Easy School Lunch Ideas for Kids
As a parent, I know there’s lots of motivation to make lunches fun and exciting at the beginning of the school year. But then you get to around the 30-day mark of school starting, and packing lunches becomes as mundane as watching paint dry! So today I’m sharing easy school lunch ideas for kids that will keep things exciting for them and (a little more) exciting for you.
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At the start of the school year, I transformed our junk drawer into a school lunch prep storage area. Don’t worry, we made another junk drawer somewhere else. ;) The above photo has all the necessities I use to make lunches easy to make and a whole lot more fun. If you want to see the drawer transformation, you can watch THIS REEL HERE.
Lunch Idea #1: Unicorn Sandwich
The first easy school lunch idea for kids is unicorn themed. You don’t have to cook anything for your kids’ lunches to make them delicious and enjoyable. What I’ve found to be super helpful when it comes to packing lunches is using the Bentgo Lunch Box. Generally younger kids eat a little bit of this and a little bit of that. So using the Bentgo Lunch Box allows you to pack several different things, but in small quantities. That way, there’s little food waste, and you don’t have to use plastic baggies or a zillion little tupperware containers.
Sandwich cut with a unicorn cookie cutter
Favorite cheese cut with the mini unicorn cookie cutter and little salami rounds
Blueberries
Grapes using this handy grape cutter
Vanilla yogurt with a few M&M’s
Finish everything with sprinkles because sprinkles make everything better
Watch THIS REEL to see this unicorn-themed lunch come to life!
Lunch Idea #2: Ham and Cheese Rollup
The next lunch idea is another easy-prep option. I like to make ham and cheese pinwheels. Take a tortilla, layer ham and cheese in the center, roll it up and cut into small pieces. If your kiddo likes mayo, mustard, greens or other toppings, feel free to add those too. The pinwheels are a lot more exciting than just a regular tortilla roll up and fit perfectly inside the large compartment of the Bentgo Lunch Box.
Pinwheels
Goldfish
Grapes cut with the grape slicer
Little marshmellows
Blueberries
Watch THIS REEL to see the pinwheel lunch come together!
Lunch Idea #3: Dinosaur Sandwich
The final school lunch idea I have is creating a dinosaur sandwich. Using the handy cookie cutters, I place it on the center of the sandwich and viola - you have a little dinosaur shape. Some sandwich ideas could be: pepperoni and cheese, nutella and peanut butter, hummus and vegetables, lunch meat and their favorite cheese or cream cheese with jelly.
Dinosaur sandwich using large cookie cutter (put dinosaurs on a bed of spinach for extra points with the theme)
Raw carrots cut in half
Strawberries cut into mini dinosaurs using the mini cookie cutters
Grapes cut in half
Cheese cut into mini dinosaurs
Watch THIS REEL to watch the dinosaur-themed lunch come to life!
If you’re looking for easy weeknight meals, check out this post HERE where I share 30 days of 30-minute meals!
What’s one of your kid’s favorite foods to have in their lunch? Let me know in the comments below!