[mumandboys]

Hi OP, I hear what you are saying, I actually felt very similar when my oldest started school. I was adamant that he wouldn't be having slushies, or ice blocks, or other junk. I was also against the concept of selling things to little kids in general.

I think for me it was about control. When kids start school, you relinquish alot of the control that you previously had. It's a shock to the system, but at the end of the day, it's a great place for kids to start learning about choices, and the value of money, and many other things that they (or at least mine) weren't previously exposed to.

I have two in school now, and they get a lunch order and $2 spending money every Friday. They love having lunch orders, very often they choose to save the $2 and ask me to pack recess for them, and they are definitely learning about the value of money. As an added bonus, they get a treat every now and then, which certainly hasn't done them any harm.

I love canteen day too, I don't have to make lunch

[PopsiclePeach]

OP I don't mean to be rude but you are beginning to sound slightly hysterical....

1. Food sharing is an issue - take it up with the teacher.
2. It is not the canteen's fault. Children need to learn about temptation, making good choices and following instructions from their parents. 5 might sound young to you but it is NOT too young to know that stealing money from your mother's purse and scavenging around the house for coins is wrong, as is accepting things from friends when you have been expressly told not to. I do not have 'perfect children' but they would not do this.
3. Talk to your child about why these food choices are 'bad' i.e. healthy food = fuel for a healthy body etc. Although TBH I don't see the problem with the odd slushy or sweet drink from the canteen. As part of a normal healthy balanced diet, I don't have a problem with it. Back in my day canteens sold pies, coke and hot chips. We learned to make choices and use our money wisely. By making these foods taboo you are only increasing their appeal. Why don't you offer to make (approved) slushies/smoothies after school for her if she promises not to have any at school etc.

Good Luck with it, but please try not to blame the canteen as it is only one part of your overall problem. I think a PP's suggestion of joining the canteen committee is a great one.

[The Old Bag]

Obviously I must be lacking in parenting skills or my DD is a cretan, giving how perfectly self-controlled some PPs children are. The government and media are so quick to blame parents for the escalating obesity rates in Australian children and instances of type II diabetes - but I have no problems at home, just at school. One previous poster said it is the schools job to control the children when on their premises and I fully agree- so the school should control the situation so my DD doesn't have access to food her parents don't want her eating. I can talk to her all I want but at the end of the day I can't remotely control her, and all children have different personalities, my DD is very stubborn and independent, maybe PPs children aren't.

I disagree that you don't have influence over your child's behaviour at school.

Having been through exactly the same situation with my 2 - one of whom easily wins the World's Most Stubborn Kid award, the answer was the same as it is for any other childhood behaviour I want to correct:
- be clear about my expectation and the reason for it, and implement consequences for not going along with it. You know your DD well enough to be able to work out some consequences that mean something to her and will motivate her to resist the terrible urge of the slushie.

[~maryanne~]

If you don't want her having them - you deal with it and teach her how to 'resist'.

It's not up to the rest of the school to go without so your child doesn't break your eating rules and 'give in to temptation'

[Mumsyto2]

I hardly think I am punishing anyone - maybe saving the from fatty liver disease and insulin resistance. Their parents want they could send them with a bottle of frozen water on a cold day (or gosh the canteen could sell frozen water!), or their parents can send them in with a bottle of frozen juice if they are happy for their kids to drink sugar.

You have to be kidding. I pack healthy food for my kids daily and their general diet is incredibly healthy and then every couple of weeks I give them some money to buy a treat from the canteen. Very very occasionally they get to have a lunch order also. As they normally have a great diet I am fine with whatever they choose to have on these occasions, it could be the most sugar and/or fat laden things you can think of - that's the whole point of this type of food. If I banned it entirely then they would also probably be scrounging off their friends and trying to rob my purse as your child is doing but letting them access this food infrequently as a treat means they don't do these things and by god mine are stubborn also. I am not hysterical over the canteen and if they normally have a very healthy diet then having an occasional treat will certainly not cause fatty liver disease or insulin resistance (however my etOH intake probably will LOL).

If our school canteen removed these treat items and told me instead I could give my kids a bottle of frozen water as a treat on a hot day I would be livid. If the reason they did this was because 1 child had control issues which could not be addressed by their parent so every other kid was punished by removing the very occasional treat I would be beyond livid as I would consider it to be that parents problem not mine. It's a bit like saying that no one should ever have an alcoholic drink in moderation because your sister is an alcoholic. Even kids at 5 years old know the 'rules'. I bet if you ask your childs teacher you will find that they are perfectly capable of understanding and obeying classroom/school rules. So your child is not 'deficient' in this regard they are just deliberately disobeying you with this particular rule, most likely because you have created a really screwy culture regarding food with no treats?? Irrespective it is something for you to work through and resolve with your child without imposing your own culture on every other parent and child by restricting them according to 'your rules'.

BTW have you ever had a slushie at school. I tried one once and binned it after the first mouthful. The ones at our school are sugar free, artificial colour and preservative free. In short they taste like crap. If kids want these as an occasional treat power to them I say.

This post has been edited by Mumsyto2: 23/04/2012, 07:53 PM

[tazcan]

So the general gist I'm getting from this thread is that most people here are happy with the current traffic light school canteen menu - they would rather have this type of canteen, - with the slushies, chocolate milk etc, than a healthy canteen menu?

[~maryanne~]

No, I hink the traffic light system is crap. A lot of green foods are not what I'd consider healthy. BUT... I am happy for unhealthy sugar and fat laden foods to be sold in canteens. It is up to parents to decide what their kid gets at the tuckshop and how often they get it. If it's 'salad sandwich on wholemeal with no butter, mayo or beetroot' day - pack it yourself or put the lunch order in for your child.

This post has been edited by ~maryanne~: 23/04/2012, 08:08 PM

[~**SYMONE**~]

At our school, kids in jr school can't get canteen unless it is pre ordered.

[PopsiclePeach]

What maryanne said!

It's all about balance. As long as there are healthy choices there too then a range of foods offered is just fine by me.

[RatbagBob]

If you don't like the canteen menu, join the canteen committee on the P&C and change it, rather than whining that you can't stop your kid from nicking money and getting her friends to buy things.

IME, most canteens are reasonably healthy, as they have to run a fine line between having items kids will buy and making a profit versus the "perfect healthy" canteen that loses money because no one uses it.