15+ School Lunch Ideas for Kids
Finding easy lunch box ideas for school lunches can be a challenge especially if your kids don’t like sandwiches like mine. We have created this list of healthy and easy school lunches we hope will inspire and give you more lunchbox menu ideas whether you are going back to school or just need some new lunch ideas for kids.
Back to School Easy Lunch Ideas for Kids
Let’s talk making back to school lunch ideas easy with simple and yummy lunch box ideas for kids school lunches. We used back to school time to stop and rethink lunch ideas for kids. Here’s a look at 15 School Lunch Ideas we have shared, made and loved that are not only yummy and easy but also healthy.
Related: Need cute lunch boxes? <–We have ideas!
These lunch box lunch ideas for kids for school include dairy-free lunch ideas, gluten-free lunch ideas, healthy lunch ideas, lunch ideas for picky eaters and a lot more!
Reasons to Love These Lunch Box Ideas
With 15 different lunch box combinations for kids, we hope you use this as inspiration to mix and match foods that your kids will eat with a few new items every once in awhile. If you have leftovers or extra of something in your fridge, think about integrating it into your child’s lunch box with a few of their favorite things too!
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Recommended Supplies for School Lunch Ideas
- We used these Bento box containers for all of these lunch ideas which make really easy lunch boxes for both kids and adults.
- Another huge time saver for us was using Amazon Fresh. You can try it for free with Amazon Prime! Click here for a FREE TRIAL!
Lunch Box Ideas FAQs
As a mom of three boys, the biggest advice I can give for what to give your child for lunch is to not overthink it! If your child loves sandwiches, then that is an easy start. If your child doesn’t love sandwiches, then think outside the lunchbox!
Lean into what your kid will eat that will fill them up. One of my kids was so picky at lunch his Kindergarten year that we sent him oatmeal because that was his favorite. I bought a good thermos to keep it warm and his lunchbox was full of different oatmeal toppings. Think about what your kid likes that could fill him/her up and then work around that if you have a super picky eater like I did!
Tips for Easy Lunch Ideas for Kids
Start with a simple container that has several compartments for a lunch box. That always helped me when packing kids lunches because it forced me to think of variety and allowed me to feel confident that each food item would travel well to school.
Dairy-Free Lunch Box Ideas
#1: Hard Boiled Eggs with Avocado
This healthy dairy-free lunchbox idea has two hardboiled eggs and some favorite lunch box sides like grapes, orange and pretzels.
Kids Lunch Includes:
#2: Turkey Rolls with Apples
This healthy dairy-free lunch has three turkey rolls, strawberries, blueberries, cucumber and apples with walnuts.
Kids Lunch Includes:
- Apples with walnuts
- Turkey rolls
- Sliced cucumbers
- Strawberries & Blueberries
#3: Chicken Strips and Hummus
This is one of my favorite dairy-free back to school lunch ideas pairing chicken strips with hummus and carrot sticks. Add a bunch of grapes as a side!
Kids Lunch Includes:
#4: Pinwheels and Banana Chips
This dairy-free back to school lunch idea is healthy because it rolls ham and spinach inside a flour tortilla creating a cheese-free pinwheel. Add some orange slices, carrots and banana chips!
Kids Lunch Includes:
- Ham & Spinach Pinwheel (wrapped in flour tortilla)
- Carrots
- Banana chips
- Orange
#5: Celery, Turkey, Pepperoni and Salad
This dairy-free lunch for kids at school is a big meal which works great for kids who just need a little extra food at lunch time. Start with celery with almond butter and add pepperoni rolled into turkey slices. Then make a little cucumber and tomato salad with blueberries and blackberries on the side.
