Another replaced lunch

[joannqn]

Story here

 

Same school. Same deal. Student sent to the cafeteria and told to pack up her homemade lunch. Bill sent to mom.

 

The lunch Zambrano packed for her daughter? A cheese and salami sandwich on a wheat bun with apple juice. The lunch she got in the cafeteria? Chicken nuggets, a sweet potato, bread and milk.

[Mrs Mungo]

I wonder if the problem is a poorly trained inspector or if the school has been improperly instructed as to how to handle it. BTW, the punctuation in the school memo made my red pen all itchy.

[Lang Syne Boardie]

I wonder if the problem is a poorly trained inspector or if the school has been improperly instructed as to how to handle it. BTW, the punctuation in the school memo made my red pen all itchy.

 

It does seem to be a slightly bigger problem than the school originally claimed.

 

I felt the same about the memo!

 

Parents should start a double-edged campaign for better education and more lunch freedom. Let's think of slogans.

 

"Fewer Nuggets. More Grammar!"

 

"Punctuation Trumps Potatoes"

 

"Cheese Slices are Better than Comma Splices"

[Mrs Mungo]

It does seem to be a slightly bigger problem than the school originally claimed.

 

I felt the same about the memo!

 

Parents should start a double-edged campaign for better education and more lunch freedom. Let's think of slogans.

 

"Fewer Nuggets. More Grammar!"

 

"Punctuation Trumps Potatoes"

 

"Cheese Slices are Better than Comma Splices"

 

:lol: Whoever wrote the memo seems to be part of some cabal with a slogan more like: "if one comma is good, then three must be great!"

[Gingerbread Mama]

Good grief. We were just discussing this at dinner tonight. When my kids were PS'd I ALWAYS packed their lunch. I worked in the school, saw what was being doled out on the food line, and mine was far more nutritious. I'm just "kerflumuxed" that this is apparently some sanctioned practice, allowing someone to paw through children's lunches from home and then order them trashed.

 

I can tell you this...had that happened to one of mine, somebody would have been sporting a school lunch tray in a very sensitive area! :glare:

[Lang Syne Boardie]

:lol: Whoever wrote the memo seems to be part of some cabal with a slogan more like: "if one comma is good, then three must be great!"

 

I'm a huge fan of the "Although; we, however, with you...fill in the details and follow orders...will lead to greatness someday." style. Semi-colons are a nice touch; and add variety, to a hard-to-read letter that is for parents to read.

 

(har)

[Serenade]

It does seem to be a slightly bigger problem than the school originally claimed.

 

I felt the same about the memo!

 

Parents should start a double-edged campaign for better education and more lunch freedom. Let's think of slogans.

 

"Fewer Nuggets. More Grammar!"

 

"Punctuation Trumps Potatoes"

 

"Cheese Slices are Better than Comma Splices"

 

Love it!

[Miss Peregrine]

It does seem to be a slightly bigger problem than the school originally claimed.

 

I felt the same about the memo!

 

Parents should start a double-edged campaign for better education and more lunch freedom. Let's think of slogans.

 

"Fewer Nuggets. More Grammar!"

 

"Punctuation Trumps Potatoes"

 

"Cheese Slices are Better than Comma Splices"

 

OMWord! That's fantastic!

[Lang Syne Boardie]

OMWord! That's fantastic!

 

Thank you! Please add your own!

[Mrs Mungo]

I'm a huge fan of the "Although; we, however, with you...fill in the details and follow orders...will lead to greatness someday." style. Semi-colons are a nice touch; and add variety, to a hard-to-read letter that is for parents to read.

 

(har)

 

If you can't beat them, confuse them?

[Lang Syne Boardie]

If you can't beat them, confuse them?

 

I just remembered that I, myself, lack the grammatical equivalent of moral authority. Today I wrote a sixty-word sentence in a post that I shall not link to. And I ended that last sentence with a preposition, and started this sentence with a conjunction.

 

Does all this evidence prove I am qualified to write a school newsletter or memo?

[Mrs Mungo]

I just remembered that I, myself, lack the grammatical equivalent of moral authority. Today I wrote a sixty-word sentence in a post that I shall not link to. And I ended that last sentence with a preposition, and started this sentence with a conjunction.

 

Does all this evidence prove I am qualified to write a school newsletter or memo?

 

No way. Starting a sentence with a conjunction and ending with a preposition are both fine, especially in informal writing. I've yet to see you manage to squeeze two conjunctions and a semi-colon into one sentence. :tongue_smilie:

[Lang Syne Boardie]

No way. Starting a sentence with a conjunction and ending with a preposition are both fine, especially in informal writing. I've yet to see you manage to squeeze two conjunctions and a semi-colon into one sentence. :tongue_smilie:

 

:lol:

 

G'night, Mrs. Mungo! I'm off to dream about chicken nuggets and red pens (probably, but I hope not).

