Really, what is the world coming to?

[dreamin_disney]

here in ca some schools have not only banned homemade stuff but any treat or goodies. Things have to be store bought, fruit must be packaged and sealed and a certain amount of fats. calories etc. Its a pain so we skip the parties for our group. Oh and the pizza parties have to be bought thourgh the school at the high school site. They make their own pizza on site and also have a deal with one of the local pizza places. I guess the dough is special. Thanks Mr. Gov.Arnie S

BTW- you cant even give a child a treat for a prize

 

[Cory's Gal]

From a preschool teachers POV, packaged snacks/treats are best. My school was not peanut free but we always have at least one child with the allergy. Most times at snack we would triple check the label to make sure there was no nuts, sometimes they would get a seperate snack just in case, I knew how to give the epi-pen, but I never wanted to have to use those skills. Better to be safe than sorry...also we had a no cupcake/no cake policy for snacks/birthdays. It was such a pain to try to clean-up 20 3 year olds and then the tables and floors were covered in crumbs and then it would get over on the carpet too. For birthdays cookie cakes were okay, or we suggest their favorite treat like fruit snacks, fruit roll-ups, or teddy grahams.

 

[deedeetoo]

We have a no treat policy. No cupcakes, cookies etc, from anywhere. They say it is due to obesity and trying to keep the kids healthy but I think the celebration thing was getting out of hand with parents trying to out do each other. My cupcakes are prettier and fancier than yours....

 

[Benducci]

There are two things running here- one is food concerns because of allergies & the other is that law/regulation (?) of how much sugar/junk can be in food in schools.
Now I can understand the children with allergies & I respect that & bring in nothing with nuts & everything is brought in with the labels of what is in it. I have a milk allergy myself so I am aware of foods. Most of the kids who are in our schools who have allergies are aware of what they can eat & what they cannot. There is only one girl who has an allergy in our second grade & everything is scrutiinized as to whether or not she can eat it. If there is a question, she does not eat it & an alternate treat is supplied.

BUT I do have a problem with the snacks & treats being regulated by the government on what we can bring in and what we cannot because of studies done & children being overweight. I don't feel it is the schools just to enforce what my kids eat & what they don't eat - that is my job as a parent. We were told we cannot have anything in that has sugar as one of the first 3 ingredients and yet the cafeteria sells mozzerella sticks with tater tots as a lunch. My girls last week had cheesteak heros - I asked what was the vegetable- I was told none but they got to take extra bread - who is watching the nutritional values there?

 

[snickerboo]

We do not have this ban at our school. I think it's ridiculous. I also think refusing to allow kids any 'junk' at school is not teaching them how to properly manage food. My kids get a healthy lunch everyday with one small dessert thing. That's how I eat, so that's how I pack their lunches. No one is this house has obesity issues, or even close. The obesity issues in our children have a lot more to do with inacitivity than kids eating cookies, IMO. When we don't teach children how to balance their diets, by denying all junk food, they won't know how. Do we really think once they're teenagers they won't eat any junk because they've never had it? Of course not! They'll do the opppopsite! Or else they'll be obsessed with healthy foods, which is actually a form of eating disorder. To me, it defies logic. Educating rather than dictating is what is required. As for cleanliness of home kitchens, most moms I know who bake for school events or for their own kids lunches have much cleaner kitchens than half of the restaurants out there.

 

[KadysMom]

My DD6 has an egg and dairy allergy. I supply popsicles for her at the parties, and i make sure there are enough for the class just so that she doesnt feel like the only one not having the homemade snack. Every party, more than 1/2 the kids pick the popsicles over the cupcakes and stuff. Kids love popsicles so the teacher started letting the parents know that the kids prefer the popsicles. Last party only 5 kids ate the cupcakes and the kid had to bring them home.

I dont like the school regulating what my kid can have due to weight issues, because my child doesnt have a weight problem. I know how she reacts to the sugar though. I end up having more issues with her when she has had too much sugar. So i bet the teachers have a hard time with them also.

 

[SLK1]

Wow, lots of great points of view here. I agree with most...I guess I really disagree with the bake sale thing - if I choose to spend my money on something home-made, how is that the county's business?

Another interesting thing I find is that someone posted that they don't like the government regulating what their children eat. However, many schools have to regulate what children eat because of allergies. There was a thread a few weeks ago dedicated to food allergies. So, it's no different really - if your child has a nut allergy and my child now cannot eat peanut butter, someone is still regulating what goes in my kids' mouth.

As for childhood obesity, it's definitely a problem, and a very sad one. I think the blame can be distributed to our society - inactive, computer-game kids, processed foods, and the "dangers" of our neighborhoods (you can't just run around and play anymore), but on the other hand, as someone said, being the food police isn't going to solve any of those issues. As a matter of fact, home-baked goods are BETTER for you than the processed crap. The word "moderation" seems to have been lost somehow...that goes for the health food nuts and the junk food addicts!

Just sayin'...

 

[frndshpcptn]

I like the idea of no homeade treats. I hate the idea of eating home baked goods from someone I don't know very well - it totally grosses me out! who knows if they let thier cat walk on the counter, lick thier fingers when cooking, etc.

Yuck!

 

[santa's surpriz]

My oldest is in preschool for the first time this year, so I'm new at all this. I asked her teacher if I could bring in some cool cupcakes for Halloween, and I was told that the Principal doesn't allow anything like that. I swear I was so upset I could have cried! I totally understand that we don't want our kids hyped up on sugar every day from what they eat at school, but common - its Halloween!!!
There is also a kid in the class with a nut allergy, so I don't know what we are allowed to bring in at all.....

