Guest guest Posted August 1, 2008 Report Share Posted August 1, 2008 I have a toddler at home and my husband and i were raised vegetrian. I am wondering, what has been the experience of parents on this group with their school going kids? Is it a lot of pressure to stay vegetarian? Are they seen as being different in school? Is there anythng you can do to help other than talk to your kids or giving them PBJ for lunch each time? Also, what can schools and cafeteria's do to educate kids on healthy eating and building awareness on vegan/vegetarian/kosher etc? Have any parents here been able to make a positive impact in schools on this subject? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted August 1, 2008 Report Share Posted August 1, 2008 Jacqueline, We're in Hillsborough County (Tampa) which PCRM didn't rate. I've contacted them to help me in helping this district come up with healthy food options but haven't heard back from them yet. I know I will though. The food is horrible in this district unless your child goes to a school that is in the more affluent neighborhoods. It's supposed to all be the same food but I can tell you from the year I substituted and went to many different schools, it isn't. Where my kids went for the last five years, the food was always overcooked and most of the time fried or with a lot of margarine and grease added. For example, the pizza is so bad that you can get about a tablespoon of grease off of one piece that is just sitting on top of the pizza. My kids have always taken their lunches to school. They have never asked to buy their lunches like the other kids do. It seems there are about as many who bring their lunches as buy them so that might be the reason. The other thing is, most of the kids my kids have gone to school with, always ask to have my children's food because it looks (and is) much better than the school lunches that are bought. The only problem my kids have ever really had with their lunches is the other kids taking their food because they wanted to eat it or begging my kids for it. For my kids, the key was (and still is, I guess) to make sure they have food that looks normal so that other kids don't make fun of them and that they like to eat. That's what I strive for. So far it's worked. They start middle school this year in a much larger school. I hope it continues to be a non-issue. God's Peace, Gayle - Jacqueline Bodnar Friday, August 01, 2008 1:06 PM RE: Parents with school going kids? I'm so glad you asked this question! I can't wait to see the responses from others that have been down this road before us. My daughter will be four in September, so school is around the corner. Most of the vegetarian families that I know seem to homeschool, so it's never been an issue for them. I'm on the fence right now as to whether I'm going to homeschool or send her to public school. We live in an area that has good public schools, but I'm a fan of homeschooling. From what I have seen schools don't do much to help out in the department when it comes to providing veggie kids meals. Even if they have a PBJ sandwich available it's likely to be unhealthy bread, unnatural peanut butter and sugar fruit spread. Sad... PCRM did a report card on school districts when it came to feeding kids healthy and vegetarian meals. If my child goes to school I will be packing her lunch. But I cringe to thought that she may come home asking to buy lunch like " everyone else. " Ugh. You can see the PCRM report here: http://www.pcrm.org/magazine/gm07autumn/report_card.html (I'm in Volusia County, which was rated a B). Jacqueline Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted August 1, 2008 Report Share Posted August 1, 2008 At 12:46 PM 8/1/2008, you wrote: >I have a toddler at home and my husband and i were raised vegetrian. >I am wondering, what has been the experience of parents on this >group with their school going kids? Is it a lot of pressure to stay >vegetarian? Are they seen as being different in school? Is there >anythng you can do to help other than talk to your kids or giving >them PBJ for lunch each time? >Also, what can schools and cafeteria's do to educate kids on healthy >eating and building awareness on vegan/vegetarian/kosher etc? Have >any parents here been able to make a positive impact in schools on >this subject? My daughter has been a veggie since she was 7. In middle school there were options for her - sometimes the regular entree and other times it was a pnb and jelly crustable or a cheese crustable. In high school, there are many choices. The hardest part for her was that the other kids gave her a hard time about being a vegetarian. Now of course, she was very vocal about it. I'm not sure that anyone would notice only veggie choices at lunch. There are many kids who eat the same thing everyday. School lunches do leave a bit to be desired as far as good nutrition. They are all prepackaged foods with many additives. We try to only buy lunch in an emergency. Patty Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted August 1, 2008 Report Share Posted August 1, 2008 Hi - I hardly ever post, but do read along. I have two children in school - ages 7 (son) and 9 (daughter). They have been vegetarian since birth. I would say that overall it has not been much of an issue yet. Part of this is that up to a point when kids are young enough they are either oblivious to what others are eating, and when they do notice their comments reflect an observation rather than a judgment. My daughter has reported a few remarks here and there, but nothing serious. Although they are in the minority, they have never been the only vegetarians. It also helps that the school they attend does not have the kids go to the cafeteria until third grade, so lunches are eaten in the classroom. By second grade they can buy lunch and eat in the