[milovany]

I just remembered that I, myself, lack the grammatical equivalent of moral authority. Today I wrote a sixty-word sentence in a post that I shall not link to. And I ended that last sentence with a preposition, and started this sentence with a conjunction.

 

Does all this evidence prove I am qualified to write a school newsletter or memo?

 

No, but it proves you're qualified to inspect lunches though. :D

[kalanamak]

I wonder if the problem is a poorly trained inspector or if the school has been improperly instructed as to how to handle it.

 

Perhaps there is a personality disorder. Some people are very, very hard to fire, and while I hate liars and sneaks, I am more tired out by very nice, well-meaning people who go into panic mode if they feel the rules aren't being enforced.

 

I recall being shouted out by a store checker who blew a cork of panic when I wouldn't take 3 pennies back in change. "My till will be off!!" I told her she was in the wrong job, grabbed my stuff and fled.

[Random]

“We are not the lunch bag police,” Barnes told McClatchy. “We would never put a child in any type of embarrassing situation. But we are responsible to see that every child gets a nutritious meal.”

That's creepy.

 

 

 

Although, we, who are homeschooling, might not agree; it is good to know there is a movement in the public, which, however misguided, will benefit other kids' nutritionally. And, I think parent's should be happy to assist with that component.

[HappyCrazyMama]

I think their nuggets are about to reach the use-by date, both times it was nuggets.:tongue_smilie:

[MSNative]

I think their nuggets are about to reach the use-by date, both times it was nuggets.:tongue_smilie:

;)

 

I think an investigation will show that this school is being controlled by Big Poultry. Buncha chicken pushers.

[amo_mea_filiis.]

I want to send both of my kids to that school with a dairy and grain free vegetarian meal!

[In the Rain]

:lol: Whoever wrote the memo seems to be part of some cabal with a slogan more like: "if one comma is good, then three must be great!"

 

:lol:

[Ellie]

The problem is that there is an "inspector" in the first place.

[zaichiki]

Although, we, who are homeschooling, might not agree; it is good to know there is a movement in the public, which, however misguided, will benefit other kids' nutritionally. And, I think parent's should be happy to assist with that component.

 

:lol:, :lol:; :lol: And :lol:'s

[*********]

;)

 

I think an investigation will show that this school is being controlled by Big Poultry. Buncha chicken pushers.

 

*snort* Chicken pushers. *snort*

 

I want to send both of my kids to that school with a dairy and grain free vegetarian meal!

 

So what exactly DO these people do about kids with allergies. I mean, what if a child is allergic to dairy? So this "inspector" finds no dairy in their lunch, sends them to get a school lunch, then the kid has a huge problem because they drank the milk or something? What then? I'm gonna go ahead and assume that the teacher or the inspector are not checking with school records to see if the child has an allergies BEFORE they replace the child's meal.

 

A balanced meal does not look the same for every person, regardless of what guidelines the government has decided on. I mean, Zee needs extra protein; so if I feed him more protein at lunch and skip the grain, does that make his lunch unbalanced? Certainly not; it makes it tailored to his individual needs.

[*********]

The problem is that there is an "inspector" in the first place.

 

Very succinctly put, Ellie. That is really the problem.

[2cents]

This could be a good thing for folks who aren't into packing a lunch at all. They can just pack a candy bar and the child gets a free lunch and the candy bar back at the end of the day. :D

[zaichiki]

This could be a good thing for folks who aren't into packing a lunch at all. They can just pack a candy bar and the child gets a free lunch and the candy bar back at the end of the day. :D

 

That's what you gotta do... work the system!

 

I remember when my parents were teaching me to remember to make my own lunch in the mornings... the consequence of forgetting was not a reminder, but hunger that day. It only happened once and I never forgot again. I'm guessing that approach to teaching responsibility wouldn't work at this particular school.

[nikkid]

So what exactly DO these people do about kids with allergies. I mean, what if a child is allergic to dairy? So this "inspector" finds no dairy in their lunch, sends them to get a school lunch, then the kid has a huge problem because they drank the milk or something? What then? I'm gonna go ahead and assume that the teacher or the inspector are not checking with school records to see if the child has an allergies BEFORE they replace the child's meal.

 

A balanced meal does not look the same for every person, regardless of what guidelines the government has decided on. I mean, Zee needs extra protein; so if I feed him more protein at lunch and skip the grain, does that make his lunch unbalanced? Certainly not; it makes it tailored to his individual needs.

 

:iagree: I was wondering about this same thing.

[nikkid]

The problem is that there is an "inspector" in the first place.

 

When I first heard about this happening from somewhere else I thought the "inspector" was hired to inspect SCHOOL lunch! Guess I was a little too absorbed in the Jamie Oliver movement thinking we had made headway!

