See if you can pay something to the school (a extra dollar a day). Maybe they will compromise with u and give him the good lunch instead of the free lunch. I remember the free lunch wasn’t good. Always would pay to buy pizza or burritos. This was back in early 2000s, but still. Maybe the school would help u
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Maybe jus make a ham sandwich, yoghurt, banana and some cucumber and a cheese stick and a bottle of water . If u buy them in ur weekly shop they last a few days !!
It doesn’t have to be expensive. My 8 yr old son wants the same thing every day… a grilled cheese sandwich, which I make every morning (for those who say they don’t have the time, yes, I go to work too) a ziplock bag of popcorn which I make the night before (1 microwaveable bag fills 3 sandwich bags) and an apple. Plus his refillable water bottle.
I always made school lunches from supper.
I don’t know if this has been said, but kids don’t understand “we can’t afford” something. Try saying it a different way, like home lunches cost more money and we need that money for dinners and clothes, and etc. Sometimes when you reframe the answer, it helps kids to understand better.
It isn’t that expensive to pack a small lunch for a seven year old. Just keep it simple and pack one special snack for him on certain days of the week.
Sandwich fruit drink yogurt buy in multi packs in Aldi that’s what I do
My kid won’t eat school lunch and I’m not going to send him to school with nothing to eat all day. He’s picky. Yes it gets expensive considering he could get free lunch but I make it work!
I’d do the one day and just not pack it after that.
It’s crazy that it’s free. In canada it’s not free and many schools don’t even have a cafeteria.
Hot lunch costs quite a bit here. Otherwise we send lunch so it can never be not afforded.
I guess you can budget it in. I mean you’d feed him if he was home like all summer. I’d figure it out and send the lunch. It’s our job to feed our kids and it’s not very much money to do it
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Is this an American thing? Cause most schools in Australia we have to pack our kids lunches everyday and extra fruit for fruit break.
We can order lunch from the canteen for them but its not free lol
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Let him take pb&j… it’s cheap… I’ve been there, when I married, our blended family became six kids… ranging from Two 2 yr olds up to 16… I’ve been there too many times😞 no matter who much we made, in this little hole of a county, was never enough… plenty of times hubby and I wouldn’t eat, so the kids could… had to scrap to get by. But I always made sure we had bread peanut butter and jelly… when they were little they would love that but when they got older, they grew out of it… Set him down and tell him, we can’t do it everyday because it’s ( it’s not fair to lunch people who work hard to make you food, line I used to use, lol) try every other day or if you really need to,once a week… But give him some sort of reasonable explanation… just keep in the back of your mind that whatever you tell him he could repeat because he is at that age
Not trying to be rude, but when he’s home during summer, you’re providing lunches… why is it not possible during school? And the school lunches in our area, are not really good at all lol
Can you get food stamps or go to a food pantry
How do you feed him lunch when not in school? Send what youd feed him if at home
Set your boundary. End of story.
assuming he gets free lunch, just say no, it’s a complete sentence. not everything warrants explanation to your child.
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Mine won’t eat school dinners, I give her pasta n tuna which can be split over a few dinners or a sandwich with crisp, 1 choice of fruit and something out the junk cupboard. She fills a bottle with juice to keep cost of juice down. She may also take a sausage roll or something extra and a squeeze yoghurt. They’re all cheap asda everyday essential range so works out about £5 a week for packed lunches. I cannot afford £2.30 a day for school dinners for her to not eat it.
Buy a cheap loaf of bread, some peanut butter and jelly(if the school allows peanut butter) Or buy a package of bologna. Cheap and easy.
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Surly you have something at home he can take what do you feed him when he’s not at school
For me we go over the lunch menu and when there are foods they absolutely hate we pack.
I also give them a choice of breakfast at school.
You can also pack some snack and they can still grab the lunch at school
…it’s really not that hard. Go to food shelves. Get foodstamps. There’s options
Wouldn’t it be more expensive to buy lunch at school every day than it would be to let him pack his own? Save the money you would spend at school and buy things he would like so he can pack his own lunch.
How about have a low cost packed lunch option: Pb+j, grilled cheese (something simple). I remember being in this spot as a kid and I would wake up early to make instant noodles and pack it in a thermos (it was cheap but made me happy to pack a lunch).
Dinner left overs? Thats what my kids took for lunch
Maybe suggest to the school a give and take table or a leftover table…we know kids are wasteful and are probably throwing enough uneaten unopened food then u know…so rather then waste it or throw it away, put it on a share table for all lunch schedules to be able to enjoy…even if it’s just a carton of milk or piece of fruit and DONT bully or humiliated children who take from that table…give up that tasty cake once in a while! U just might make someone else’s day!
