# Middle Schoolers and lunch



## kblackstone444 (Jun 17, 2007)

My son is going into Middle School- 6th grade. There is no cafeteria at the school- the children either bring their own lunch or buy lunch at one of the neighboring delis. We can't afford $25 a week for him to buy lunch at the deli, but maybe once or twice a month. In the meantime, he will be bringing lunc. My question is, what to Middle Schoolers bring for lunch and what do they bring it in- A lunch box? A lunch bag? A brown paper bag?


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## MSmomma3 (Mar 28, 2007)

Our dd is in 6th grade here in Mississippi all the "cool" kids use the llbean lunch bags...SO we ended up doing that as well...


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## CarrieMF (Mar 7, 2004)

When I was in middle school I took my lunch, usually a sandwich, fruit, some sort of a dessert snack thing. Microwaves were just brought into the school around the same time & microwavable lunches were then available in town so we'd have things we could heat up.


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## UUMom (Nov 14, 2002)

We don't have a cafeteria. Most of the kids bring small Cooler Mates (Target), or the large LL Bean or LE cooler packs. They need two snacks, and a lunch, so a paper bag can't hold all that. My ds does not eat sandwiches, and does not drink milk or juice (which the school offers) so he needs room for a large water bottle and thermos. Can you give a call to friends who've attened and find out what the kids bring? Middler school kids tend to want to blend.


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## xixstar (Aug 15, 2007)

What to take: anything goes in our house from leftovers from dinner to ramen noodles to sandwiches (cut up veggies and fruit on the side). Anything that needs to be warm is heated in the morning and tossed in a thermos or food is just eaten cold.

What to take it in: we're really into bento boxes right now and I just ordered a new set for DD's birthday. before, lunch was just taken in the insulated lunch bag. We don't use disposable items so we have lots of small containers to put lunch in.

DD isn't too worried about what other kids are bringing since she's always brought her lunch and knows that it is 1. healthier 2. more affordable 3. and more likely to be something she wants to eat. But the bento lunches are very popular and she's been enjoying the extra attention she's been getting at school.


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## Begunda (Jun 13, 2006)

Would your son consider using a brown bag for the first week so he gets a chance to see what the other kids are using to carry their lunches. That will give him a chance to decide if he want a bag the fits in with the others or wants something more unique.


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## nextcommercial (Nov 8, 2005)

Quote:


Originally Posted by *Begunda* 
Would your son consider using a brown bag for the first week so he gets a chance to see what the other kids are using to carry their lunches. That will give him a chance to decide if he want a bag the fits in with the others or wants something more unique.

Good idea! This is what we do too. Even for school clothes, she likes to see what is "cool" before we buy a bunch of new things.

My dd usually likes to use brown bags anyway so she can throw it away after lunch and doesn't have something in her back pack all day.


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## kblackstone444 (Jun 17, 2007)

I like that idea. I'm gonna suggest it when he gets home today. School starts next week, orientation day is today. I should have thought to have him ask about today, but I didn't think of it before he left.


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## enkmom (Aug 30, 2004)

Paper bags were the best choice for my children, as they often forgot to bring home their lunch boxes or threw away my good forks. Lunch was all about eating fast and moving on to more important things! I think waiting to see what others bring is a good idea too, because there is nothing fun about arguing all year about having the "wrong" lunch system (the one he HAD to have when school started!).


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## kerikadi (Nov 22, 2001)

My boys are in middle school and high school and have packed their own lunches for several years.
They choose to use the soft lunch boxes we bought at Target years ago but we also have paper lunch bags. The boys prefer to re-use though









They pack a sandwich, 1-2 pieces of fruit, crackers or chips and a dessert usually Jello or Little Debbie. My younger son LOVES leftovers so I bought him a small stainless thermos and he will often warm leftovers in the morning and take them to school instead of a sandwich.

The kids like taking their lunch because they think school food sucks "It's all bad carbs Mom"







And because they don't spend half their time in line buying food, they have more time to visit with friends.

Keri


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## Stinkerbell (Aug 11, 2005)

Quote:


Originally Posted by *harleyhalfmoon* 
My son is going into Middle School- 6th grade. There is no cafeteria at the school- the children either bring their own lunch or buy lunch at one of the neighboring delis. We can't afford $25 a week for him to buy lunch at the deli, but maybe once or twice a month. In the meantime, he will be bringing lunc. My question is, what to Middle Schoolers bring for lunch and what do they bring it in- A lunch box? A lunch bag? A brown paper bag?

Our 4th consecutive year of middle school and this is what Ive figured out:

Everything should be plainly wrapped. No name brand wrappers and fancy packaging.
Brown lunch bags, please.

My kids like wraps alot so I'll send a baggie of chopped veggies and tofu and feta and a wrap so they can assemble it.
Or a food thermos..in the morning I put boiling water and a hot dog in it. Pack a bun. Voila.
Fruit, a snack, 2 drinks.

we do have a caf (with the most unappetizing, non nutritous food you can imagine...but the kids love it!) so I let them circle 5 lunches a month on the menu. I send in a check for the lunches each month so they get to buy a few tiems but mostly eat what I pack.

This year I make them make their own sandwich/wrap/meal and I pack the rest. Food thermoses with leftovers are a big hit!


