Today my daughter's first grade class went to the zoo for a field trip. We were asked to pack a sack lunch for them to eat while we were there. I went along as a chaperone so I took a packed lunch as well. I packed a sandwich, baggie of cheese crackers, banana, and a cookie each for my daughter and I, along with a bottle of Gatorade and a bottle of water each. I thought that was plenty. I was in charge of 2 other students in my group and when we sat down to eat lunch I was amazed at the amount of food that was packed. One of the students had a sandwich, bag of chips, baggie of crackers, applesauce, fruit snacks, peanut butter crackers, Froot by the Foot, and water. The other student had a sandwich, chips, applesauce, rice krispie treat, milk, juice, water, and fruit rollup. And what I was amazed at was how much they ate! Even my daughter finished her entire lunch and that almost never happens. We had only been at the zoo about 40 minutes when we started eating lunch but I was amazed. What do you normally pack your kids for field trip lunches and do they actually eat it all? Just a funny little observation today.
They eat way more on a field trip. I don't know if the excitement makes them extra hungry or what but they do eat more!
Kids on field trips do tend to eat more. also when they do a picnic at school, the kids eat more. I guess because it is outside.. Everything tastes better outside..
Most of the foods you've listed are just sugar and chemical preservatives, flavorings and color. People who regularly eat this stuff eat a lot more than they would if they we're eating whole foods. There is no fiber to fill them up and the sugar creates a high and then a crash which results in hunger.
If they kids are eating that way for lunch it's a safe bet they ate that way for breakfast, the poor things are starving while stuffing their faces.
We aren't perfect we eat junk food sometimes too but my girls are shocked at what their classmates consume on a daily basis. No wonder America is sick, fat and tired.
I've made similar observations. I'm not amazed, since a lot of what you described is basically candy disguised as food. fruit snacks, froot by the foot, rice krispie treat, fruit roll up, applesauce (usually sweetened by HFCS). Crackers, chips, etc.
They don't get full eating these high carb snacks.
Kids tend to eat more on field trips. Guess it tastes better somewhere else.
I feel like I always overpack just a little for lunches! I guess I get worried that if there is something in there he does not like or want, and I want there to be alternatives so he gets enough to eat. I usually send a sandwich, a fresh fruit, crakers or pretzels and a yogurt or pudding, and then an extra like fruit snacks or craisens or something. For a field trip I also pack 2 drinks. He is in pre-K.
My kids eat more if they are outdoors than they do if they are indoors.
Funny, but when I read your descriptions of the other kids lunches, all I could think was "no wonder they pack so much-- there's a lot of empty calories and sugar there".
If I had to pack a lunch for a field trip, it would be:
Almond butter and jam on whole grain bread
A string cheese
A 'trail mix' bag of almonds, raisins or dried apricots, pretzel sticks
Half an apple, sliced
carrot sticks
Almond milk or water
He likes all of these options and will eat them.:)
When we go to the zoo in the summer, I usually pack a big lunch for us and lots of good snacks, like strawberries cut-up and trimmed, quinoa tabbouleh, dolmas... stuff that can stand not being constantly refrigerated... as well as much of the first list. We get hungry and I don't like having to get snacks while we are out, as most of what concessions usually sells is junk.
Not for a field trip but today I packed my son a peanut butter and honey sandwich, corn chips(basically fritos but organic) a yogurt cup, huge portion of cut up watermelon, an oatmeal cookie and a juice box. He eats it all.
Forgot to add he is in kindergarten
My kids always seem to eat a ton more on a field trip than they normally do at home or in school. When I pack a lunch for a trip, I almost double what I'd typically pack for a lunch to be eaten at school.
I typically pack a bit more food for my children when they go on field trips. Typical lunches consist of sandwich, crackers, fruit, a drink, a water bottle, string cheese, and occasionally an extra treat such as yogurt and/or fruit snacks. While on a field trip I usually give extra of a few things including drinks because often kids are not allowed to get a drink anywhere else aside from their lunch box.
Sounds like more processed snacks and junk than anything else.
Usually for lunch for my daughter I pack a peanut butter sandwich, 1 drink pouch, and 2 to 3 different "sides" (fruit, granola bar, carrot sticks, string cheese). One of those might be her snack mid-morning, and sometimes one comes back intact in her lunch box after school. I might pack a couple "extras" if she's on a field trip, since they are doing some extra walking and I figure she might get hungrier.
