When it is your week to bring the preschool snack...

What do you bring?

I had no idea that DS' preschool asked each family to sign up for one week to bring snacks. He is only a morning student for 3 hours on 3 days so I just didnt know we would be asked to do this. Since he eats lunch before he comes home, I assumed snack was only for afternoon students but apparently, they eat snack in the morning as well. It seems like a lot of eating happening in three hours. I just wish they would increase the cost of tuition and take care of snacks and the supply list stuff. All this extra stuff is starting to add up, especially since I was unaware before we started the program..Anyway, didnt mean to turn this into a bitchin' post.

Suggestions for snacks, please?

Our snacks have to be nut free. Off the top of my head, I've provided the following:

goldfish crackers, pretzels, teddy grahams, graham crackers, etc.
fresh fruit
squeezable yogurt/squeezable applesauce
blueberry mini-muffins (store bought, usually Costco)
cheese sticks
snack size bags of Pirate's Booty
Handi-snacks

I try to mix it up so the kids don't get bored. Our preschool teacher(s) gave us the heads up that Nutri-grain bars don't go over very well. ;)

string cheese
Fruit
Ritz bits cheese crackers
Popcorn
Yogurt/ Gogurt
Applesauce
Goldfish

When it was my turn I always sent cut fruit salad. It was the easiest way to avoid food allergies.

TJ's edamame
fruit
yogurt
cheese sticks
crackers
quesadilla wedges

Okay, one more newbie question--do you just send the entire week's snacks on Monday? Or do you bring them each day? I would love to do fresh fruit but that seems a "bring in each morning" type of snack.

Definitely check for food allergies in your DC's class. For example, we have one kid who can't have pineapple and one who can't have strawberries, so it can be more than just nuts to consider.

Not sure about the bring in every day vs. bring in for the week. Maybe you could do a fruit salad the first day, then yogurt and bananas, then string cheese and whole grain crackers the other day. Do you have to bring it on the days you don't even go to school?

When we've done this before there is usually at least one other family to split the task with, and then we would just bring whole fruit and the teachers would cut/prepare. I've never had to bring everything for an entire week.

Find out about food allergies in the class and also ask the teacher for ideas, if they didn't already provide a list of suggestions. My go to snack for my kids (unless it was a, "theme" snack, those are kind of stressful, like you need to bring a snack that starts with a certain letter or a certain color, etc.) are precut sliced apples, string cheese and water. I think I was the only parents who didn't bring juice or milk as a drink, but the teachers think that water is perfectly acceptable and so do I, esp since if they have cheese, that's dairy and if they have apples, that's a fruit. I try to do something healthy. In every preschool class, the snacks has gotten out of control as there are many parents who bring in junky snacks like, "fruit snacks" aka candy, cookies and cupcakes (not a bday), etc.. So, I know the teachers appreciate the parents who take the effort to bring a healthy snack. I've been pulled aside several times by the teachers to thank me for taking the effort to provide a healthy snack, since most parents bring in a fun, but unhealthy snack.

I've also done things like a whole banana, veggies and dip, yogurt, and an healthy cereal mix (we made this one fun by put into snack sized ziplock bags and then decorated a wooden clothspin to clip the middle of the bag, which makes it look like a butterfly, they were a big hit).

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Originally Posted by hellokitty

Find out about food allergies in the class and also ask the teacher for ideas, if they didn't already provide a list of suggestions. My go to snack for my kids (unless it was a, "theme" snack, those are kind of stressful, like you need to bring a snack that starts with a certain letter or a certain color, etc.) are precut sliced apples, string cheese and water. I think I was the only parents who didn't bring juice or milk as a drink, but the teachers think that water is perfectly acceptable and so do I, esp since if they have cheese, that's dairy and if they have apples, that's a fruit. I try to do something healthy. In every preschool class, the snacks has gotten out of control as there are many parents who bring in junky snacks like, "fruit snacks" aka candy, cookies and cupcakes (not a bday), etc.. So, I know the teachers appreciate the parents who take the effort to bring a healthy snack. I've been pulled aside several times by the teachers to thank me for taking the effort to provide a healthy snack, since most parents bring in a fun, but unhealthy snack.

