Tips to Let Kids Enjoy Their Meals At School

10:45:00 PM



Any parent with young children would admit that nothing can be more mentally draining than going through the painstaking process of preparing healthy meals for their kids’ baon.

Unfortunately, a lot of little fussy eaters have a tendency to wrinkle their noses, make faces, or deliberately gag on their food and bring home their baon. Thus, every meal has the potential of becoming a battle between you and your children. This shouldn’t be the case! Meal time is NEVER meant to become a fight.

Revive the fun in your child’s lunchtime! Accept the stage where your kids are s-l-o-w-l-y learning to adjust to a new school-year and to eating packed lunch with foods that are new to them, and save yourself from losing your sanity over unfinished food. Here are parenting hacks that may help:

Hack #1: Little eaters need rules
Granted, it’s a parent’s instinct to set rules and standards for the kids. But there will always be a part of you that’s afraid of being too stiff because you don’t want your children to rebel. You know what? The whole “rules = rebellion” belief is a myth. Studies say moms and dads who set ground rules for their children are also the warmest of parents.

Don’t hesitate to start a “No-Thank-You Bite Rule” for your little picky-eaters as early as now. If they say no from eating the meal, require them to at least take one big bite or two small bites of the food. That way, you will still get to make them have some food in their stomach for the remainder of their classes. Who knows, they might realize they are hungry and like their baon after all. 



photo grabbed from http://www.kardemakademi.com

Here’s the catch: warm parents set rules. Controlling parents rub rules on the faces of their children. This calls for balance. Loosen up! Let go of the all-mighty “Clean-Your-Plate Rule” you grew up with. Stop forcing your kids to eat everything, even the small bits to pieces, just to win the power-struggle over food.

Children know when they are full so allow them to stop eating when they want to. To avoid food wastage, serve them small portions but give them an opportunity to ask for more. Make their mealtime at school a way to strengthen your bond and instill independence in them, not to create gaps.

Hack #2: Welcome kids in the kitchen
Invite your kids to help out in the kitchen. By doing this, you’ll give them an idea what it takes to prepare their food. Letting them help and allowing them to frequently assist you in the kitchen will make them want to try and sample the food they’ve helped prepare.

photo grabbed from http://www.blog.togethercounts.com

Hack #3: Be creative!
Presentation is key to making a meal more enjoyable. Children, being very observant, may be more persuaded to eat if what they see looks attractive. This is also one way of masking nourishing ingredients for your little ones.

The best hiding options? Grate, wrap, blend, or mix!

What comes in handy for all the aesthetically pleasing healthy meals is an equally attractive food container. Tupperware Brands introduces its Small Square Rounds to solve that for you. This is downright perfect for starting up a kitchen collection, too!

The Small Square Rounds have virtually airtight seals that keep food fresh and flavorful. With a tab on the seal for easy opening, this food container is also modular and stackable. You may use it in the fridge, bring to outdoor activities, or use for organizing. The Small Square Rounds comes in four great colors: lime aid, grape fizz, pink punch, and orange peel.


Mealtime is not just about healthy eating; it also entails taking in the water your body needs! Pair up your kids’ Tupperware Small Square Rounds with the Kids Eco Bottle. This comes with a sipper seal spout for convenient drinking and a tight-screw-on cap that prevents leaks. Made of safe, non-toxic materials, the Kids Eco Bottle has two fun character shapes:

a frog in lime aid color
purlicious (purple) penguin
Make it a habit to prepare well-balanced and healthy meals and get your kids involved. Don’t forget to brighten up children’s lunches with Tupperware’s Small Square Rounds and the Kids Eco Bottle so you can make every mealtime at school fun and meaningful for your kids.

About Tupperware® Brands
Tupperware Brands Philippines distributes well-loved brands including Tupperware, Baby Care Plus+, Kids Plus+, Colour Collection, Ivana and White Result. For your questions and inquiries on how to be a dealer, log on to www.tupperwarebrands.ph, email us at questions@Tupperware.ph, or call the hotline number 867-2222. Like us on Facebook.

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30 comments

  1. this is my problem with my niece and nephew... hard to encourage them to eat what we served to them .. always leaning back to junk foods... taking them to the kitchen must be a good idea... ill try it.

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    1. Same problem with my daughter. So when I try to cook something, I ask her if she wants to cook with me, and she becomes excited to taste the food we cooked ^^

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  2. I remember that when I was a kid, what I hated most about eating is that I get scared that I won't be able to finish my food. Looking back, I realize that it was mostly because we had huge plates at home so I think the colorful, smaller containers ( or even plates ) would make eating and finishing food not-so-daunting. The eco bottles would seem to work too.

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    1. True, colorful containers would really make the food appetizing. That's why I got my daughter a small plate with Disney Princesses on it to make her feel excited whenever we eat. :)

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  3. I don't force my kid to finish everything and I give her smaller portions. I try to avoid giving snacks at first, but if she is hungry, no harm eating healthy snacks right? My girl likes snacking on carrots and celeries. If she declares that she is full from her meal, I will encourage her to eat 3-4 more spoonfuls of food (preferably proteins more than carbs).

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    1. I also give my daughter small portions at first so there's no wasted food if she won't be able to finish it. But I taught her about finishing her food that when I'm done eating, I show her how good I am because I have a clean plate. She'll try to clean her plate as well so she can show me that she was also able to clean hers. :)

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  4. Yes, getting kids to help in the kitchen is a way to get them interested in their food. Just that the cooking process will become way longer and the mess might get worse!

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    1. Haha you're right! Mess in the kitchen can be very hard to clean after cooking with the kids. :)

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  5. yes, the more kids are involved in the preparation, the eager they want to eat the food. :)

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  6. My choice of food depends on what my parents eat. My mama was not much of a vegetable eater so I took after her. I do enjoy eating but I wish I ate healthier food before to train my palate to veggies now.

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    1. That is also the reason why I started eating veggies when my daughter became a toddler.

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  7. I think this is a big problem with most kids. I know I was certainly a pain when I was a kid. These tips will definitely help! I wish someone showed this to my parents way back when I was a troublesome kid! Haha! :D

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    1. Haha good thing you accepted the fact that you were a pain in the toot of your parents. :))

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  8. definitely some great tips! something fun like those bottles makes meals more fun

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    1. True, even parents like me would have so much fun with those cute bottles :)

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  9. Disappointed that it turned out to be an advertisement at the end. Anyway, it can really be a big problem when you have a picky eater child. Sometimes they remain picky up to their teens!

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    1. True, that's why I try making my daughter involved in the kitchen when making her meals because it makes her feel excited on what the end product would taste like. This makes her want to eat what we have prepared. :)

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  10. I feel you, we have the same problem, but I chose to give them rewards if they finished their snacks in school. - KarenT

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    1. Rewards and Punishment really do work with kids :)

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  11. Good tips here. One of the things I do too - if you don't eat the main meals, or have leftovers, you don't get snacks till the next meal. Works quite well too :)

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    1. Thanks for the tip mommy :) Will try to implement that with my daughter and see how she reacts :)

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  12. Thanks for the tips. I think children is attracted to colorful things and food.

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  13. I think kids are hard headed when given firm rules. I guess giving them some slack and motivation can help them do better.

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    1. True, they sometimes try to do what they are asked not to do. It's like they are testing parents' patience.

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  14. These are great tips. You really have to make the food very attractive and colorful for kids. I did this with my kids and it worked.

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    1. True, the colors seem to make the food more appetizing for the kids :)

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  15. Nice tips, I'll share this post to my daughter who happens to have a 'mapili' son.

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