Girl Ramen is 10 cents. Put it in a thermos and send him to school with that.
A lot of kids that age don’t understand because when they don’t have school you’re able to provide them lunch so they just think you can do it when they have school … Kids are more understanding then we believe just sit him down and explain to him all five of my kids eat free lunch at school except the days I know they aren’t going to eat the food then I pack a lunch … Maybe you can do those days when you know he isn’t going to eat the lunch just so he doesn’t go hungry
I went through this and figure out that for $10 a week I can feed my 3 children lunch from home. Sit down and figure it out. Your kid deserves better than just being told we can’t. Explain or figure out a way to make it happen.
The school lunches are disgusting
I would definitely send him with home lunch one day a week. Another option is to send leftovers from dinner for his lunch the next day. At 7 years old they just need a fruit or juice, a dairy which you can also combine the protein, like yogurt or cheese, a vegetable, a carb, and another protein. If I couldn’t afford to feed my kids lunch everyday, I would cut other expenses to make it possible. That’s just what you do when you have to feed your kids. For a 7 year old a simple cheap lunch would consist of something like this
4oz of100% fruit juice mixed with half water
Or
1/2 cup of fruit like grapes or berries
Half a meat and cheese sandwich or PB&J on whole grain bread
Or
Whole grain crackers with cheese and meat or PB&J spread
Cheese stick Or yogurt Or milk- can combine with fruit
1/2c of veggies like cucumbers or peppers with dressing
That’s really all they need. You can buy a package of each of these things and they will be enough to make lunch for at least 7 days. I could spend $20-30 and get lunch supplies for over a week. Is there any expense you can cut out to make this happen? Like coffee or something. You can also find fruits and veggies for much cheaper at road side farm stands than the grocery store. If you really just can’t afford it then stick to one day a week.
You tell him no. Its that simple. You explain you can’t afford it. End of story
It adds up fast, I totally get it. We use our state’s Foodshare program here in WI. It is income based and is a subsidy to help cover groceries. Does your state have something similar?
Maybe compromise and pack him a snack
Meanwhile, I encourage my super picky child to get school lunch AND pack a lunch so he has options, and he still doesn’t eat 
Most schools around here don’t cook lunches anymore it’s brown bag
So if u think about it it probably 
equal our in paying the money every day 4 lunches at school. .let him do it
We can’t afford it either. Life has really gotten the people down.
I’m amazed at the number of people who don’t get that even spending an extra $15 a week is difficult for many people. I would explain to him, in simple terms, that school lunch doesn’t cost any money but taking lunch from home does. Let him know that the extra money saved can then be used towards other fun things. An extra birthday present, new shoes, going to the movies…… If you can, maybe let him choose 2-3 days a month where he can pack a lunch.
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I’m confused if you can’t afford to send a lunch with him then what does he eat for lunch when he is at home
Dollar tree, bread, ham, cheese.
Peanut butter jelly.
Granola bars.
Apple sauce. You can find a lot of things at dollar tree.
I went through the same thing with my kids
I’ve been having this issue for a year now. My 6 year old is so picky. He refuses to eat most of what they give for lunch at school. His school gives like 4 lunch options which is awesome but if none of the options are something he likes then he just won’t eat it. He’s now in summer camp which provides lunch but they only have one thing they give everyone daily… and 99 percent of the time it’s something he won’t eat. 
What do you feed them for lunch when school is not in session? Peanut butter and jelly and an apple…or carrots.
Jesus Christ on a bike … seriously these comments…
- Never equate meals to treats “oh let him have it on a Friday as a special treat” or the “let him have it on Friday if he been good all week at school”
What a great way to establish an unhealthy relationship with food 
-
The budgeting comments… well isn’t that great for you that you can either afford it - or have other areas that you can cut back from, to free up some cash. Some people are literally on the bones of their ass and have nothing left to give.
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How do you cope over school holidays. Well that’s irrelevant. Or - just maybe by her child having free school lunches allows her to be able to buy bits to put back to cover school holidays. Or allows her to save a few pennies here or there - to cover school holidays. Or she might even get food vouchers to cover school holidays.
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If she ends up trying to do pack lunch … taking up funds she doesn’t have - this could adversely affect other things in the home… ie less money for food at home etc.
What does he like to eat? Is he very picky?
