The Balanced School Day At École Riverbend School École Riverbend School follows a balanced school day timetable. This approach: promotes longer sustained blocks of teaching and learning, meets the nutritional needs of students in a more balanced way, and provides more time for quality physical activity and play. This organization of the day is called a Balanced School Day. The Balanced School Day consists of two nutritional/activity breaks (one 40 minute break and one 50 minute break) in which children have time to eat and play. Given that Kindergarten is a half-day program they are not included in this schedule. The link between good nutrition and learning is well known. Children concentrate better and their ability to learn is improved when they eat food from the four food groups outlined in Canada s Food Guide to Healthy Eating. The Balanced School Day timetable allows for students nutritional needs to be met. For children who miss breakfast, or only want a small amount of breakfast, the foods eaten during the first break provide the key nutrients for an active day. As well, when children eat a nutritious meal in their second break they are not as hungry when they arrive home from school. Included in this package is information that will help you plan for these nutrition breaks. You may find some duplication of information but our aim is to provide you with a variety of ideas from different sources.
Simple Solutions to Balanced School Day Nutrition Breaks Something is new in the way your child will eat at school! This is a great opportunity to talk to your children about what food choices will be best for their nutrition breaks at school. They should understand the importance of planning nutritious, satisfying mini-meals to help them reach their full potential throughout the school day. Balanced School Day nutrition breaks offer at least 15 minutes in the morning and again in the afternoon, to sit and eat a nutritious mini-meal. It is important to remember that children on the Balanced School Day timetable need the same amount of food during the day as other children do. What s different is the timing of when this food is eaten. Will this change mean more work, or worry for you? NO WAY! Aim for at least 3 of the 4 food groups in Canada s Food Guide to Healthy Eating for each break: Grain Products, Vegetables & Fruit, Milk Products and Meat & Alternatives. Be sure to involve your children in the planning/packing of their food for the day. They are more likely to eat what is packed when they contribute to the choices. Sandwiches can be cut in half and wrapped separately one half for each break. Foods that are packed in a thermos may be hotter and taste better if they are eaten during the first break. Planning Tips Cold foods like juice and yogurt can be frozen to help them last to the second break. For younger children you can mark #1, #2 on reusable containers to help them divide their food. Pack foods like deli meats, tuna, egg salad and milk with a small freezer pack in an insulated bag. Freeze juice boxes and yogurt to help keep these and other foods cool. Prepare meat sandwiches and other foods to be kept cold the night before. Leave them in the fridge overnight to chill well. Pack em Safely Make sure hot foods are steaming hot when they go in a thermos. Use fresh ingredients or leftovers that are not more than one day old. Food wrappings should not be reused as they can carry bacteria. Clean lunch bags, food containers, water bottles and all utensils everyday.
Kid s Lunches Convenient? Processed? Packaged? YES! Nutritious? NOT! Lots of lunches today are easy to pack, loaded with sugar, and wrapped in bulky packaging. These highly processed foods give you only worthless calories without nutrients to help keep your body and teeth healthy. Foods like oatmeal cookies, apple juice, yogurt and carrot muffins sometimes contain sugar, but also have nutrients that will help you grow. Pick these foods more often! Food Item Serving Size Teaspoons of Sugar Jell-O Pudding, chocolate vanilla 1 snack cup (99g) 4 Strawberry Fruit-by-the-Foot 1 roll (21g) 2.5 Dunkaroos 1 tray (28g) 3.5 Rice Krispie Squares, chocolaty caramel 1 square 3 Sunkist Fruit Snacks 1 package (22g) 3 Jell-O Strawberry Gels (gelatin) 1 snack cup 6 Chewy Dipps Bar with peanut butter 1 bar (31g) 3 Skittles Fruit Chews 15 pieces 3.5 Mr. Freeze 1 freeze (100ml) 3.5 Fruit Gushers 1 pouch 3 Kellogg s Pop Tart 1 tart (52g) 5 Chip s Ahoy Cookies 3 cookies 3 Chewy S mores Granola Bar 1 bar (31g) 2 Drinks Sunny Delight 1 cup (250ml) 7 Coke 1 can (355ml) 10 Tetley Lemon Ice Tea 1juice box (250ml) 6 Cream Soda 1 can (355ml) 12 Kool-Aid Jammer 1 container (200ml) 6 Slurpee 1 small (500ml) 12 Based on: 1 teaspoon of sugar weighs 4 grams and has 15 calories; Bowes & Church, Food Values of Portions Commonly Used When you pack your lunch, use re-usable containers for foods like sandwiches, yogurt, vegetables, drinks, and sliced fruit. Using less pre-packaged foods will reduce the amount of garbage, which will save the environment!
