Kindergarten Lunch Ideas

I used to make tortilla wraps with cheese or lunchmeat and some lettuce or whatever they liked inside - wrap it in a piece of foil. They loved them!!

Good luck!!

String cheese
yogurt
crackers and cheese
Sandwiches, with deli meat or lettuce.
Fruit cup
veggie sticks
left over dinner

Pack anything, that your granddaughter WILL eat, that is not junk food.
I say this because, many kids are picky or allergic to stuff.
So, pack what she WILL eat. Otherwise, a kid will NOT eat at all, even if... they are hungry.
I work at my kids' school and see so many kids that do not eat because, they do NOT like what is in their lunch bag. Even if they are hungry, they will NOT eat. So ask or know, what your granddaughter, will eat. And then pack that.
It doesn't matter if it is the same thing everyday, lots of kids have the same thing everyday, because, they like it and will eat it and they like routine. Even if a home lunch is all fancy and cute and looks like a restaurant buffet, they will not eat, if they don't like what is packed in their homelunch bag.

Keep it simple.
Keep it in appropriate portion sizes for a child that age. Some kids have TOO much food in their lunch bag, and it is way too much for a little kid to eat. And then the kids tell me "My Mommy said I have to eat everything and I can't leave the cafeteria until I eat everything....or she gets mad."

Pack what she WILL eat.
Put it in an insulated lunch bag, with a blue-ice ice pack.
And also pack a bottle of water in there too.
And napkins and/or fork and spoon. I see many kids, who don't even have utensils in their lunch bag. To eat.

Um, pack her what she ate for lunch before she started K. What does she eat for breakfast, lunch and dinner now? Pack THAT. Turkey, cheese, beans, eggs, rice, soup, yogurt, pasta, veges/fruit, crackers, chicken, leftovers, WHATEVER she eats!

The most important thing is to pack what she will eat. When most parents think of bringing a lunch they think of sandwiches.... boring. Don't think of traditional lunches, think more of snacks that when eaten together make a meal.

Suggestions....
crackers, gold fish
pretzels
cubes of cheese
cubes of chicken (or whatever left overs you have)
yogurt
cut up veggies with dip
pita chips
cut up fruit, dried fruit
hard boiled egg
granola bars
cereal - many cereals are good to eat plain as a snack (think back to when she was a toddler and ate cherrios or corn puffs)

You can get a thermos and send in hot foods...
mac and cheese
ramon noodles - add some cheese
pizza rolls - if you cook them in the morning and put in a thermos they will stay hot for a few hours

Yogurt (DD makes a mess with gogurt, so I buy small cups), fruit, crackers, cheese, lunchmeat, lettuce, tortilla, bread cut into shapes, milk, juice, water.

My son often takes a frozen gogurt (it's good in time for lunch), some fruit and a cookie or brownie. Sometimes he takes spaghetioes instead of gogurt, but gogurt is his favorite and comes several flavors.

My son started kindergarten this year too. He likes getting the hot lunch occasionally, but lately he enjoys the lunches I make him better! He likes the Lunchables, but I won't buy them because they are not nutritious and expensive. So I make my own. Here are some lunches I have made so far: lunch meat cut up in cracker size pieces ( I get the nitrate-free brands. They have less preservatives. Costco has a great turkey breast that lasts a long time.)
multi-grain crackers
organic cheese (cracker size)
baby carrots and/or grape tomatoes
strawberries and/or blueberries
Annie's brand has a lot of great products that use whole food ingredients. I usually pop in a small bag of cookies or gummy snacks. I buy them in bulk at Costco.

Have you experimented with different seed butters like sunflower? My kids really like with jelly or honey. You can make a sandwich, cut off the crusts, cut the sandwich into strips and roll up. They look like sushi! Do the same with hummus and thin slices of cucumber. You can also make up waffles and freeze them. Put seed butter and jam in between and make a sandwich. They thaw by lunch time.
My kids like wraps, so I will use lunch meat, cheese, mustard, lettuce and roll it up.
I make smoothies in the blender and put them in reusable silicone ice pop molds (Norpro brand-I got mine on Amazon). Freeze them the night before and they are partially thawed by lunch. They also double nicely as an ice pack to keep other foods cold.
Go to some place like Bed, Bath and Beyond or Pottery Barn and get some good lunch storage containers. I bought a set of containers that have ice packs attached to the lids. I keep them in the freezer, so they are ready to go every morning. This way I can send any perishable item I want such as salad or fruits. Get a good thermos and on cold days send chili or soups.
Some great websites/facebook pages I follow are 100 Days of Real Food, Food Babe and Spoonful. They give great recipes that are healthy and also awesome tips for food prep and storage. Good luck!
HTH,
A.

My kids love turkey (lunch meat) rolled up with a little cream cheese inside. Gives them some protien and they are fun to eat! You can put a frozen cooler piece in the lunchbox to keep it cold, and toss them in the freezer for about an hour in the morning as well. You can also use tortillas and roll all kinds of stuff in there - hummis, veggies, lunch meat.... that she may like.

Egg salad, tuna salad, etc etc. ham, cheese, fruits, cheese, crackers. Open the frig and really anything in there would work. Pasta, meatballs, chicken. Leftovers from dinner. The choices are endless. You can start by asking her what she would like.

She can eat the same things at school that she eats at home. Kids generally don't care if things aren't as hot or as cold as they would be at home. So give things like pasta, chicken nuggets, chicken, pizza, sandwiches, mac & cheese hot dogs, etc.

Sandwich ideas: egg salad, tuna, lunch meat (turkey, ham, salami, etc), cheese, sunbutter & jelly (my son is allergic to nuts and he eats sunbutter, which we find at Target and some grocery stores)

Add in things like fruit, crackers or chips, carrot sticks, cucumber, bell peppers and you're good to go.

You can also do cheese & crackers, pita and/or veggies & hummus as a good way to get in protein.

Salami & cheese slices she can put on mini sub rolls. Better yet Hawaiian
rolls. They are soft. She can assemble at school.
-burritos. leftover grd beef, shredded cheese, dices tomatoes or onions
are optional. Assemble warmed meat onto warmed tortilla, double wrap
in foil.
-soup in thermos w/crackers
-mini carrot sticks w/Ranch
-mini yogurs or Gogurts
-breakfast bars
-cheese & her favorite crackers
-wraps (fill w/her fave lunchmeat & veggies sliced uber thin)
-a side of fruit (strawberries, sliced apples, a banana)
-a couple of cookies
-dried fruit roll up
-tuna & crackers. Put container on ice pack.