The further they stay away from that cafeteria food, the better!
As many families prepare for the start of school next week, the Internet abounds with advice on how to pack lunches for young kids. But what about teens? These older students are bottomless pits of appetite and need good nourishment more than ever, but often they get away with subsisting on cheap pizza and hot dogs from the school cafeteria. Instead of settling for sub-standard meals, start the year off right by sitting down with your teen for a chat about why good nutrition matters, how packing a lunch can help, and what your joint plan is for doing that.
First, explain to your teen the benefits of bringing lunch from home. There's the obvious nutritional advantage -- fresh ingredients, homemade food, and plenty of it for ravenous growing bodies. You don't have to wait in a line, you'll have more time to socialize while eating, and you'll generate less waste.
Then there are the financial considerations. Cafeteria lunches add up over time, and for parents concerned about raising financially literate kids, it's logical to expect a kid to save that money and take advantage of ingredients available at home instead. Do some calculations to figure out how much could be saved each year. You could agree to a single bought lunch per week to satisfy that greasy fry craving.
Second, come up with a plan for lunches. Ask your teen to come shopping with you on weekends to buy ingredients for their lunches. The more involvement they have in the process, the more inclined they'll be to eat the food they pack, but it's something you'll still want to oversee as a parent to ensure they're getting what they need. Figure out a schedule to make it work, whether you do lunch prep together for an hour on Sunday evenings or make it part of daily dinner cleanup. Avoiding the morning scramble is always sensible, as teens are notorious for their sluggishness at that time of day!
Invest in a lunch bag or box that is sufficiently 'cool' for your teen to carry. Get their input when making this purchase. Similarly, get reusable containers that they like and will not feel self-conscious about, such as a stainless steel Bento box, glass containers, or mason jars. Buy a small thermos in which to pack hot leftovers. Lots of great options here at the Life Without Plastic online store and ECOlunchbox.
Blair Wang -- Four days of Bento/CC BY 2.0