Kids Lunch Includes:
- Celery with almond butter
- Turkey & Pepperoni rolls
- Cucumber & Tomato salad
- Blackberries & Blueberries
Gluten-Free Kids Lunch Ideas
#6: Chicken Salad Lettuce Wraps with Banana Chips
This gluten-free lunch is something you may want to make some extra for yourself! Make a double recipe (see below) and save some for your work or home lunch as well as your child’s lunchbox! Make the chicken salad lettuce wraps paired with applesauce and banana chips.
Kids Lunch Includes:
Chicken Salad Lettuce Wraps Recipe
Ingredients
- Roast Chicken (cooked), cut into square pieces
- 3/4 cup Plain yogurt
- 1 tablespoon Dijon Mustard
- 2 tablespoons Chives, chopped
- 1 Granny smith apple, cut into square pieces
- 1/2 cup Celery, chopped
- 2 cups Red grapes, cut in half
- Juice of half of Lemon
- Salt & Pepper
- Lettuce
Instructions
- In a mixing bowl, add the chicken, apple slices, celery, grapes and chives and combine
- In a separate bowl, mix together the yogurt, dijon mustard and lemon juice
- Combine the two bowls and add salt & pepper to taste
- Fill the lettuce slices with the chicken salad mixture
#7: Chicken & Cottage Cheese
This gluten-free lunchbox idea is one of the simplest on the list and can be created on those busy mornings when time just seems to run out! Start with left-over chicken pieces and a scoop of cottage cheese. Add blueberries and cucumber slices for fun!
Kids Lunch Includes:
- Cottage cheese with blueberries
- Cucumber slices
- Chicken slices
#8: Pepperoni Turkey Rolls and Pistachios
Another simple gluten-free option for kids school lunch! Start by rolling pepperoni into turkey slices and sprinkle a little cinnamon on some apple slices with a little lemon juice to keep them from browning. Add a handful of pistachios and a bunch of grapes.
Kids Lunch Includes:
- Pepperoni wrapped in Turkey
- Apples with cinnamon
- Pistachios
- Red Grapes
#9: Ham Roll Ups with Spinach Salad
This gluten-free lunch is full of surprises. Start with spinach and tomato salad, add rolled up ham slices and a bunch of grapes. Then cut some carrot sticks and serve with a little honey!
Kids Lunch Includes:
- Spinach & Tomato salad
- Ham roll ups
- Carrots with honey
- Red Grapes
#10: Wrapped Tomatoes with Walnuts
Take small slices of tomato and wrap them with turkey slices to make the entree of this gluten-free back to school lunch box recipe. Then add a hard-boiled egg, some walnuts and a bunch of grapes.
Kids Lunch Includes:
Healthy School Lunch Ideas for Kids
#11: Zucchini Cupcakes & Pepper Boats
This healthy back to school lunch idea is packed with things that your child’s neighbor will not have in their lunchbox! Start with a pepper boat of cut green pepper filled with pimento cheese spread then add a cheese stick, pretzel goldfish, blackberries and strawberries plus a zucchini cupcake.
Kids Lunch Includes:
- Zucchini Cupcakes,
- String cheese
- Pepper boat – green pepper filled with your favorite pimento cheese recipe
- Pretzel goldfish
- Strawberries & Blackberries.
#12: Salami Rolls and Broccoli
This healthy lunch box will keep your kids going all day long with salami slices rolled up, a hard-boiled egg, some cheese-it crackers, a few broccoli trees and some applesauce.
Kids Lunch Includes:
#13: Bologna & Kale Chips
This healthy lunchbox idea is packed with flavor. Start with a bologna and cheese stack and kale chips. Then add an orange, some blackberries and a baked granola bar.
Kids Lunch Includes:
- Bologna and cheese
- Orange
- Kale chips <– make homemade kale chips with this recipe
- Blackberries
- Cocoa Loco gluten free bar
School Lunch Ideas for Picky Eaters
For each of the lunches, we used these BPA free lunch containers.
#14: Pizza Rolls & Cheerios
OK, this just might be my favorite back to school lunch idea which must mean I am a picky eater too! Make a simple pizza roll with crescent rolls filled with sauce and shredded cheese. Add oranges and pineapples plus a handful of Cheerios.
