After a long day of learning and playing, kids can get pretty hungry (or, dare we say hangry?) when they get home. After-school snacks give them energy for after-school activities, sports, and homework before dinner’s ready.
Planning what’s for snack time is as important as planning meals. Think of it as an added chance to add more servings from MyPlate to your kid’s day or week!
Tips for successful snacking:
- Snacks can help them from getting too hungry between meals. It is still important to make sure your kids eat at mealtimes, so don't offer snacks too close to a meal.
- Offer snacks at a consistent times and locations during the day.
- Kids tummies are small, so they sometimes can’t eat very much at mealtimes. Snacks add nutrition to their days that they might be missing at meals.
- Teach kids basic cooking skills by allowing them to prepare their own snacks. It can be a great activity to keep them busy after school and they’ll enjoy eating what they helped make!
- Keep easy, ready-to-grab items available when they get home, like string cheese, whole grain granola bars, cut up veggie sticks, fruit cups packed in 100% juice, and single-serve yogurt.
- Offer snack foods that don’t contain a lot of added sugar most of the time.
- Use the Find Food Illinois Community Food Map to find sites that offer snacks in your area.
Building balanced snacks
Choose foods from two or more different MyPlate food groups, for example:
- Halved cherry tomatoes or grapes with string cheese
- Greek yogurt with granola and/or fruit
- Whole grain granola bar and raisins
- Peanut butter, cheese or turkey on a slice of whole grain bread
- Veggie sticks with hummus
- Homemade trail mix made with whole grain cereal, dried fruit, and nuts
- Graham crackers with a glass of milk
- Hard-boiled egg on toast
Fuel this school year by using these tips to make after-school snacks that your kids will love. For more practice building balanced snacks, play the Eat.Move.Save. Grocery Store Tour Snack Game. You can also visit the Snacks and Desserts section of our recipes page for some more kid-friendly snack recipes, like Strawberry Kiwi Parfaits!
Strawberry Kiwi Parfaits
Ingredients
- 2 kiwifruit, peeled and sliced
- 1 cup fresh (or thawed from frozen) strawberries, sliced
- 1 cup plain or vanilla yogurt
- 1/2 cup corn or bran flakes cereal
Preparation
- Wash hands with soap and water.
- Gently rub fruit under cool running water.
- Use 10-12 ounce clear glass or plastic glasses.
- Layer kiwifruit, strawberries, yogurt, and cereal in glasses and serve.