Snacks don't have to be elaborate to be fun for a class to eat.
It's your turn to bring snacks to your son's class. He's begged you not to bring just apple slices again, but you can't think of anything else. Whether or not you have the time to make a snack for the whole class from scratch or barely enough time to stop at the store, there are plenty of snacks that are both interesting and fun for the class to make and eat.
Allergen-Free
Sometimes it's tough to find a snack that everyone in a group can eat. Some kids may have a peanut allergy while others are unable to eat foods with gluten. If you have a classroom with both allergies--or even more--the choices can become very limited. Never try and slide something by, though, thinking that just one peanut can't hurt. For some children, a peanut (or other) allergy is life-threatening. Bringing grapes instead of granola bars is, in that case, a small concession to make. When looking for snacks that are allergen-free, examine the label of the product you buy or read the labels on the ingredients you use in a homemade treat. Pretzels and popcorn are often good options as are most fruits and vegetables with dip. Corn muffins can be made for those with a gluten allergy and many items can be baked with rice flour instead of wheat flour.
Fruity
Fruit is always a hit. If you're in charge of snack time and want to bring fruit for all, but want to go beyond just plain apple slices, try mixing it up a bit. You can make popsicles out of real fruit by blending real fruit in a blender and then freezing it in a popsicle form. Smoothies can be made in front of the kids and are a fun project as well as a healthy treat. Fruit salad allows kids to be a little choosy while still getting a healthy snack. Fruit leathers made from real dried fruits are a good, option, but the sweet treats that some companies try and pass for fruit should be avoided. Bring a combination of dried fruits combined with whole grain cereal as a homemade trail mix for each child.
Fun-to-Make
Spreading peanut butter on a stalk of celery and placing dried raisins, cranberries or cherries on top is a fun way to make a snack with a class. Cupcakes are always fun to eat. If you're concerned about the health factor, try carrot or zucchini cake with a cream cheese based frosting. Decorate with raisins, sprinkles, chopped nuts or other fun toppings. Kids also love to make their own pizzas, so bring some bagels to the class as well as cheese, sauce and other toppings and have the kids make their own. Bake them in the school cafeteria. If you don't have access to an oven, you can make "fun" pizzas with sliced bread or rice cakes topped with nut butters and dried fruits, slices of cheese or whatever else the kids like.
Store-bought
Sometimes you just don't have the time to make something from scratch. In these cases, you can find plenty of good classroom snacks at your local grocery store. Try single-servings of applesauce or yogurt. Tortilla chips and salsa, pretzels and popcorn mixed with raisins and nuts, crackers and bagel chips are all yummy, store-bought options. Granola bars and even mini store-bought waffles can be an interesting snack, too.
Tags: dried fruits, apple slices, from scratch, have time, have time make