With the increasing popularity of full-day kindergarten, many parents are now finding themselves trying to figure out just what to pack in their child’s lunch every day. When my kids were in kindergarten, they needed a lunch plus TWO snacks every day. And like most five year olds, my boys ate a lot some days and barely anything on other days, so it was very frustrating for me.

So, how much does your kindergartener need per day? It took me a few minutes of Google searching to finally find a website that would tell me exactly what the recommended daily servings are for the average kindergartener. Of course, you should take your child’s individual nutritional needs into consideration and check with your pediatrician if you have specific questions about food. I found this information in an educational worksheet used by teaching students at Ole Miss University to teach the MyPyramid food guide to kids in grades K-8.

*Kindergarten-age children require between 4 and 5 ounces of grain products per day. Send half a sandwich (whole grain bread is best) for lunch and an ounce of whole wheat crackers (like wheat thins) or a whole grain cookie for snack time.

*The recommended intake of Vegetables for kindergarteners is 1½ to 2 cups per day. Measure half a cup of baby carrots, cucumber slices, grape tomatoes, even cooked corn kernels or green peas into a small plastic (reusable) container or baggie. Serve another half cup after school for snack and half to one cup at dinner time and veggies are covered for the day!

*For kindergarteners, between 1 and 1½ cups of Fruit are recommended daily. If you buy fruit cups, buy the kind where the fruit is packed in it’s own juice. Even the “extra light” syrup is too much sugar for tiny tummies. A small apple sliced into quarters with the core removed is perfect for a kindergartener, they can eat it all at lunch or have a few pieces for lunch and the rest at snack. A half cup of grapes (cut large ones in half) or a small peeled orange is good too. A cup of 100% fruit juice is equivalent to a cup of actual fruit.

*It’s recommended that kindergarteners get 2 to 3 cups of milk products daily. This includes whole, lowfat, and nonfat milk (including flavored milk), lactose-reduced or lactose-free milk, yogurt, cheese, and ice cream. Two slices of cheese count as one cup of milk, but if you buy cheese singles, make sure they are the kind made with actual milk. Some are made mostly with oil-yuck. So a cheese single on that half-sandwich, and a Yoplait kids yogurt cup or a Gogurt tube is one cup of milk right there.

*The Meat & Beans is represented by purple, and includes beef, pork, chicken, eggs, fish, nuts and seeds, and dry beans and peas. Kindergarteners should get 3 to 5 ounces of meat and bean products daily. Use one or two ounces of lean deli meat or leftover cooked meat that’s finely chopped on your child’s sandwich, or to just eat plain. Ham can be rolled up around slices of cheese or a thin slice of dill pickle for a fun lunch. Measure out an ounce or two of canned tuna in water, mix with mayo and a tiny bit of chopped onion or pickle relish for an easy tuna sandwich. For snack time, send trail mix that includes an ounce of nuts and seeds IF nuts are allowed in your child’s classroom. Getting enough protein is rarely an issue for most kids today.

Most kindergarteners need 1200 to 1600 Calories a day, which really isn’t much. Don’t be angry if they don’t finish their lunch or snack, letting kids listen to the cues their body sends them and stopping when they have had enough to eat is something we ALL should be doing. Some days they will eat their whole lunch and snack and some days they won’t, but unless there is a medical issue involved, provide your child with a healthy selection and let them decide how much of it they need to eat. You can always wrap things up and send it again the next day. I hope this helps you plan what to send with your kindergartener for lunch!