We’re heading into the start of the school season and your sweet nanny kids are probably going to start complaining any moment about the repetitive, boring lunches. As a nanny or private educator, you want to support the development and growth of your charges beyond their scholastic endeavors, and one of the most tangible ways you can do that is through nutrition. Here are a few easy to prepare, healthful, and kid-approved lunch ideas that you’ll love!
To begin we found some amazing, inspiring videos from supermom and talented chef, Weelicious. This creative and health-conscious mom has a beautiful blog where she shares delicious meal prep ideas, school lunch ideas, and even more. She’s particularly popular on Instagram where her videos of daily smoothies are breaking the internet with her adorable toddler embracing kale like it’s candy. One of the best instructional videos on the Weelicious blog to get your nanny kids excited about their healthy eating habits is this finger food presentation:
Once you master the beauty of finger foods, you’re ready to spice things up in your nanny kids lunches with the addition of some beautiful, nutrient-dense SUPER foods.
Here are a few helpful super food facts:
• Greek Yogurt: twice the protein content of regular yogurt
• Quinoa: is a complete protein and has a lot of fiber
• Blueberries: help improve memory
• Kale: high in iron and fiber
• Chia Seeds: omega 3s
• Beets: vitamin C, fiber, and potassium
• Beans: protein, fiber, and antioxidants
• Pumpkin Seeds: alpha and beta-carotene
• Hemp Seeds: amino acids
• Goji Berries: vitamin C, vitamin B2, vitamin A
• Dark Chocolate: contains flavonoids promoting good heart health
• Almonds: tons of protein and healthy fats
• Walnuts: omega’s + heart-healthy fiber
• Flax seeds: full of plant-based omega 3s
• Tomatoes: loaded with lycopene makes your skin look better
• Chickpeas: vegetarian protein-packed legume
• Avocado: contains healthy fat that helps you absorb other nutrients
• Blackberries: have more antioxidants than raspberries, blueberries, etc.
Another fantastic resource for fun school lunch inspiration is 100 Days of Real Food. They’ve got tons of excellent, healthy meal options and you can search for specific items while avoiding allergens.
As the school year gets going you may find that you’re running out of creative lunch ideas for your nanny kids, and this is where YouTube comes in. There are so many incredibly informative videos all about packing school lunches like this one from Tasty:
This video from Good Housekeeping also provides some great tips:
Now that you’ve got multiple resources to get started, you’re all set to set up a shopping list for your nanny family and work with the parents to see if they’d like you to create a simple meal planning sheet for the kids’ lunches. With these tools, you’ll be certain to surprise you nanny kids with fun, delicious, and healthy lunches for each day of the school year!
We hope that this info has been a helpful start — what are some of your tried and true school lunch options for your nanny kids?
We’d love to hear about your best practices as you prepare your charges for the year ahead!
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