I've also done things like a whole banana, veggies and dip, yogurt, and an healthy cereal mix (we made this one fun by put into snack sized ziplock bags and then decorated a wooden clothspin to clip the middle of the bag, which makes it look like a butterfly, they were a big hit).

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I like the apples and cheese idea. Thanks. I do need to check gor allergies and to make sure they know DS cannot eat bananas. I wrote it on the application/forms but I will alert the preschool teachers personally.

fruit or veg -- that is all that is allowed. we do cut up
apples
watermelon
oranges sliced
grapes cut in half
cucumbers sliced
other melons

Double check with the teacher/school about if a refrigerator is available; probably not a big deal for a three hour day, but it is nice to sometimes send multiple days at a time if you need to.

Also ask how they want it "packaged" our preschool wanted one big bowl of fruit so they could practice family style eating - passing, scooping, etc. While I know others need to send individual servings of snack.

We went four or five days a week and took snack each day for a week. I tried to mix it up - cheese, fruit, veggie, cracker. My kids always liked bringing the random "trail mix" which was usually raisins, dried cereal, and whatever else I had in the house.

I think a morning snack is pretty standard. It is social teaching- one kid helps serve, one kid helps with the grace (if it's a parochial school), they all use napkins properly, they all thank the kid who brought the snack, talk about how much they enjoy it, etc. At ours, no one is ever made to eat something they don't want to, but they aren't allowed to say negative things about it. Another lesson in politeness.

Personally I have come to love the communal snack vs each child bringing his or her own. Especially for am preschool where, like you said, the kids aren't going to keel over from hunger if they don't opt to eat it.

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It seems like a lot of eating happening in three hours. I just wish they would increase the cost of tuition and take care of snacks and the supply list stuff. All this extra stuff is starting to add up, especially since I was unaware before we started the program..Anyway, didnt mean to turn this into a bitchin' post.

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I know what you mean, it was a surprise to me too. I think it's nice you have a week. I have 1 random day every 2 weeks or so. Much harder to remember!

I have gone cheap, and have seen plenty of other moms do it as well. A big bag of pretzels from Costco is less than $5 and will feed all the kids. Cheese and crackers is very popular. I've sent in goldfish because I forgot it was our day and that's what I had in the pantry. No big deal.

Our DC/Pre-school does this. Only we bring in snack for 1 day/month. On that day we're also supposed to provide a package of wipes or box of tissues.

Usually the snack is assigned, BUT since DS had FA's they always made it "Your Choice" which was difficult.

Typical Snacks at our DC are:
Teddy Grahams
Gold fish
Sausage
Cheese & Crackers
carrots & dip
bananas
grapes
apples
oranges
celery
fruit snacks
popcorn (this one surprised me for a 2-3 yo room)
yogurt
watermelon
jello

Some of the things we've done:
chocolate avacado pudding (for B-day snack/treat)
pretzels & Hummus
Fruit
Sweet potato fries - though they get soggy since I have to make them the night before and put them in the fridge...the kids love them though.
I'm sure there's others I can't think of!

Check to find out about food allergies AND if they allow homemade food. Some places only allow store bought to ensure they have ingredient lists.

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Originally Posted by Jai

I like the apples and cheese idea. Thanks. I do need to check gor allergies and to make sure they know DS cannot eat bananas. I wrote it on the application/forms but I will alert the preschool teachers personally.

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I was about to suggest bananas, but it sounds like they are out. In our preschool the state mandates that snacks have to be individually wrapped or packaged. So baking and sending in doesn't work, fruit salad didn't work, a large box of loose crackers, etc. Bananas qualified, along with yogurt tubes or individual packs of crackers/goldfish/grahams. My dc has allergies and they would save extra snacks (so if you sent in 2 boxes of crackers w/ 12 each for a class of 18, they saved the remainders- obviously doesn't work with some snacks) for another day. If someone forgot it was there day or your child couldn't eat the snack due to allergies, another was available. I would clarify what their requirements are.

I know it is frustrating to have to do one more thing, I agree with the pp that snack time is such an important part of preschool and not due to the eating. While each family has its own social customs surrounding eating together, obviously there are also some that are basic and can be practiced easily through this simple, short ritual. It is also a good few minutes of "down time" that even pre-k kids need.