These Easy School Lunch Ideas are kid-approved and so simple to make. The best part? Your kids can help put them together! Simple, easy, and delicious.
I love all things back-to-school. Don’t get me wrong, the kids going back always tugs on my mama heartstrings, but with 5 kids, I love having a routine. Even though our routine is a busy one between Jojo’s dance, Cannon’s football, Madden and Aiden’s cross country and Jersey’s volleyball, it is one I thrive in. We all do.
Really, the only thing that’s hard for me going back to school – besides the fact I’m getting older – is lunch and dinner time. If I don’t plan and prep, then we eat out or grab the cereal box.
My Favorite Kitchen Tools To Make This Recipe
From trusty pots and pans to handy gadgets, I’ve curated a list of products I use and love.
I love planning ahead to make sure my kids have meals that fuel them. Dinner comes easy, but lunch always stumps me! This year, I started making meal prep boxes with Cannon’s favorite chicken nuggets, Dino Buddies. The combinations are endless, and the kids all love them.
3 Tips to Easy School Lunches
First, I always have a protein.
Second, I always keep their favorite fruits and veggies on hand for last-minute snacks and easy lunch sides. Letting them choose their favorites makes it simple to have healthy options ready to grab and go.
Last, while I’d love to stick in a cookie or two, they typically get those when they get home. We love homemade peanut butter, chocolate chip or monster cookies. All three rotate as a staple in our home during the school year.
School Lunch Preparation Tips
easy school lunch combinations
Easy Chicken Parm
4-5 Chicken nuggets prepared and cooked, Bow Tie pasta, marinara sauce & fresh broccoli.
Chicken Sandwiches
4-5 Chicken nuggets prepared and cooked, quartered strawberries, fresh broccoli stems, 3-4 slices cheddar cheese and roll or naan.
Pesto Chicken Pasta
4-5 Chicken nuggets prepared and cooked, Bow Tie pasta mixed with pesto & fresh greens.
BBQ Chicken Sandwiches
4-5 Chicken nuggets prepared and cooked, cheddar cheese, roll, BBQ sauce, and fresh broccoli stems and carrot sticks.Â
Chicken Salad
Spring Mix with fresh tomatoes, carrots and broccoli, topped with  4-5 chicken nuggets prepared and cooked with a side of ranch.
Sweet Treats to add to any lunch
pin to pinterest.
Easy School Lunch Ideas
Video
Ingredients
- 25 Yummy Dino Buddies
- 1 1/4 cups fresh vegetables
- 1 1/4 cups fresh fruit
- 1 1/4 cups crackers
- 5 cheese sticks
- 5 tablespoons dipping sauce: ketchup, ranch or bbq sauce
Instructions
- Bake Dino Buddies according to package directions.
- Prepare fruits & vegetables by washing, cutting into slices.
- Grab lunch boxes, and divide out each serving as follows:5 Yummy Dino Buddies1/4 cup fresh vegetables1/4 cup fresh fruit
1/4 cup crackers/chips
1 tablespoon of dipping sauce: ketchup, ranch or bbq sauce - Seal lunch boxes and place in fridge until you’re ready to pack your lunch!I get my containers off of Amazon, they are microwaveable for the kids that want to heat up their lunch.
Having them help make their own lunches is genius! Such great ideas.
So grateful that you posted this; I was needing some new ideas for my toddler! Thank you so much
These are some great ideas! My kids will love these over getting a school. lunch; so cute!
What a fun activity for my kids and sets a great example about responsibility! They will love to prepare their lunches for the week!
I am always running out of ideas for school lunch. Each and every one of these would be a hit with my kiddo. THANK YOU!
My kids love Dino Buddies! Who am I kidding, my husband and I do, too! I need to pack some in their lunches this week 🙂
Great ideas for back to school lunches! Everything looks delicious!
Getting the kids involved to make their own lunches is so smart for so many reasons. Bravo!
What a great list! Also, I love the dino nuggets almost as much as my kiddos!
Perfect timing, thank you so much for sharing. I will be utilizing these this year!
These are all fantastic ideas! I’m going to try all of them and see which my kids like
These are just so adorable!!
Lunch boxes is an important everyday preparation activity for school! Thanks for these suggestions and ideas!
These are great ideas! My kids love these nuggets!
This is perfect for my kids and they are going to love bringing their own lunch instead! So adorable and easy to make ahead too!