That's so true...but my daughter is always on her best to get that Dum Dum pop at the end of the day (their reward for good behavior because it seems to work the best)....IMO no difference!

 

[genius118899]

My little brothers' school sets aside one day a month to celebrate all the birthdays in that month- the room mom coordinates bringing in cupcakes, and each of the birthday children get a small treat. All the summer birthdays are celebrated in May. This sets a limit on how many sweets are consumed, and seems to work well.

The allergy thing I understand. I went to a small high school, and my AP calculus class only had 7 of us in it (the teacher was only a few years older than us, and one of the most amazing ladies ever). We made up excuses to bring in cookies probably once a week (ie, this was a Catholic school and we brought in cookies for Hanukah!) One boy had a peanut allergy which we all knew about, so we just baked around it.

 

[teresajoy]

My daughter's kindergarten class has a no home made treats policy too. We are talking about treats shared with the class, right? At first I was surprised, but then when I thought about it, and thought about how many times I've seen adults leave a bathroom without washing their hands I came to the conclusion that this was a VERY good policy!

 

[Mouse House Mama]

I just wanted to comment on all the hygiene stuff. Do you know for a fact if the person who made your treat from the store washed their hands or if the machines they are made on are clean or there are no bugs? I'd rather take my chances with a neighborhood family. jmho.

 

[PattnFmly]

Interesting comment Mouse House Mama! Made me stop to think about all the store bathrooms I've been in where they have the huge sign over the sink that "employees must wash hands before returning to work"! I guess reminders are necessary! Just never really thought about that aspect .. but you're right!

 

[Nicki828]

My kids can't bring in treats anymore to celebrate their birthdays. They also can't bring anything with peanuts or fish as well as doritos, goldfish crackers (cheese flavoured) or sunchips.

 

[mikkiwikki]

I thought that too until my daughter was diagnosed two weeks ago with a tree nut allergy. No walnuts, pecan, cashews, ect. I was like ok, we don't really eat nuts at our house anyway. Then the dr. said we need an epi-pen. OK. Then I did research on all this and then realized how bad things could get if we're not careful. She could die!! If I let her eat a walnut and it isn't treated she could go into shock. Please, please take these allergies into consideration when bringing snacks, home-made or store bought. It doesn't take very long to check out the label to see if a nut is listed. It could save someone's life!

I'm sorry your child has an allergy. My son has several children in his class who has peanut allergies, and we are very careful not to send products like that to school if it could help another child.

I just wanted to say - Welcome to the club of "Moms who have kids with problems" that the rest of the world - generally doesnt want to deal with because it inconveniences them. (my son is special needs)
I dont mean to be flip about your childs very real health condition. I just wanted to post to show my support and say you are not alone...there are many moms out there whose kids have issues, and don't get uppity about kids that 'dont fit' their idea of what a perfect classroom should be.

Everyone is different, and we all have to find a way to get along.

 

[ntink]

I can only speak to my school/state but imagine it is applicable nationwide. The rules banning homebaked treats, regulating portion sizes and ingredients are not rules implemented by the principal, school or school district. Here these rules are handed down to the school districts from the State of Pennsylvania Department of Education. If the rules are not implemented, the district's funding will be negatively impacted.

 

[kydisneyfans]

Just to be safe I don't send anything to the school anymore.

 

[Beehn]

Only store bought treats at our school as well..
Here's a little story from a local teacher- she said a mom in her class brought in cupcakes. As everyone was eating them the mom said something about how hard it was to frost them. The teacher asked why....Mom said because her daughter kept licking the frosting off!!!

 

[roliepolieoliefan]

I can only speak to my school/state but imagine it is applicable nationwide. The rules banning homebaked treats, regulating portion sizes and ingredients are not rules implemented by the principal, school or school district. Here these rules are handed down to the school districts from the State of Pennsylvania Department of Education. If the rules are not implemented, the district's funding will be negatively impacted.

How do you know this?

Not all the schools in PA are peanut free as well as homemade free, because ours is not. Our funding is definetly not compromised due to this either

A mother just went on a crusade last year to make a neighboring school , not whole school dstrict peanut free due to her son's severe allergy. She made her case in front of the school board , not the PA dept. of education. She won and her son's school is peanut free but the rest of the schools in the district are not.

 

[MickeyMomOfThree]

Our school district went "no homemade, all items must be factory sealed" a couple years ago. Then a year or so later it went to no treats at all. At birthdays we can bring in pencils, stickers, treat bags, etc.

Also, I feel so sorry for any family dealing with food allergies, it is a difficult situation for sure. One of my closest friend's daughter has a near fatal reaction to goat's milk and it also very, though not as sseverly, allergic to cow's milk, so I am sympthatic. But my DD9 cannot bring a PB&J sandwich to school because someone in her class is allergic. I don't know how severe his allergy is, though it is limited to his classmates, the tables around him are OK to bring them and the school serves them to buyers. I think this is so difficult. We are on a tight budget, my kids eat PB&J at least 3 times a week if not 4. I have been giving her just jelly but it is not giving her the protien that she needs to get her through the afternoon. I wish there was a better solution. For my friend's daughter, she eats in a seperate area which is cleaned for her right before she comes to lunch. She is allowed to have a couple friends (whose lunces arn't going to pose a risk) come sit with her. I don't want anyone to feel left out because of their food allergies, but I have to wonder if there arn't other options than banning a certain food or foods.