Balanced School Day Basics You may find it helpful to purchase re-usable containers. You can label them #1 and #2 with permanent marker to help younger children choose what to eat at each nutrition break. However, it doesn t really matter which foods your child chooses to eat at each break. It is more important that they eat a variety of foods over the course of the day. Include two healthy beverages one for each break (white or chocolate milk, water, 100% unsweetened fruit juice or fortified soy beverages) Freezing water bottles, juice, or yogurt tubes will help them last to the second break as well as keeping everything else in the lunch bag cold. An insulated lunch bag keeps cold foods cold and hot foods hot. Ask your child to bring home leftovers rather than throwing them out at school. This will help you see what they are actually eating at school. Keep a list on the fridge of favourite meals and let your children order off the menu. Check back in a few months to update the list and add new menu items. Involve your children in planning and preparing their meal breaks. This can be done the night before. Cut up extra veggies when making stir fry dishes to use as veggies and dip for the next day. Some classes are now peanut and/or nut free. Check with your school before sending any peanut or nut products with your child. Mix and match menu ideas or substitute with food items your child prefers. Also you can add more food or reduce portions depending on how much they eat. Use the Canada Food Guide to Healthy Eating for examples of serving sizes. Adding More Than Colour sweet pepper and cucumber slices, baby carrots, cherry tomatoes, celery, broccoli or cauliflower pieces (if your child will only dip these veggies, then include a low-fat dressing or dip) orange segments, clementine slices or grapes kiwi with the top cut off to scoop out the fruit inside (include a spoon) cantaloupe or watermelon chunks applesauce and mixed fruit cups strawberries, blueberries and raspberries (buy them in season and freeze) Some of these ideas were adapted from Niagara Region Public Health
Healthy Food Healthy Brain Great Eating Ideas Apple or pear slices, cheese cubes and whole-wheat crackers Oatmeal muffin, banana slices and milk Carrot sticks, pita bread slices and yogurt dip Ham/chicken/turkey tortilla wraps and cucumber slices Orange wedges, animal crackers and cheese cubes Applesauce sprinkled with cinnamon on whole-grain toast and milk Fruit shake and dry non-sugar coated cereal Mini pita stuffed with tuna or egg salad and apple juice Waffles, sliced peaches and peach flavoured yogurt Bagel with peanut butter* and milk Trail mix (non-sugar-coated cereals with dried fruits **) and milk Bran muffin, grapes and chocolate milk Fruit salad with yogurt topping and rice cake Bannock, fresh fruit and milk Mini pita pizzas Non-sugar-coated cereal, banana slices and milk Grapes, graham crackers and milk Hard-boiled egg, rye toast and orange juice Oatmeal cookie, apple slices and milk Raw vegetables, pita bread slices and hummus dip Salmon salad on whole-wheat hot dog bun and milk Banana loaf, banana slices and milk Vegetable juice, whole-grain crackers and cheese cubes Mini bagels or buns with melted mozzarella cheese and red/green pepper sticks Yogurt mixed with fresh fruit or applesauce and bread sticks NOTE: Texture of foods might need to be altered for different ages of children (grate or slice raw vegetables and fruit thinly, cut grapes in half, spread peanut butter thinly) *Do not offer if there is a nut allergy. ** Dried fruit sticks to your teeth remember to brush your teeth afterwards. Offer water regularly to children Developed by Winnipeg Regional Health Authority Community Nutritionists, 2003