Kids Lunch Includes:
- Pizza Rolls (crescent round, sauce and shredded cheese)
- Oranges
- Pineapples
- Cheerios
#15: Waffles with Peanut Butter & String Cheese
Another picky eater back to school lunch idea is to harness the power of breakfast with this simple waffle sandwich filled with peanut butter, nutella or almond butter. Add a yogurt, string cheese, cracker stack and a bunch of grapes.
Kids Lunch Includes:
- Waffles with Peanut Butter, Nutella or Almond Butter
- Go-gurt
- String Cheese
- Grapes
- Crackers
#16: Ham Wraps & Bananas
This picky eater lunch is simple and quick. Spread butter on a flour tortilla with a slice of ham (throw in some cheese if that makes your child happy) then add three fruits: bananas, strawberries and oranges.
Kids Lunch Includes:
- Ham Wraps (Butter spread on tortilla, with slice of ham and rolled up)
- Strawberries
- Banana
- Orange
#17: Turkey Rolls & Apple Slices
And last, but not least we have one more back to school lunch idea that has cheese and crackers, rolled turkey slices, apple slices and some applesauce.
Kids Lunch Includes:
- Cheese & Crackers
- Turkey rolls
- Apple slices
- Apple sauce or Chocolate Pudding
All of these lunch box recipes for back to school lunches appeared on the live stream, Family Food Live with Holly & Chris on the Quirky Momma Facebook page.
More LUnch Ideas for Kids from Kids Activities Blog
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- Halloween lunch box fun or try a jack o lantern quesadilla!
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- Vegetarian lunch ideas for kids lunch boxes
- Simple lunch recipes
- Meatless lunch ideas that are also nut free
- Upcycle your lunch bag into cute paper bag puppets!
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Which back to school lunch recipe will you try on the first day of school?
With all of the nut allergies and so many schools not allowing them, why are you suggesting kids pack foods that kill their classmates???????!?!?!?!?!?!?!?
As with anything else, you should use some common sense. If your child or your child’s classmates have allergies and/or certain foods are prohibited by the school, substitute something else that probably won’t kill them or their classmates.
Thanks for some really great ideas – our school doesn’t allow any tree nuts so these will be adjusted. But these seem so simple and yummy for the wee ones.
You are so welcome! Yes, you can definitely tweak these ideas to fit any dietary preferences or needs!
These all look good! Heck I’d eat them. Plus would be good for at home lunch too. Thank you for sharing.
Right?! Meal prepping is a timesaver and a great way to eat healthier for people of every age!
Can’t believe you would suggest nuts or nut based products. Most school boards won’t allow these in schools, so why? 5 of your suggestions not allowed.
hank you for your feedback, Linda. Sunflower seed butter can be substituted in the place of nut butters!
Most schools now are nut-free zones, but any of these ideas can easily be adjusted. Nut butters could be replaced with cream cheese for example. Instead of being critical, just use common sense. These are all good basic ideas to start the school year. Parents: keep in mind also how easy or difficult a package is for your child to open. Good luck to all!
Sunflower seed butter is another good nut butter substitution!
These ideas are so helpful! Thank you so much!
You are so welcome!
Thanks for some great suggestions will definitely be trying some of these and my daughter school is NOT nut free so she can do peanut butter. I don’t see why parent’s have a problem with these lunch ideas, because they are just that lunch ideas. If you know that you can’t use it, then don’t use it. All schools are not the same and I would hope that if your child attends a nut free school then you would have the common sense not to use it but stop judging the person providing the lunch ideas and parents who enjoy these ideas and don’t have kids who attend a nut free school.
Enjoy, Tabathia! Also sunflower seed butter (Sunbutter) is a great nut-free substitute that can be used in any recipe that calls for peanut butter!
these are some great options! is there a printable list?