A healthy start to school
Produced by NAQ Nutrition Food Smart Schools Program with funding received from the
Smart Choices Initiative
A healthy start to school
Promoting healthy foods and drinks is important to our
school community
(Insert your school logo here)
What is Smart Choices?
• Queensland Government initiative aimed at
improving the nutritional value of foods and
drinks supplied to students in schools
• Smart Choices applies to:
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tuckshops, canteens and vending machines
fundraising events – food drives, sausage sizzles
school dances, fetes, movie nights
sports days – swimming and athletic carnivals, on site sports
clubs (e.g. swim clubs)
• school excursions if the school provides the foods and drinks
• classroom rewards
Smart Choices
• Classifies foods and drinks into three categories
according to nutritional value
GREEN FOODS
Have plenty
AMBER FOODS
Select carefully
RED FOODS
Occasionally
(no more than two
times per term)
Australian Guide to Healthy Eating
• Smart Choices is based on the Australian
Guide to Healthy Eating
Smart foods for kids
A range of ways you can support Smart Choices
and promote health and wellbeing in your
children:
• talk to children about the importance of healthy foods
and drinks
• model healthy eating at home
• provide children with a good breakfast and a healthy
lunchbox
• volunteer at the tuckshop/canteen and other school
events where possible
• be a part of our school parent organisation.
Importance of breakfast
Breakfast is important for children because:
• it improves their mood, classroom focus, memory
and learning
• children’s appetites are often best in the first half
of the day
• protein foods at breakfast are a good idea, for
example, dairy, eggs, baked beans
• it is very difficult to meet daily nutrient needs if
breakfast is missed.
Healthy breakfast examples
• Wholegrain cereals (e.g. porridge, muesli,
wheat cereal) topped with reduced fat milk or
yoghurt and a piece of fruit
• Wholegrain toast with low fat healthy spreads,
or served with baked beans/banana/egg/
cheese and tomato and a piece of fruit
• Breakfast on the run – fruit such as banana,
reduced fat milk and yoghurt smoothie
Importance of fluids
• Inadequate fluid throughout the
day can lead to:
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• fatigue, listlessness, headache and
low mood
Water is best – pack a refillable water bottle
every day
Milk is next best – will need to be kept cold
Juice should be 100% and small serve size
No soft drinks, cordials, sports drinks or
flavoured waters
No energy drinks
Importance of healthy lunchboxes
• About half a child’s daily nutrition
needs will be met while at school
• Important that lunchbox food is
nutritious
• Provides energy, and the vitamins
and minerals needed to help with
growth, play, learning, focus and
mood
Lunchbox choices
Aim for at least one food from each of the
five core food groups in the lunchbox
Grain (cereal) foods,
mostly wholegrain and/or
high fibre varieties
Milk, yoghurt, cheese
and/or alternatives, mostly
reduced fat
- Wholegrain bread and bread
rolls
- Wholegrain cereals
- Wholegrain pita/pocket bread
- Lavash or Turkish bread
- Fruit bread
- Rice cakes
- Pikelets, muffins and scones
- Reduced fat milk
- Soy milk (or other cow’s milk
alternative) with added calcium
- Reduced fat cheese
- Reduced fat yoghurt
Lean meats and poultry,
fish, eggs, tofu, nuts and
seeds, and legumes/beans
- Sliced cooked lean meats –
lamb, ham, chicken, roast
beef, turkey
- Boiled eggs
- Tuna/salmon
- Legumes including baked
beans, chickpeas, lentils,
butter beans, kidney beans
Vegetables and
legumes/beans
- Salads – tomatoes, carrots,
cucumber, celery, lettuce,
sprouts, corn on the cob
- Vegetables – stir-fried, corn on
the cob, carrot sticks, capsicum
slices, snow peas
- Reduced fat potato salad or
coleslaw
- Small can of baked beans
Fruit
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Fresh whole fruit
Fruit salad
Canned fruit in natural juice
Dried fruit (30g serve, or 4 dried
apricot halves or 1 ½
tablespoons sultanas
More healthy lunchbox ideas
• Wraps, rolls and sandwiches
• Pita bread/English muffin
pizzas
• Noodle, rice or pasta dishes
• Sushi, rice paper rolls
• Frittata or quiche
• Cheese and wholegrain
crackers
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Dip and vege sticks
Corn on the cob
Air-popped popcorn
Bottle of water
Milk poppers
Yoghurt, custard
Fresh and frozen fruit
Which is more expensive?
Apple
$4.00/kg
Fruit strap
$43.50/kg
Popcorn
$4.10/kg
Crisps
$30.00/kg
Cheese and
crackers
$9.04kg
Pre-packaged
cheese and
crackers
$32.10kg
Fruit
bread
$7.70/kg
Muesli
bar
$24.10kg
* Prices are approximate and may vary
Managing food allergies at school
• Education Queensland has a policy for
managing allergies in schools – Anaphylaxis
Guidelines for Queensland State Schools
• Our school policy/procedure in relation to
managing allergies (including food allergies) is:
(insert school policy/procedure)
For more
information
Further
information
Department of Education, Training and Employment (DETE)
Smart Choices
www.education.qld.gov.au/schools/healthy
NAQ Nutrition
Food Smart Schools Program
Ph: (07) 3257 4393
info@foodsmartschools.org
www.foodsmartschools.org