Nice People Thread Part 9 - and so it continues

lostinrates

michaels wrote: »

DD1 who has packed lunches 3 days a week was complaining it was cold having to eat outside - I was somewhat surprised to learn that at her school juniors with packed lunches are expectesd to eat outside unless it is raining and there isn't an area sheltered from the wind with benches or anything. I am the only one who thinks it is pretty unsuitabel for children this age to be eating outside standing up or sitting on the floor?

I don't think they need to sit at tables, but I do think they should have an indoor area to sit down in this weather before being sent out to play. Its a shame they cannot eat with their friends having school lunches, because we know more and more about the social importance of meals. But facilities must come under pressure.

PasturesNew

michaels wrote: »

How long does a loaf of bread last you - we keep ours in the fridge and it never goes green even though some times a loaf lasts over a week and it isn't the long life stuff either.

I try to buy the long life loaves, so they've usually got 10 days of life, plus a couple after that "for luck". By buying those I've a good chance of getting through a whole loaf in the 10 days from when I buy it, rather than in the 2-3 days of a regular loaf. When I buy a regular loaf it's those cheapo 50p ones, maybe you buy posher bread and maybe that keeps longer.

Me opening one loaf of bread is the equivalent of you opening four at the same time.

A loaf has 20 slices. If I eat 2 slices at a time that's 10 meals. So if a loaf lasts 10 days I have to have bread for one meal every day.

On Sunday Brunch the other week they said about whether people should store various things inside/outside a fridge - they said that bread goes stale quicker in a fridge.

PasturesNew

michaels wrote: »

DD1 who has packed lunches 3 days a week was complaining it was cold having to eat outside - I was somewhat surprised to learn that at her school juniors with packed lunches are expectesd to eat outside unless it is raining and there isn't an area sheltered from the wind with benches or anything. I am the only one who thinks it is pretty unsuitabel for children this age to be eating outside standing up or sitting on the floor?

I can distinctly remember being in primary school and discovering that junior school kids had to go outside to eat their lunches. So it's been going on donkeys' years.

I remember it as I thought it meant they had to take their tables/chairs outside to eat .... which I thought to be bizarre. It's stuck with me ever since.

PasturesNew

lostinrates wrote: »

I don't think they need to sit at tables, but I do think they should have an indoor area to sit down in this weather before being sent out to play. Its a shame they cannot eat with their friends having school lunches, because we know more and more about the social importance of meals. But facilities must come under pressure.

If you let kids with packed lunches mingle with those who buy school lunches, then there's the issue over freebies/sharing and monitoring if those with packed lunches are actually obtaining a free meal by stealth.

silvercar

michaels wrote: »

DD1 who has packed lunches 3 days a week was complaining it was cold having to eat outside - I was somewhat surprised to learn that at her school juniors with packed lunches are expectesd to eat outside unless it is raining and there isn't an area sheltered from the wind with benches or anything. I am the only one who thinks it is pretty unsuitabel for children this age to be eating outside standing up or sitting on the floor?

Is that to encourage all children to have school dinners?

When I was at primary school, half the kids went home for lunch. Unheard of nowadays.

Personally, in order to encourage social interaction and to ensure all children eat properly, I would ban packed lunches and make everyone have school dinners.

bugslet

My Mum used to try and get me to socailly interact more by sending my to playschool before going to primary - that lasted a whole day. Brownies, was a bit of a torment for a number of years. School dinners wouldn't have changed that an iota. I think I was lucky in that I went home when I was in primary school.

Oddly after years of being a wall flower, I decided to be a social butterfly and most people that know me in RL, think of me that way.

michaels

DD1 used to have school dinners 5 days a week but last 2 terms she has switched to 3 days pack lunch 2 days school dinners (you can only do 5-0, 2-3 or 0-5), she prefers packed lunch as the portion sizes on the dinners are so mean but she may go back to 5 days school dinners next term if it is really cold. Pack lunches are also a lot cheaper and just as nutricious (assuming she eats what we give her and doesn't swap but I suspect what she gets from us being on the healthy side is not that popular for swapping).

I just think they should be able to eat having washed hands and sitting at a table not on the ground/damp benches and be able to help themselves to water.

LydiaJ

silvercar_(to_Single_Sue) wrote: »

Exactly how all parents feel (except the smug), but you manage to do it as a single parent with health issues of your own with children displaying various issues themselves. Which is a damm site harder than it is for a lot of us.

What silvercar said.

michaels wrote: »

DD1 who has packed lunches 3 days a week was complaining it was cold having to eat outside - I was somewhat surprised to learn that at her school juniors with packed lunches are expectesd to eat outside unless it is raining and there isn't an area sheltered from the wind with benches or anything. I am the only one who thinks it is pretty unsuitabel for children this age to be eating outside standing up or sitting on the floor?

michaels wrote: »

I just think they should be able to eat having washed hands and sitting at a table not on the ground/damp benches and be able to help themselves to water.

I agree. I'm sure there are guidelines about schools allowing all children access to plenty of fresh drinking water. And yes, eating out of a lunchbox should be indoors, with clean hands, and with something suitable to put the lunch box on while eating out of it.

Children shouldn't have to be outside in this weather if they're sitting/standing still. It's OK when they're running about to keep warm, but I'm not surprised your DD gets cold while staying still eating. And how could anybody suppose that it's less important to wash hands before eating sandwiches with your fingers than before eating hot food with a knife and fork? Especially for children, who are always getting all sorts of goodness knows what on their hands, and who are supposed to learn about that sort of hygiene issue as part of their curriculum.

At my DD's primary school, all the children eat together in the hall, sitting at whichever table they choose, having collected either a hot lunch from the dinner ladies, or their packed lunch from the trolley where lunch boxes are kept. It doesn't seem to cause any problems that I'm aware of.

lostinrates

bugslet wrote: »

My Mum used to try and get me to socailly interact more by sending my to playschool before going to primary - that lasted a whole day. Brownies, was a bit of a torment for a number of years. School dinners wouldn't have changed that an iota. I think I was lucky in that I went home when I was in primary school.

Oddly after years of being a wall flower, I decided to be a social butterfly and most people that know me in RL, think of me that way.

I think of you that way electronically too

lostinrates

silvercar wrote: »

Is that to encourage all children to have school dinners?

When I was at primary school, half the kids went home for lunch. Unheard of nowadays.

Personally, in order to encourage social interaction and to ensure all children eat properly, I would ban packed lunches and make everyone have school dinners.

I think this is a great Idea. I think I would also make all packed lunches vegetarian so that only a true minority would be unable to partake of the standard offered meal, regardless of faith background or dietary restriction. not everyone, but fewer would be excluded from identical plates such as around a family table, which could have more realistic chance of being properly calculated as to best provition nutritionally as well as being cheaper.. I'm sure the chips and chicken nuggets for lunch brigade would be horrified if lentil dahl became a more frequent offering, but its hearty, warm and healthy.