they don't know what they are).

Rice Cakes.    I would buy the flavored type (caramel is really good).  Quaker brand or Orville Reddenbacher.  

Carrot Sticks, Cauliflower, Celery and some fat free ranch dip for dipping.     Most kids like to dip.  

I really think that the teachers were putting an emphasis on "healthy" because they don't want the kids eating brownies and cookies every day.     I don't really think that they are expecting for you to special order food from a health food store.      I think that if you sent a cookie every now and then for a "treat" it would be ok;   if you sent some Ritz brand crackers, that would be fine too.    

Quit stressing so much.    You could also show up to the school during snack time and see what everyone else brings.    That's my sneaky trick.    Plus your child will like that you dropped by.   I would mention it to the teacher, though.      

Answer 8

They have the same policy in my school system.  For cookies they did allow home made raisin oatmeal cookies with a low sugar content.  You can send cereal or granola bars.  Crackers could be saltine crackers, ritz, cheez-its, wheat thins, or any other kind of cracker that is not sweet.  You can buy the crackers with cheese or peanut butter in them. They sell in the fruit isle little bags of apple slices individually sliced.  You can get all different kinds of fruit cups.  You could send her with bananas if she likes them.  Also they sell pickle cups which are a hit with two of my kids.  You can send her with lunch meat or other meat slices and cheese.  Yes rice krispies are healthy along with any other low sugar cereal such as Kix, Cheerios, Total, Chex, etc.  I have bought these little tuperware containers and have put watermellon, kiwi peeled and cut, oranges peeled and cut, strawberries and yogurt mixed together and more.  Jello is also healthy and the stores sell jello mixed with fruit.  I think they are from Dole brand.  Cheese sticks are also a good snack.  Uncrustables are good too.  They are little sandwiches individually packed with out the crust.  These are healthy and my kids love them.  Hope this helped.  

Answer 9

try this website

www.famliyfun.com

Answer 10

No cookies at all.  Barnum animals are cookies.  I sent my child with mini yogurts (not the kiddie ones with fake colors), cut fruit (it wont go bad even in full day school), whole grain crackers, smartfood popcorn, applesauce (sold in little tubs for a single serving)

Answer 11

Whole apple, pear, peach, plum, nectarine, banana, orange (I start the peeling job for them or section it), blueberries, raspberries, blackberries, green or red grapes, carrots (they like the big ones or baby carrots), sliced cucumber, yogurt, relatively healthy whole-grain cereals like cheerios or smart start or total  (with or without boxed milk to pour on top), popcorn, soy butter and jam sandwiches (you can do peanut butter if your child's not allergic and they're not endangering anyone else in the class -- which would also let you send granola or nuts), cereal or granola bars, cheese sticks and crackers (we do ritz which has a whole grain variety, but i'm you could certainly find healthier choices).  Oh, or dried fruit like raisins or even canned fruit packed only in 100% fruit juice.

Answer 12

1.  Anything that is loaded with nutrition and keep their brains and bodies going.

2.  Look for a "whole grain" cracker.  Ritz does make one.  Read the ingredients list, whole grain should be the first ingredient.

3.  There are cookies that have more nutritous stuff in them... but you won't find them at the store.  There are "Dare Simple Pleasures baked cookie bars".  They are the healthiest store bought cookie I have found.

4.  No.  Rice Krispies are loaded with sugar and have no nutritional value.  Pretzels are loaded with salt and have no nutritional value.

5.  If you put cut up apples into an air tight container they shouldn't go dark.  A banana... a plum... a kiwi cut in half... peaches... nectartines... melons.  Don't forget veggies too.

Again... cheese, yogurt and nuts are all good choices too.