It’s Time for a Snack—Who’s Hungry?
Posted by Jen Bragg on 29 Jan 2010 | Posted in: Classroom Management, Classroom Routines, Teachers and Teaching
As I write this blog entry, the clock before me is clicking closer to 10:00, and that means…snacktime. Every morning I take a short break and refuel. Usually I opt for fruit or a granola bar, but occasionally I give in to my salty cravings and nibble on some chips. When I can, I like to read something light and fun while I snack. It reminds me of snacktime with my second graders in California. A parent volunteer would read to my little friends while they refueled on their morning snacks. The rules were pretty simple. After students got their snack, they stayed seated until the reading was over. (Parents knew the time frame and were great about sticking to it.) I’d invite the volunteer’s child to lead the rest of the class in giving the parent a silent cheer of his choosing. Then students would dispose of their snack trash on their way out to morning recess. It was lovely! My students were able to eat in a calm and quiet environment while still being entertained. As an added bonus, they were exposed to a variety of books and to models of strong readers. As for me, I got a chance to sit back for a few minutes and enjoy my class. It was definitely a win-win situation for everyone involved.
So while I’m digging into my snack, give me something else to chew on. Tell me about snacktime in your classroom. How do your students refuel? Do you have a quiet snacktime or is it also a time for students to get their wiggles out? I’d love to hear from you!
Jen
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I teach four year old preschool. I have been teaching for ten years. My class eats snack at 10:00 a.m. and 2:30 p.m. The snacks use to be provided by the preschool until last year. The preschool was looking for ways to cut back without raising tuition to keep up with the changing economy. One solution was to have the parents provide the snacks.
The majority of the children bring in snacks that are high in sugar. I see a lot of chocolate and snack cakes. Every now and then I see a healthy choice like cheese and fruit. Soft drinks are not allowed. The children can only drink water or juice.
I used to allow the students to get their own snacks, but they would often end of eating the morning and the afternoon snack at 10:00. To prevent this from happening I start collecting snack ahead of time while the children are dancing or coloring. This also helps me to give the snack with the least amount of sugar during the morning snack.
I like the idea that some of you have about the parents contributing to a snack fund. This will allow the teacher to choose snacks that could contain less sugar to give to the children and use the snacks as a part of a lesson. Well done!
When I taught 2nd grade I had a student be the Reader of the Day during snack. I sent home a monthly calendar so the students knew when their day was coming up, and it helped them to know to practice before their turn. Students really enjoyed this and it gave them a chance to share their reading skills. It a student came and said that they id not practice or didn’t have a book, I would read or another student would always volunteer. As for the snack, students bought in their own. I always kept animal crackers or a similar snack bought from the Dollar Store.
I teach 2nd grade at a public school in Houston, Texas. Our school had the amazing opportunity to be one of the first schools to pilot a fresh fruit and vegetable program. Each day at 2:00 our students are given either a fresh fruit or vegetable. It has been great because they are exposed to different fruits and vegetables and we eagerly await what the snack will be each day. I am a big fan of the program because it provides a healthy snack for our students each day.
I am curious as to how Tammy went about getting her cafeteria to provide snack for the children. Right now I’m the one who goes to BJ and does the shopping for the snack. I eventually get reimbursed but it would be great to hear how you arranged it. We sit at the tables with the children will they eat. The children are given a choice of two snacks a day and an option of milk or juice. Once they have finished their first cup, they can have water. We have small pitchers of water on each table and the children may help themselves.
I teach kindergarten. At about 9:45 each morning we stop for a snack. When I first started teaching I had my kids bring a snack from home. This ended rather soon as no matter what I said they would bring in inappropriate snacks like candy and soda. Some children would end up eating their sandwich for snack and then have nothing, or very little, for lunch. We then started a monthly snack fee. This year it is $7.00. I use this money to provide a snack and drink each day for the children. I love it because now it becomes an extention of my teaching time. If we are having something like corn curls I ask the kids to “fair share” them in the four quarters of their napkin. If we happen to have letter cereal they look for their initials, first name, sight word letters, etc. At least once a month they ask to paint toast…we use milk colored with food coloring and cotton swabs as brushes. Each table of 4 gets 5 different colors to paint with. We put them in the oven to toast…the kids love their masterpieces. It also gives me a time to encourage picky eaters to “give it the ‘ol kindergarten try”. Parents love the program and so do I!
I teach Preschool in a public school district. We have snack every day with a “parent” helper that signs up to come in. They only have 6 students at the table at one time and the snack is provided by our cafeteria. The parents pay $50 a year for the snack. The students talk to the snack parent and often tell them things that they do not say to me during the day. The other children are in groups also during this time and some are doing an art project, learning something new from me at my table or playing in the room. Our snacks are nutricious and often delicious! I always have a snack to get me through the day. The students love to see their parents during the day. Sometimes we have grandparents and aunts that come if a parent cannot come.
I teach a 4 yr old preschool. This is my second full year of having snack be a choice during centers. Usually, they are self serving and clean up with little help, but periodically I need to step in to help. We have things like cereal scooped from ice cream buckets with 1/3 cup measuring cups into coffee filters (no dishes & fine motor needed to separate) to yogurt, fruit, or other finger food to things that require assembly (gold fish with pretzels/peanut butter or cheese or mini bagel pizzas)or peanut butter ‘tacos’. We have a fridge in our room and use milk cartons. They are encouraged to drink 1/2 a carton a day or more. I do have plastic glasses/plates/bowls/flatware I bought at IKEA (those are awesome)if needed.
I teach three-year-olds. We have snack aroun 9:45. My childern like me to put on a cd. I have them sit in their seats for snack. If they feel the urge to dance, I taught them to do it with their fingers at the table. This gets out alot of wiggles before project time. Hope it helps out at your school and try finger dancing.
I teach special needs preschool, and I have a large morning class. It’s difficult for many of my students to attend to a story when it’s presented to a whole group, but I found that reading a story during snack time was very successful–I had children still asking for more after 3 books! This has calmed down considerably what has in the past been a hectic time of the day. It also works better if I let the kids get some of the “noisies” out before beginning to read.
I did something similar as you with my first and third graders. Every Friday afternoon we would have a guest reader come to the classroom and read stories. After storytime the students would be served milk and cookies. It was the perfect way to end a very busy week. During the week our usual snacktime was around 10. The students would be given the chance to visit with friends and talk.Like you I enjoyed watching them interact with their peers. You can learn so much about your students while they socialize.
I am semi retired after 40+ years of teaching and still at 10.20 each day I need to sit down and have a snack— it is when i always feel hungry!! I am in the habit of munching on fruit or raw veggies. With my classes I used to let them have munchies on their desks— had to be fresh fruit or raw veggies– they could eat these whenever they wanted. some kids would come in and they would eat them right off. Maybe they had missed breakfast. Others grazed all day. Others again didnt eat much at all. along with water they were also allowed I found that for some kids their attention improved and there was no asking ”when is it snack time”. Also parents very pleased to have kids eating fresh food. Some told me they had been unable to get kids to eat anything other than chips and such like. Nearly 10.20 now and my tummy is rumbling– off I go for my piece of fruit!