My daughter is normally a pretty light eater, but when we've been to Disney World, she eats and is hungry pretty much constantly. We pack things like granola bars, PBJ sandwiches, and bananas to keep her satisfied and still sometimes have to pop for an extra snack, like popcorn. I remember when we took my stepsons to WDW for the first time when they were 6 and 7 and it was the same thing. They walked and stood in line everywhere and never complained about being tired, but they were like sharks - they just had to keep eating! Probably it was all the energy they were burning!
My kids always pack a protein (I don't care if it's in the form of a sandwich or just peanut butter, but some kind of protein), a bag of chips/pretzels/porpcorn, a fruit or veggie, and a dessert. They also sometimes put in a packet of gummies.
For field trips, we always send them with 2-3 bottles of water (we normally chaperone so we can carry them) and a 6 inch Subway sandwich in place of the protein.
They rarely eat it all, but I'd rather them have too much than to be hungry.
Well most of that stuff isn't actually "food" it's just sweets and nutirtionally vacant junk. Not filling or healthy.
I they had healthier food, less would fill them.
My son is only 4, but he eats WAY more on adventures then while at home. The excitement and energy used is more. I try to pack really healthy stuff, so he gets really filled, but yes...he generally eats more even with it being healthy.
When we do a zoo trip, or any other walk around adventure, I pack two snacks, and a full size lunch. I also pack Water for each person, plus two extra bottles. On top of that, I will pack a drink just for lunch.
On, and did I mention we always have an ice cream as well!
in the past two months my petite little first grade girl has started eating infinitely more than she used to. She eats a morning snack at school. For snack she'll eat 1/2 - 3/4 of an apple cut up or a yogurt squeezie and a Nutrigrain bar. Then for lunch she'll eat half a meat and cheese sandwich with a lot of meat and a whole slice of thick deli cheese or a whole pb&j (and I am generous with the pbutter on both sides), fruit, pretzles, and string cheese, and a small dessert like cookie or granola bar. I always send water to drink (milk doesn't fit and we don't do juice).
She is still so skinny I can count her ribs. I guess they must be hitting a big growth spurt or be using their little brains so much now they need extra energy!
i think parents pack more for field trips because they assume they will eat at a few diferent times. Thats why I pack more what I find funny is the fact i never pictured my daughter having a feast instead of eating a few things throughout the day=) for school you have the option to pack seperately but you need to keep containers down for field trips so i assume they were hoping they'd save some for a snack a few hours later and then some maybe for the ride home
Oh could my kids eat when they were on trips or at sporting events. I remember an 8 hour trip, they were going to hike part of the Oregon Trail, it was a 5th grade trip and for each kid that went on it I packed enough food for 3 people and nothing ever made it home. Granted they shared some of it, but goodness did those kids build an appetite!
An average lunch would include some junk, and then tuna w/ crackers, some kinda fruit, cheese to go with the extra crackers, maybe yogurt or cottage cheese, and then anything else I had on hand. My tuna tended to be a hit with the kids so I always packed extra's.
I am with you I don't usually pack that much for my kids. But will take extra drinks when I go with them. Usually it's a sandwich, chips and maybe a fruit snack or granola bar and a drink. Sometimes I don't do the sandwich and will do a lunch able. But I think there is just something about walking around some place like the zoo that makes you very hungry.
My kindergartner: Half a pb&j sandwich, peppers cut up (1/2 a pepper) or a fruit cup, crackers or chips, juice box.
My 3rd grader: a whole pb&j sandwich, peppers or fruit cup, crackers or chips, granola bar & juice box.
Both kids say they eat all their lunch and have never complained of not getting enough.
I don't pack a bunch for lunches at school. It is usually:
PB&J or turkey wrap
Grapes or raspberries
Cheese crackers
Applesauce
For a field trip I do the same as above, but I add in a couple more things. They usually are doing a lot of walking on field trips, and if he doesn't eat the extra during a stop for a snack (which they had on their last field trip there), he will eat it on his way home from school.
i would assume that the parents included extra snacks, knowing their kids would burn off a ton of energy on a field trip.
khairete
S.