classroom, but it is still largely a bring lunch from home system. When there are meals in the class for special events the teachers have always made sure there is something for our kids, and that they are sure to get whatever we send in for the pot luck. My son's kindergarten teacher was not vegetarian, but she was Muslim and thus had some dietary restrictions that coincided with ours. For example, she was on the lookout for gelatin. My son attended camp at the school this summer, and there were two camp-outs. They made sure to have veggie dogs for him and the other vegetarian kids. We did provide the vegan marshmallows for s'mores, as those are harder to find. Some parents formed a healthy foods committee (which always meets in the middle of the day so I cannot attend). I'm not sure of all they have done, as the cafeteria has not been on our radar. Right now, the cafeteria is not much of an option anyway, as most days include meat and the veggie substitute is a PBJ sandwich. When they are older they can choose separate items, there is a salad bar, etc., but the younger kids are limited to the daily entree. I suspect that the cafeteria will not hold much interest to my daughter, who is on the picky side. The few things she has purchased there she has not liked. My son, however, will love it, I'm sure. Our issues with his eating really come from him, and not outside sources. For example, yesterday he was complaining that at a camp the other kids get Dorritos, etc. in their lunches, and he always gets something healthy. He said the counselors think that is neat, but he does not. We explained why we want him to eat healthy things - the occasional exception is OK, but not on a regular basis. He also complains that there is not as much to eat when you are vegetarian. The reality is, however, that he eats a much more varied diet than many of his classmates, but he does not quite see it that way. He eyes lunchables with envy. LOL. Overall, teachers have always been respectful of our children's diet. There have been occasional mistakes, but only because the teacher was not aware that a particular food was an issue. Karen - lakshmi rao Friday, August 01, 2008 12:46 PM Parents with school going kids? I have a toddler at home and my husband and i were raised vegetrian. I am wondering, what has been the experience of parents on this group with their school going kids? Is it a lot of pressure to stay vegetarian? Are they seen as being different in school? Is there anythng you can do to help other than talk to your kids or giving them PBJ for lunch each time? Also, what can schools and cafeteria's do to educate kids on healthy eating and building awareness on vegan/vegetarian/kosher etc? Have any parents here been able to make a positive impact in schools on this subject? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted August 1, 2008 Report Share Posted August 1, 2008 All kids and schools are different. We had one issue, when my daughter was in first grade (at a small private school) and a classmate treated the class to mcdonalds for lunch; what really pissed me off was that they would not let Alyssa eat lunch with her class. She has been in extremely diverse public schools since second grade (now going into 8th). She has friends who are Muslim; friends who are Hindu and don't eat root vegetables (for fear of injuring bugs); and just about anything else you can think of. --- On Fri, 8/1/08, lakshmi rao <laks_class12 wrote: lakshmi rao <laks_class12 Parents with school going kids? Friday, August 1, 2008, 11:46 AM I have a toddler at home and my husband and i were raised vegetrian. I am wondering, what has been the experience of parents on this group with their school going kids? Is it a lot of pressure to stay vegetarian? Are they seen as being different in school? Is there anythng you can do to help other than talk to your kids or giving them PBJ for lunch each time? Also, what can schools and cafeteria's do to educate kids on healthy eating and building awareness on vegan/vegetarian/ kosher etc? Have any parents here been able to make a positive impact in schools on this subject? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted August 1, 2008 Report Share Posted August 1, 2008 The Chicago schools have at least one veggie main course at lunch. We have allowed Alyssa to buy lunch once a week. After a while, the novelty wore off and she admitted that she doesn't like the school lunches. In fact, if we haven't had a chance to shop and there isn't anything for lunch (or we get up too late), she gets mad about having to have lunch at school. --- On Fri, 8/1/08, Jacqueline Bodnar <jb wrote: Jacqueline Bodnar <jb RE: Parents with school going kids? Friday, August 1, 2008, 12:06 PM I'm so glad you asked this question! I can't wait to see the responses from others that have been down this road before us. My daughter will be four in September, so school is around the corner. Most of the vegetarian families that I know seem to homeschool, so it's never been an issue for them. I'm on the fence right now as to whether I'm going to homeschool or send her to public school. We live in an area that has good public schools, but I'm a fan of homeschooling. From what I have seen schools don't do much to help out in the department when it comes to providing veggie kids meals. Even if they have a PBJ sandwich available it's likely to be unhealthy bread, unnatural peanut butter and sugar fruit spread. Sad... PCRM did a report card on school districts when it came to feeding kids healthy and vegetarian meals. If my child goes to school I will be packing her lunch. But I cringe to thought that she may come home asking to buy lunch like " everyone else. " Ugh. You can see the PCRM report here: http://www.pcrm. org/magazine/ gm07autumn/ report_card. html (I'm in Volusia County, which was rated a