Are you already stressing about packing healthy school lunches? It’s one of the biggest battles that comes with school prep, and it’s especially challenging if you’ve got a picky eater in your family.

And while you might be able to come up with one or two winning lunch combinations that aren’t totally horrible for your kids’ health, figuring out what to pack day after day, week after week, that will give them the energy and nutrition they need yet they’ll actually eat might seem impossible.

Don’t worry – these five tips for packing healthy school lunches have got you covered!

1. Try to cover most of the food groups

The key to packing healthy school lunches is balance. This is really easy to accomplish if you try to cover most of the food groups: lean protein, grains (preferably whole wheat), fruit/veg, and dairy/dairy substitutes. This might mean, for example, a turkey sandwich on wholemeal bread with a slice of cheese, cut-up fruit chunks, and some carrot sticks. There are lots of ways to follow this formula using what you have and what your kids like.

If you’re constantly stuck for what to pack, it may be helpful to follow a weekly schedule. Perhaps you’ll start packing leftovers from your big Sunday meal every Monday, or you’ll devote every Tuesday to a sandwich of some sort. Other weekly themes might include a breakfast for lunch day and an international-cuisine-inspired lunch day. 

But if your kids prefer having the same few foods, read my next tip. 

2. Pack foods your kids will actually eat

It’s pretty disheartening to have your kids come home and find their lunchbox is 75 percent full. While you definitely want your children to eat a healthy lunch, you need to make choices that you know they will enjoy. If your son hates hummus, don’t pack a hummus wrap thinking he’ll eat it out of sheer hunger – chances are, he won’t touch it and it will end up going to waste. 

If your kids are really picky, you can try the bin method. Keep small bins in your fridge with each of the food groups, and have your child choose one item from each bin to put in their lunchbox the next day. This involves them in the process, ensures you’re ticking the right nutritional boxes, and makes it more likely they’ll actually eat the food you pack.

3. Introduce something new

I think I’ve made it pretty clear why including foods your kids don’t like is going to backfire, but that doesn’t mean you can’t take the opportunity to introduce something new. Now, I know there are mums out there who are convinced their child sometimes refuses to try a new food at home just to challenge us. That’s why school lunches are a great place to sneak in something new. 

Don’t make it the basis of the whole meal in case it doesn’t go over well; try to do it in smaller ways. If you want your child to try pineapple, include a few pieces in a container with other fruits you already know she likes. Or pack it separately if your child is picky about having different foods served separately (my younger kid’s like this!) If you want her to try almond butter, put some in a container for her to dip something she loves into, like apples or pretzel sticks – which she will be able to eat anyway, even if the almond butter isn’t the winning idea you’d hoped. Of course, be aware of any school rules such as nut-free ones.

4. Pack the night before

Mornings can be hectic, so I can’t emphasise this enough: pack as much of the lunch as you possibly can the night before – especially if you’ll be including leftovers from dinner. Pre-cut any items you’re packing to make them easier for little fingers to grab, like veggies and cheese cubes. If you’ll be packing something like hummus, scoop it out into a mini container and leave it in the fridge. If I (or my husband) have a little extra time, I might do something to make Nina smile when she unpacks her lunch, like cutting her sandwich into a heart shape or tucking a handwritten note or drawing in her lunchbox.

5. Include a rainbow

We’ve all seen those pretty and colourful bento boxes on Pinterest. Most of those are comically unrealistic, but there is definitely something to be said for packing a colourful lunch. “Eating the rainbow” is an effective nutrition strategy that ensures your child is getting a variety of nutrients when done correctly. Of course, this doesn’t mean packing some M&Ms in their lunch. But think about it: what kind of nutritional variety is there in a lunch box that is a sea of beige, with a ham sandwich, potato chips, and chocolate chip cookies?

If you’re not seeing some vibrant shades when you look in your child’s lunchbox, adding some colour can make it not just prettier but also healthier. Think juicy red strawberries, cheerful orange cantaloupe chunks, a few small raw green broccoli florets, and a handful of blueberries or red grapes for an antioxidant boost.

Healthy school lunches don’t have to be an impossible dream, so try these tips and see what works for you!