Do kids packing lunch have to sit separate from kids who take school lunch? That could be his issue more than which lunch. I’m sorry you can’t afford to pack his lunch but he has to learn that $ only goes so far eventually.
Sounds like you need to talk to him about where your money goes. And what would need to stop if you started giving him a home lunch. Even if it’s cutting power ie heating if over a certain lowered temp. Perhaps consider monthly!
I would try to give him lunch from home once a week. Maybe get the snacks from the dollar store and the bread from Walmart since it’s cheap. This way it makes you both happy?
Is it bc he doesn’t like the food? We’re broke AF and the kid gets free lunch so we just look at the schools lunch calendar and on days it’s stuff she hates we pack. I’m also super honest and saying point blank “I’m sorry but we simply can not afford that right now…we don’t have enough money”. Not sugar coating it seemed to always help her understand
You can do peanut butter and jelly sandwiches, fruit cup or pudding cup, buy a bigger bag of pretzels or chips and get some ziplock bags and just use a handful each time. It doesn’t cost that much if you don’t buy expensive things to put in it
Soo what do you feed him during the summer for lunch?
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Some of these comments…he’s a kid. Make him happy,school lunches are nasty,they aren’t very good. It doesn’t cost that much for a packed lunch. It’s the parents job to give up something for their child if thats whats needed. Also kids are cruel,why set them up to be bullied or outcasted. Its not the child’s fault the parent can’t afford the food. This isn’t the same world we grew up in 20 years ago. These kids have stepped up that bullying game,they start way younger now. I will always put my child 1st. Taking a lunch should not be a treat. It’s a meal,smh.
It wouldn’t cost that much to pack a lunch for 1 kid…
I do thermos’s and then my kids take left overs!
The kids on the bus I drive say they bring their snacks and still get the free lunch and eat what they like and I asked them about how much the snacks cost at school and there more expensive than you getting them at the store my children are all grown up so I talk to my babies on the bus about stuff at school and they say everything gotta love them
I never explained the “no” to my kid when it wasn’t necessary. If you can’t afford it, don’t do it.
Sometimes I will just send a few extra snacks if my kiddos doesn’t like lunch that day.
wow, this is such a reverse. When I was a scholarship kid at a private school I was terrified to bring my lunch because everyone already knew I was poor. but I also couldn’t afford to buy school lunch. It’s wild to think of this. I don’t look forward to the ‘school lunch’ situation with my kids - in any form.
I hope you’re able to find something that works for him and you.
Wherever you live they must have a food bank. Also apply for food stamps.
To be honest, the school lunches are horrible. Maybe he doesn’t like the taste. My daughter always complains about it and she is 4th and my 8th grader just eats hamburgers or chicken patties all week.
My children used to take packed lunch when they were at school 
and it worked fine 
Alow him to pack what you guys ate for dinner.
Let him go raise money to buy the food to do it. He can walk pets. Or pick up trash. Take out the neighbors bins. Etc
The answer is no. Eat school lunch or don’t. They answer is NO.
Peanutbutter and jelly, bolognia, cheese sandwiches, drinks, 10 to pack are not that expensive in long run. A drink and sandwich ia plenty for 7 yr old lunch.
My daughter gets free lunch at school and really wants to pack lunch this year. I told her we could pack her lunch 2 days a week.
We will look over the menu the school provides, and 2 days a week she gets to pack lunch.
Otherwise she can take 2-3 snacks with her.
Im getting ready to have a 3rd child, and am trying to budget my best, so I understand completely where you’re coming from.
But giving into lunch, or even snacks to go with school lunch won’t cost more than $5 a week if you buy stuff at ALDI, or dollar tree.
My daughter was willing to agree to this compromise, when I explained to her that with having another baby, and her already receiving free lunch, it seemed like a waste of money to pack every single day.
But I will compromise to make her happy.
So if I need to rearrange a budget to allow $20-$30 extra a month to go into my child’s belly to make her happy, I will.
Trust me, it can be done.
I bet there are tons of food pantries nearby that would be elated to help you
I’m so confused by this. I’m assuming you’re in a country that provides lunch for the kids because where I’m from we send our kids to school with a packed lunch and snacks everyday. Is the school lunch free?
How do you manage on school holidays or weekends? I don’t see how sending a packed lunch is any different to just making them lunch when they’re home. And if you can’t afford to feed your child every day then please try find services that can help with that. Nutrition is so important for everyone but especially little ones.