B). Jacqueline Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted August 1, 2008 Report Share Posted August 1, 2008 My son starts at a Montessori school this fall (actually at the end of August). They require you to pack a lunch every day anyway. We'd probbly do this no matter where he went to school (public or another private school). We (my brother and I) brought lunches every day, my mom was a single parent, and I preferred bringing something rather than getting the free/reduced lunch (kids at my school were pretty awful about that kind of thing). Bringing something was easier. We have done sandwiches, and make our own seitan which we slice thin like sandwich slices, so it looks like he's just got a bologna sandwich with cheese or whatever. He also likes soups, so we make vegetarian alphabet soup, and a vegan version of spaghetti-o's. At least the age he's at, and the school he's in, they all bring lunch, and everyone has different things. My son did tell me one girl told him his lunch was weird (I think the day he wanted tofu shapes with nori sprinkled on them). He said he told her it was yummy, not weird and then they ran off to play. I think the kids there might be used to folks having different things to eat, there is one little boy with a severe peanut allergy, so the school is peanut-free. No one can bring anything with nuts for lunch (so pb & j are out for us, but we can do hummus and we tried just tahini and jam, but he wasn't thrilled with that. I'm lookin ginto other options for something 'quick' like soy nut butter, or to see if we can do another nut -like almond butter, but if not, I'm also thinking of making sunflower butter to have on hand). My son also has a milk protein allergy, so he often gets paired up with the other little boy with the nut allergy, as they can relate to each other when they're out like on a field trip. We have not pushed that we are vegetarians, but they were fine when we talked to them about substituting tofu or vegan cheeses for the various cutting and prep activities they have for the kids during the day. Usually they do fruits (bananas or whatever) and we keep his 'special' foods/ " milks " at the school labeled with his name. They were happy that we were so willing to offer substitutes for him. I'd be interested to see what others have found, since I know at some point we'll probably run into this, too. Missie On Fri, Aug 1, 2008 at 12:06 PM, Jacqueline Bodnar <jb wrote: > I'm so glad you asked this question! I can't wait to see the responses > from others that have been down this road before us. My daughter will be > four in September, so school is around the corner. Most of the > vegetarian families that I know seem to homeschool, so it's never been > an issue for them. I'm on the fence right now as to whether I'm going to > homeschool or send her to public school. We live in an area that has > good public schools, but I'm a fan of homeschooling. From what I have > seen schools don't do much to help out in the department when it comes > to providing veggie kids meals. Even if they have a PBJ sandwich > available it's likely to be unhealthy bread, unnatural peanut butter and > sugar fruit spread. Sad... PCRM did a report card on school districts > when it came to feeding kids healthy and vegetarian meals. If my child > goes to school I will be packing her lunch. But I cringe to thought that > she may come home asking to buy lunch like " everyone else. " Ugh. > > You can see the PCRM report here: > http://www.pcrm.org/magazine/gm07autumn/report_card.html (I'm in Volusia > County, which was rated a B). > > Jacqueline > > -- http://mszzzi.zoomshare.com http://www.flickr.com/photos/mszzzi/ ~~~~~(m-.-)m Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted August 2, 2008 Report Share Posted August 2, 2008 This is a tough one for me. I homeschooled ds until 2nd grade, he then asked to go to school & I allowed it. This will not be the case for my vegan daughter. Public school is interesting, & definitely mainstream, which we are not. I went round & round with the school about " healthy " vegetarian options for his lunch (he was on the free lunch program) & tried to explain that most cheese is NOT vegetarian since it contains the enzyme from stomach lining. Other than pb & j EVERY " vegetarian " option was dairy....usually cheese, & always crap. I pulled him back out in the 7th grade & homeschooled him until this year (he'll be going to HS), so I'm not looking forward to the same battle regarding lunch options, since their menu hasn't changed in who knows how long. I suppose at 14 he has to be able to make the right decisions on his own, but how can he with the options the school gives him? I just started a : So Cal Vegetarian/VeganTeens, hoping to expose him to more teens like himself. He will be attending a theatre arts magnet school, so perhaps he'll meet more veg kids there as well. It's hard, I've gone all the way to the people who actually " make " the school lunches & there is simply no incentive to change anything. They honestly believe they are feeding our kids healthy foods?!?!?! Sorry for the rant, I guess what I'm trying to say is that as long as your child is willing to take/eat what you give them for lunch, you should be ok. A teenager who's embarassed to be seen witha sack lunch eating " wierd " food is a whole other story. What ever happened to my innocent little 3 year old who yelled " Yuck Meat!! " at the top of his lungs when we went anywhere near the meat counter at the grocery, or he saw anyone devouring a burger? I think I'll homeschool dd all the way through! Just my 2 cents, good luck! KIMBERLY Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted August 2, 2008 Report Share Posted August 2, 2008 We also had to deal with lunchable envy in first grade. We came up with make-your-own lunchable. Pizza: whole wheat bread quarters, small containers of shredded cheese, sauce, and zucchini. Nachos: baked blue chips, refried beans, cheese, sliced olives. Deli: yves pepperoni, sliced cheese, whole grain crackers. Robin “I cook with wine; sometimes I even add it to the food.” –W. C. Fields --- On Fri, 8/1/08, Karen Detling <kdetling wrote: Karen Detling <kdetling Re: Parents with school going kids? Friday, August 1, 2008, 2:33 PM Hi - I hardly ever post, but do read along. I have two children in school - ages 7 (son) and 9 (daughter). They have been vegetarian since birth. I would say that overall it has not been much of an issue yet. Part of this is that up to a point when kids are young enough they are either oblivious to what others are eating, and when they do notice their comments reflect an observation rather than a judgment. My daughter has reported a few remarks here and there, but nothing serious. Although they are in the minority, they have never been the only vegetarians. It also helps that the school they attend does not have the kids go to the cafeteria until third grade, so lunches are eaten in the classroom. By second grade they can buy lunch and eat in the classroom, but it is still largely a bring lunch from home system. When there are meals in the class for special events the teachers have always made sure there is something for our kids, and that they are sure to get whatever we send in for the pot luck. My son's kindergarten teacher was not vegetarian, but she was Muslim and thus had some dietary restrictions that coincided with ours. For example, she was on the lookout for gelatin. My son attended camp at the school this summer, and there were two camp-outs. They made sure to have veggie dogs for him and the other vegetarian kids. We did provide the vegan marshmallows for s'mores, as those are harder to find. Some parents formed a healthy foods committee (which always meets in the middle of the day so I cannot attend). I'm not sure of all they have done, as the cafeteria has not been on our radar. Right now, the cafeteria is not much of an option anyway, as most days include meat and the veggie substitute is a PBJ sandwich. When they are older they can choose separate items, there is a salad bar, etc., but the younger kids are limited to the daily entree. I suspect that the cafeteria will not hold much interest to my daughter, who is on the picky side. The few things she has purchased there she has not liked. My son, however, will love it, I'm sure. Our issues with his eating really come from him, and not outside sources. For example, yesterday he was complaining that at a camp the other kids get Dorritos, etc. in their lunches, and he always gets something healthy. He said the counselors think that is neat, but he does not. We explained why we want him to eat healthy things - the occasional exception is OK, but not on a regular basis. He also complains that there is not as much to eat when you are vegetarian. The reality is, however, that he eats a much more varied diet than many of his classmates, but he does not quite see it that way. He eyes lunchables with envy. LOL. Overall, teachers have always been respectful of our children's diet. There have been occasional mistakes, but only because the teacher was not aware that a particular food was an issue. Karen - lakshmi rao @gro ups.com Friday, August 01, 2008 12:46 PM Parents with school going kids? I have a toddler at home and my husband and i were raised vegetrian. I am wondering, what has been the experience of parents on this group with their school going kids? Is it a lot of pressure to stay vegetarian? Are they seen as being different in school? Is there anythng you can do to help other than talk to your kids or giving them PBJ for lunch each time? Also, what can schools and cafeteria's do to educate kids on healthy eating and building awareness on vegan/vegetarian/ kosher etc? Have any parents here been able to make a positive impact in schools on this subject? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted August 3, 2008 Report Share Posted August 3, 2008 I have 3 children and we are strict vegetarians. My oldest daughter is 15. My middle daughter is 12, and my son is 5. My oldest thinks it's cool to stand out and my 12 yr old thinks it's hard. For me I allowed her to eat less healthy at school knowing she was eating really well twice a day and there isn't a lot of options for " junk food " available at school. My oldest is very dedicated to animal welfare which came with time and study. But my 12 yr old still chooses to eat things not offered at home. This may or may not be meat (cause I don't think she would tell me if it were) But ultamatly all we can do is teach them what we know to be right and let them make their own choices. with my son this has not been an issue because children his age are more interested in finishing so they can play then what they are eating. So I just feed him what he has always eaten and he doesn't seem to care what everyone else has. I don't know if this helps but it works for us. Heather - lakshmi rao @gro ups.com Friday, August 01, 2008 12:46 PM Parents with school going kids? I have a toddler at home and my husband and i were raised vegetrian. I am wondering, what has been the experience of parents on this group with their school going kids? Is it a lot of pressure to stay vegetarian? Are they seen as being different in school? Is there anythng you can do to help other than talk to your kids or giving them PBJ for lunch each time? Also, what can schools and cafeteria's do to educate kids on healthy eating and building awareness on vegan/vegetarian/ kosher etc? Have any parents here been able to make a positive impact in schools on this subject? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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