10 Snack Ideas For School Lunches

With school starting next week, families are in a whirl-wind of back to school shopping for clothes and supplies, labeling, organizing and of course, planning for lunches. But don’t forget about snack ideas for school lunches.

We may be collecting ideas of what kids will want to eat at lunch time, but what about recess or snack time? Schools have at least one and some have two breaks during the day where the kids eat a nutritious snack to give them a little energy boost to help them get through the rest of the day. 

10 Snack Ideas for School Lunches

And of course we want those snack ideas for school lunches to be tasty and healthy. So here a some ideas the kids are sure to love.

10 Snack Ideas for School Lunches

1. Mini Muffins 
Kids love things that are mini, so take some of your favorite muffin recipes and downsize them. They will fit perfectly in the snack section of your child’s lunch box and give them a quick and healthy snack they will enjoy. One tip I have is to make double the amount of mini muffins and freeze them for future snack emergencies. Our favourites are these banana chocolate chip muffins and these flourless peanut butter muffins. You won’t be disappointed if you try them!

10 Snack Ideas for School Lunches- Banana Chocolate Chip Muffins

2. Greek Yogurt and Fruit
Another great idea for snacks for school lunches is greek yogurt. It’s healthy, delicious and packed with protein. Add some of your kids favourite berries or sliced fruit and you’ll have the perfect snack for their lunch box.

3. Granola Balls
Granola balls are another perfect snack for your child at school. They are easy to make and packed with lots of goodness like peanut butter, cranberries, oats, granola and more. Granola balls are also a great to make in large batches to freeze for later. Here is our go-to recipe that is not only simple and delicious, but you don’t even need to bake them!

10 Snack Ideas for School Lunches - Granola Balls

4. Apple Slices and Cheese
This combination of apple slices and cheese is great for school. Cheese slices, cheese strings or spreadable cheese work well. And you can even replace the apples with grapes or crackers to give some variety. 

5. Banana Bread Cookies
Cookies are another favourite and this recipe for Banana Bread Cookies is perfect for those overripe bananas you have and it’ll let you say yes when the kids ask for cookies in their lunch box.
10 Snack Ideas for School Lunches - banana bread cookies

6. Veggies and Dip
Some kids will eat veggies alone but not others. If you add a dip they like, it’ll make the veggies more fun to eat at school. And give them a variety like carrot sticks, celery sticks, cucumber slices, snap peas and broccoli florets to keep it exciting. Yes, veggies can be exciting, especially when they are prepared like this! 

10 Snack Ideas for School Lunches
Photo Source: SuperHealthyKids.com

7. Homemade Granola Bars
Granola Bars are another great snack ideas for kids. If you have time to make them at home, you can customize it to what your family likes and make them even healthier! Here’s a great recipes we can’t wait to try.

10 Snack Ideas for School Lunches
Photo Source: MinimalistBaker.com

8. Steamed Edamame
The kids love eating edamame at dinner time, so I thought it would be a great addition to the lunch box for snack time as well. Just take the leftover beans from dinner and add them in. They are full of protein and fun to eat of course.

10 Snack Ideas for School Lunches
Photo Source: Harunotulsa.com

9. Homemade Popcorn
Popcorn doesn’t need to just be for movie night, especially if it’s homemade stove top popcorn. The kids will really enjoy eating it at snack time and they’ll probably feel like they are getting a special treat. 

School Snack Ideas - Popcorn

10. Trail Mix
 Trail mix is another one of our favourite  snack ideas for school lunches. You can get them to help you make it and and add in some of their favourites along with new things you want them to try. They will be more willing to venture out of their food comfort zone if they’ve had a hand in preparing their snack. 

These are some of our favorite snack ideas for school lunches, what are yours?

If you liked this post, you will also like:
Back to school lunch ideas that are not sandwiches
5 Free 1st Day of School Printables
Tips for taking Better First Day of School Photos

15 thoughts on “10 Snack Ideas For School Lunches

  1. I used to love to bake with my son (now grown) but somehow, those snacks never made it to the lunchbox. I depended a lot on school lunches and – dare I use the word – premade Lunchables.

  2. When I stay with my grandchildren and make their school lunch bags, I often put in celery and mild or medium cheese. Simple but one of the boys came home and hugged me saying it was the best lunch ever.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published.

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.