Try to do a at home lunchable if possible one day a week n tell them simple right now this is what can happen and maybe next year it can change but this is how it is. Maybe do crackers with PB, or crackers with sliced cheese or n bologna, canned sausages or whatever meat you can. Then maybe baby carrots , cut grapes, broccoli something veggie or fruit if able and something sweet if he is allowed. 1 cookie or piece of candy as an reward if he continues to understand the “inch” your giving…I understand how it is as a single parent n working with whats in the house…I have an 8yr old
What are you packing. Maybe a peanut butter and jelly sandwich a piece of fruit and a couple of cookies can’t be that much you don’t have to do lunchables and expensive stuff. Maybe he is ashamed of getting free lunch some schools are not discreet about it at least they didn’t use to be I know this from experience
Mine took lunch and after a month they didn’t want anymore. Maybe let him some days
Teach him about compromise.
Have him bring home the school lunch menu each month. Let him pick 1-2 days a week to pack, when school is having something that he doesn’t like.
But stuff like mini bags of chips, apples, juice boxes and uncrustables. Explain that those items are JUST for packing lunches.
My daughter is 10 and she likes to pack her lunch, but often times we buy the stuff to pack and she ends up eating it all at home and then doesn’t get to pack.
Same for use I give it to my daughter for been extra good during the week ect it’s a reward she picks the lunch and snacks some times it’s not for a while but she finally understood how much groceries where when I gave her money and told her she had to use it to buy her stuff and then I would buy our groceries for the house she now relies how much food cost
If you make chicken for dinner shred it for chicken salad. Same with ham and pork. Whatever you make look up how to reuse it. Also bread, sun butter jam. Make your own you can make alot more and it’s equivalent to the price of 2. Regrow your veggies. You can look up how to. Pack the veggies you regrow. Lunch is meant to be small to hold over for dinner. Look up portion sizes of lunch. Buy yogurt and pack yogurt for lunch. Get a water bottle filled it with ice and water for a drink
You can just tell him no. You don’t have to give him a reason!
Hmmm interesting my 5 year old and me had this same problem last school year he compromised and did home lunches only on days he didn’t like what the school lunch would be which we would check weekly to see what days that would be ended up not even being a weekly thing so it worked out! Maybe try the same thing pull up your kids lunch menu and only offer another option on the days you know they will be serving something he doesn’t like 
worked for us. 
If you can’t afford to feed him lunch does he just not eat lunch during the summer? I pack my kids lunches every day. Sometimes it’s a full lunch. Sometimes I pack the main thing & they eat the sides from school. For me it would cost more, be more waste to send lunch once a week. Most of what I send is produce or things that won’t keep. A loaf of bread, head of lettuce, a few tomatoes will cost around $5 give or take. It’ll feed him for 2 weeks.
Ask him what it is about bringing his own lunch that he thinks is cool. It may not be the lunch at all. It might just be a lunch box, notes from Mom etc. If it is that other kids do it the novelty may wear off.
Say no. It’s okay for them to hear no every now and then without an explanation….
I was/am a single mom. The school provides free or reduced pay lunch. I cannot afford extra food when there is food provided. I really don’t understand the dilemma. School lunch may not be what you would serve, they will complain they “don’t like it”. I straight up told my kids I don’t care. It’s free food and you will be thankful for it or go hungry. It’s just lunch. They will survive. Let them help make dinner choices. Teaching children economics and thankfulness is a good thing. Teaching them privilege is not. That’s how I see it, and both my kids have turned out fine.
Does he like peanut butter and jelly? That’s cheap
Pack what’s in your fridge…like what you buy normally for the house …leftovers…noodles and butter? A thermos of ramen ? Ramen is about 20 cents… refillable water bottle with water? A big bag of chips is about 2$ pack smaller bags from the big bag. You can find a way to make it work
So I work for school nutrition, my son likes to pack a lunch and my daughter usually has to because she’s lactose intolerant and sometimes there isn’t a lactose free option. What we do is look at the menu for the following day and I tell them what’s for lunch and ask them if they want a sandwich. From home, they get a sandwich, chips, a veg or fruit and a small sweet. That gets old too, so they both usually choose to eat at school a couple.times a week.
I pack my daughters lunch 3 days a week. She will NOT eat most of the school lunches. Groceries are so expensive that for the most part I spend my money on only food she will eat! Leaving me with almost nothing for myself. She’s so picky. If I don’t do this she won’t eat at all. I spend around 20 dollars a week on school lunch. Monday is Mac and cheese day at school and Friday is pizza day so she brings her lunch 3 days outta the week.