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## UnschoolnMa (Jun 14, 2004)

We don't attend school, but if the kids went I think they'd be a mix of buying and taking a lunch.

Dd would take more so that she could assure a vegetarian meal.


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## jennnk (Feb 6, 2005)

What I remember from middle school is this: the "cool" kids buy lunch. The "cool" kids who bring lunch bring because they disdain the school's food, it is beneath them. They bring it in plain paper sacks and have either "cool" processed nastiness (lunchables and single-serving jello pudding were popular in the early-mid 90s) or exotic-enough stuff that the other kids realize that their parents (well, usually Mom) is one of "those" moms and it doesn't reflect badly on the status of the child. I remember BEGGING my mom to pack me something other than PB&J or turkey, and PLEASE put it in a plain sack, and please for the love of GOD don't _make_ pudding and put it in a tupperware. But oh, no. She bought the mini-cooler. And put my name on it. In sharpie. On the outside. And I was _going to use it, missy_. And don't ask for anything more involved, we don't have the money for that. And you can get milk at school. And I wrote you a note on your napkin _and didn't tell you_ and the kids at the table saw it before you did and what do you mean they laughed? What do you mean stop doing that? It's sweet! So yeah. Maybe let him buy lunch from the deli the first day so he can observe the other kids and what they bring, or ask a mom from one of the higher grades, or his teacher even. Bringing the "right" lunch in the "right" container isn't a guarantee that he won't be a social outcast, but at least it's not a mark against him and it's no extra work for you. My mom was just stubborn and refused to believe the kids would dislike me for something as silly as the wrong lunchbox


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## maya44 (Aug 3, 2004)

Quote:


Originally Posted by *jennnk* 
What I remember from middle school is this: the "cool" kids buy lunch. The "cool" kids who bring lunch bring because they disdain the school's food, it is beneath them. They bring it in plain paper sacks and have either "cool" processed nastiness (lunchables and single-serving jello pudding were popular in the early-mid 90s) or exotic-enough stuff that the other kids realize that their parents (well, usually Mom) is one of "those" moms and it doesn't reflect badly on the status of the child. I remember BEGGING my mom to pack me something other than PB&J or turkey, and PLEASE put it in a plain sack, and please for the love of GOD don't _make_ pudding and put it in a tupperware. But oh, no. She bought the mini-cooler. And put my name on it. In sharpie. On the outside. And I was _going to use it, missy_. And don't ask for anything more involved, we don't have the money for that. And you can get milk at school. And I wrote you a note on your napkin _and didn't tell you_ and the kids at the table saw it before you did and what do you mean they laughed? What do you mean stop doing that? It's sweet! So yeah. Maybe let him buy lunch from the deli the first day so he can observe the other kids and what they bring, or ask a mom from one of the higher grades, or his teacher even. Bringing the "right" lunch in the "right" container isn't a guarantee that he won't be a social outcast, but at least it's not a mark against him and it's no extra work for you. My mom was just stubborn and refused to believe the kids would dislike me for something as silly as the wrong lunchbox









ITA.

Different schools in different areas have a "culture" of what's accpetable for middle schoolers.

While LL Bean might be the "in thing" in one place, it would be a cause of ridicule in another.

Here it is a plain brown bag. ( I did find some paper bags with Archie's cartoons and those were deemed "cool")

As long as the food is not too weird, its accpetable. The "cool food" to bring here is: Sushi, Wraps, Salads...at least among the girls. We have no caf, but the kids can pre-order lunch from local restaurants. Fairly healthy like "Pasta Marinara with Chicken" "Chopped Asian Salad"


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## mom2lilnick (Aug 17, 2005)

Here my 6th grader takes a soft bag from target. Usually a sandwich, fruit, juice and snack. I agree that every place is different based off culture.. hopefully you have it figured out by now.


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## kblackstone444 (Jun 17, 2007)

I forgot to update- Gary's been taking a plain blue lunchbag type bag to school, with a sandwich, fruit and maybe a cookie or some other desert and a juicebox. He tells me that they all bring lunches like that, until 9th grade when they start buying at the nearby deli.







:


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## CowsRock (Aug 1, 2005)

Quote:


Originally Posted by *jennnk* 
I remember BEGGING my mom to pack me something other than PB&J or turkey, and PLEASE put it in a plain sack, and please for the love of GOD don't _make_ pudding and put it in a tupperware. But oh, no. She bought the mini-cooler. And put my name on it. In sharpie. On the outside. And I was _going to use it, missy_. And don't ask for anything more involved, we don't have the money for that. And you can get milk at school. And I wrote you a note on your napkin _and didn't tell you_ and the kids at the table saw it before you did and what do you mean they laughed? What do you mean stop doing that? It's sweet!

It is so amazing how different each person's experience can be. I ate the same thing through middle school and high school pretty much every day, some variation in the snack parts maybe. And I love, love, loved the notes my mom would put in my lunch, heck even the stickers...yes, stickers.







She even packed extra snacks for my friends who had earlier lunches and would raid my lunch bag, they would at least add on to her note to me. As a disclaimer, by high school I completely shunned the traditional lunch room and ate all of my lunches in the band room so maybe my experience would have been different if that wasn't the case?


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