If doesn’t matter that we just ate breakfast five minutes ago. Nor does it seem to disturb them we are in the middle of a science lesson – which I am teaching. My kids are hungry yet again. They are growing and constantly needing to eat. What’s a homeschool mom to do?
As I’m sure many of you have experienced, trying to school hungry kids is impossible. They won’t focus; they become irritable; and they complain. Nothing will be accomplished if their needs aren’t met. We could stop everything and eat. Or, mom could set up a homeschool snack bar! Complete with their favorite snacks, our kiddos are free to munch while we are able to continue on with our learning day.
Our Family Snack Bar
yogurt
frozen yogurt
granola
fresh fruit
popcorn
Chex mix
graham crackers
chips and salsa
quesadillas
tea sandwiches
cold cuts & cheese
olives
banana bread
chocolate chips
cookies
gummy worms
Had you fooled didn’t I? Those first items look incredibly healthy and I was doing so well. While I’d love to think everything going into my kids’ bodies is good for them, it’s not. On occasion, mama breaks down and snags a bag of her favorite, sugary snack. Seriously, who can resist an Oreo cookie?
Generally speaking, I do keep the sugar to a minimum. Our ‘snack bar’ is meant to keep them energized and focused for learning and creativity. Sugar highs are generally avoided. Nor are all of these items available everyday, all day. An assortment is placed at our learning station midway through our morning for anyone who needs a treat. I also find I lean towards particular snacks which seem to coincide with the season. Banana bread is considerably more comforting in the fall/winter.
By having a working snack bar for our littles, complaints of hunger are kept to a minimum and I am not scrambling to meet their need while in the midst of a history reading. They are satisfied and I am less frustrated. A delicious idea all around.
“My son, eat honey, for it is good, and the drippings of the honeycomb are sweet to your taste.”
~ Proverbs 24:13
📢 Chime In!: Budget not withstanding, what would your preferred snack be for learning time? (My girls would love for sushi to be a regular on the table. If only!)
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A Homeschool Mom 
A great solution. I can see how easy I have it as a mother of four who only homeschooled the youngest…
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We are going through the same thing! It seems my son is always hungry but having snacks on hand has definitely helped. It’s convenient to be able to answer, “I’m hungry.” with “Grab a snack from the bowl.”
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I so need to do this. It would save all that time staring into the pantry or fridge!
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I throw apples at them after I pass thru the kitchen. So uninspiring! Though you’re giving some great ideas. Esp the gummy worms;)
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Pie was my solution, both savory and sweet. I added minimal sugar, if at all to the pie. They loved a warmed up slice of chicken pot pie or runza (a beef/cabbage mix from Belgium) Of course spring rolls were a favorite, but really hard to make. We didn’t have the option to eat most prepared snacks. The kids had Gluten and dairy issues.
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These are great ideas!
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Great idea! Do you have a picture of your snack bar set-up? I sometimes set out a homemade fruit, cheese and pretzel plate.
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Pictures of all our homeschooling adventures can be found on our Instagram account.
Hard pretzels or soft? We enjoy both, but soft pretzels are special treats.
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It’s so true – snacks are a must! I tend to go the ‘healthy cake or cookie’ route – a low-sugar (but really, it must be low sugar – no more than half a cup for the whole recipe) home-made carrot/coconut/banana cake that lasts a few days in the fridge, or peanut butter or sesame seed cookies (again, we use recipes with very little sugar and butter). Cheese and Stoned Wheat Thins with an apple got us through a few months a while back . . . for us a snack has to be real food and vegetarian. I recently discovered Haldiram’s Spiced Nuts and Atoka Dark Chocolate-Covered Cranberries, store-bought goodies – but these are better suited to moms who want a little nibble than youngsters. Nuts can be good for everyone, though. Don’t get me started – good food is so important to good health! 🙂
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I’m going through this never ending hunger with my boys just now. My boys are still little and I need to be better at having easy to access healthy snacks so I actually can do other things besides prepare food. Thanks for the post and the motivation to prepare more snacks than just fruit. Because let’s be honest we don’t want our kids eating fruit all day long…they need some variety.
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I would appreciate our children eating fruits and veggies all day. But, on occasion, they do need alternatives.
Because our children do eat healthy, I tend to be less worried about the occasional sweet which makes an appearance.
Thanks for sharing!
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Awesome snack list, even just for in general. One of my favorite things about homeschooling is that I CAN feed my kids whenever they are hungry. I remember trying to learn and being hungry in public school and then getting fed a gross school lunch … I love being able to meet my kiddos natural needs. Thanks for the great ideas. My favorite for my kids is a fruit and veggie tray with some cut up cheese.
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I love this! I’ve been a public school teacher and am now a homeschooling mom, and can totally relate to the kids not being able to work or focus – okay, me too! – without something in my stomach. 🙂 Great list. Thanks for sharing!
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Oh tell me about it! My two younger brothers are homeschooled, and are always hungry. To be honest, even as a work-from-home human, I cannot focus until I have some noms in me 🙂 In fact, your list is making me drool right now! Good job about the popcorn, I always say!
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This is such a beautiful idea! so do you actually have it sitting out on a counter or something? do you make it in the morning and leave it out like allay and top it up? i have two boys and i know the “I’m hungry” five minutes after brekky is done broken record hahahaha well I’m gonna give this a go i love the idea! well yes sushi would definitely be top of the list for my 5 year old and well anything that is sugary and catastrophic for your health would be on the list for master 3, but I’m going with healthy brain food too with some treats on occasion 🙂
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Our “snack bar” is usually placed on the Lazy Susan in the center of our homeschool table. The kids are welcome to grab what they need as they need it.
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Ah wonderful so cool! I will take a photo of ours when we eventually get to it, do you mind if I put a pic of it on my blog with a reference to your blog giving me the idea?
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Not at all; we’d love to see your snack station!
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that is meant to say top it up all day, i should really check my comment before pressing send hahaha
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