My daughters school gives us an option to bring snacks to school at snack time if we choose otherwise they provide cereal usually and a milk.
Don’t have to cost a lot pack a lunch for years loaf of bread ham or other peanut jelly fried egg. Chips ECT
I’m from South Africa and at our schools we have to pack lunches everyday, or the kids can buy something from the schools tuck shop … the only schools that give lunches and breakfast is like chreches etc, but it depends on the school …some schools will give sandwiches and fruit to kids that cant afford it at break time, but that’s about it as far as I know. There’s so many cheap options for lunch, what do you do during holidays? You have to feed him any way so I’m sure you can think of something cheap you can make for lunch, sandwiches, or maybe leftovers
Go get stuff from a food pantry
Packing is shipper than our school lunch where we are…
 At least it’s not like my kid. I found out he was throwing away our home lunches that I was making him and he was eating school lunch instead. I was livid. Such a waste. He did it the whole school year too
Well I would make it work he might not like the school lunch my kids don’t eat the school lunch at all it nasty 
I told my kid that we can’t afford it, but we can pick one day a month and I will make you a home lunch. She understood 
P & j and tuna salad not sure if you smoke or if you can cut back on some things/ HD in North Myrtle Beach is going to give out school supplies/ call them and find out more/
Did you ask him why? My kids didn’t get free lunch, but it takes so long in the cafeteria line they didn’t always get to eat.
Of course he wants to fit in not be the poor kid … it should be all.or nothing not just feed the poor. Have rates for those who can afford to pay anonymously.
I’m in Illinois. My kids were getting free and reduced lunches.
We had the same problem with them asking to take a lunch.
When I questioned it. They told me they were given the same options every day.
Hot dog, hamburger, pizza, chicken sandwich. It was free if they added a piece of fruit and a white milk or a bottle of water.
I called the school and they confirmed it.
After hearing that and being absolutely furious that unless my kids paid $5-$6 for lunch, then they had many other options.
Or they could pay a-la-carte which could run $10 or more.
I began to look for options. A bag of apples, oranges, tuna, egg or chicken salad (using leftover chicken)
A thermos would allow warm meals like spaghetti, Mac n cheese, stew and soups(leftovers). I’ve even put hotdogs, taco meat and meatloaf in the thermos
A bottle of water or let them get the free milk.
It is actually much cheaper than you think.
You get to control the nutrition.
A package of bologna is less than $2 at Aldi. I know money is tight and prices are high.
But sometimes even a PB&J sandwich with apple slices and milk can be a big deal for a kid.
Good luck, I’ll keep you in my prayers.
look at the lunch menu for the week ahead and on a day the lunch doesn’t look good, he can bring once a week.
My advice would to be shop cheap and reuse items. Including things you had for dinner the previous night. If you have a small thermos preheat with boiling hot water drain it and dry it add food leftovers, nuggets ,pizza roll, soups anything. Another cheap options don’t buy the single bags of chips instead buy a big bag divide it up yourself into bags and you can reuse those bags if you need too. Same thing with fruits, pudding, jello buy the cheap boxes make your own and divide it into containers you already have. For drink make kool aid add it into a spill proof cup or any cup with a lid. Don’t buy uncrustables make your own. Same thing with lunchables. Maybe make a hot dog wrap it in foil. You could even just use sandwich bread add a little cheese and pepperoni cut like uncrustables or ham and cheese fry it a bit on both sides wrap it up. Your meals don’t have to be expensive. Work with what you have and can afford. Canned chicken and tuna are also great options. You can make wraps out of it, or dips, or just add crackers or veggies.
Can you maybe send leftovers from the night before to save on food waste and money
I would send him with a packed lunch I would go as far as cutting back my spending for my child to be fed and I have been there I have gone without so my kids could eat the best lunch possible unfortunately when you make decisions on having kids you put that child above you no matter what they may not of gotten a lot of presents for Christmas and bdays but I always made sure they had food and all of the important things if you brought multi packets of treats and you gave him a packed lunch once a week provid that there is only a single child family you would have enough for 1/2 months I have 4 kids including my grand child that I feed and I buy bulk it works out cheaper
Peanut butter and jelly a loaf of bread one bag of potato chips a bag of carrots should last him all week and that’s about $10.00 . Find the money from other things you buy and get your son, his home lunch packed.  If I were the parent I would do without some thing so my child could have his lunch packed like he wants. If he doesn’t want peanut butter and jelly, then he doesn’t get to take his lunch that is your compromise.