 

I don't like the public school having this much authority to trump what parents send to school if it's healthy, but when I ate once with my dd when she was in ps for 1st grade, I was appalled at what some parents were sending from home for lunch. Like snacks, but no main dish. So I can see why the schools get concerned. What if they asked the parents to opt in to this option instead of just doing it without asking? Then maybe the parents who didn't try so hard to send healthy lunch could say it didn't bother them to substitute? Probably wouldn't work anyway, though.

 

The elementary schools in our area all serve some variation of pizza three times a week (not with whole wheat flour or anything), plus count french toast sticks with syrup as a main lunch dish. And the counting french fries as a vegetable really floors me. So glad we're not in ps right now...

[pqr]

The problem is that there is an "inspector" in the first place.

 

 

Schools now all need a Ministry of Lunch (à la 1984). There can be called Minilu and all you parents who have an issue with someone else deciding what your child may eat need to stop by Minitru for a chat. There is something special awaiting you in Rm 101!

Edited February 19, 2012 by pqr

[MSNative]

The big problem is that this is a regulation. Regulations do not generally allow for exceptions or thought. The school has an inspector because they want to be in compliance. I'm quite sure this was a well intended idea. However, once someone had to write a rule to make it happen, it became binary. (The lunch meets guidelines or it does not.) After all the uproar, I assume a new regulation will be written to allow for exceptions. Then another regulation will be written to detail precisely how and why one may qualify for an exception and the process for getting the exception.

[melissad2]

The problem is that there is an "inspector" in the first place.

 

 

 

So what exactly DO these people do about kids with allergies. I mean, what if a child is allergic to dairy? So this "inspector" finds no dairy in their lunch, sends them to get a school lunch, then the kid has a huge problem because they drank the milk or something? What then? I'm gonna go ahead and assume that the teacher or the inspector are not checking with school records to see if the child has an allergies BEFORE they replace the child's meal.

 

A balanced meal does not look the same for every person, regardless of what guidelines the government has decided on. I mean, Zee needs extra protein; so if I feed him more protein at lunch and skip the grain, does that make his lunch unbalanced? Certainly not; it makes it tailored to his individual needs.

 

:iagree:

[MSNative]

Schools now all need a Ministry of Lunch (1984). There can be called Minilu and all you parents who have an issue with someone else deciding what your child may eat need to stop by Minitru for a chat.

:lol:

[4everHis]

This could be a good thing for folks who aren't into packing a lunch at all. They can just pack a candy bar and the child gets a free lunch and the candy bar back at the end of the day. :D

 

Except, if I'm not mistaken, the parents are getting billed for the school lunches.

[Jane in NC]

Keep in mind that this was a preschooler's lunch. NC regulations for preschools are quite different than NC regs for regular schools.

 

When my son attended a private Montessori preschool, county inspectors were a regular occurrence. Things that were normal lessons in Montessori (like pouring milk from a pitcher into a cup) were banned. The health inspectors actually preferred packaged food in lunches over leftovers since they could not guarantee the safety of the home prepared food. This last bit outraged everyone--teachers and parents.

 

Have you seen how thick the binders are containing preschool regulations in this state?

[Mrs Mungo]

When I first heard about this happening from somewhere else I thought the "inspector" was hired to inspect SCHOOL lunch! Guess I was a little too absorbed in the Jamie Oliver movement thinking we had made headway!

 

This wasn't somewhere else. This was in the same school as the other incident.

 

I don't like the public school having this much authority to trump what parents send to school if it's healthy, but when I ate once with my dd when she was in ps for 1st grade, I was appalled at what some parents were sending from home for lunch. Like snacks, but no main dish. So I can see why the schools get concerned. What if they asked the parents to opt in to this option instead of just doing it without asking? Then maybe the parents who didn't try so hard to send healthy lunch could say it didn't bother them to substitute? Probably wouldn't work anyway, though.

 

This is not a public school program. This is part of a *state funded preschool* program for at risk and low income kids. How it is supposed to work is different than how this school is reacting. There was a link in the other thread that explained it. If the kid is missing a veggie (for example), then the school is supposed to *offer* (not force upon) the child a veggie.

[stripe]

Schools now all need a Ministry of Lunch (1984). There can be called Minilu and all you parents who have an issue with someone else deciding what your child may eat need to stop by Minitru for a chat. There is something special awaiting you in Rm 101!

2 nuggets + 2 donuts = good enough 4 you!

(or should that be a 5?)

 

Parents should start a double-edged campaign for better education and more lunch freedom. Let's think of slogans.

Based on the mother's claim that “They give the choice of pizza and hot donuts…none of that is healthy,” here's my suggestion: "Donuts for lunch make us think a bunch!"

[stripe]

When I first heard about this happening from somewhere else I thought the "inspector" was hired to inspect SCHOOL lunch! Guess I was a little too absorbed in the Jamie Oliver movement thinking we had made headway!

When I watched Jamie Oliver, he wasn't pleased with many of the kids' lunches they brought from home because they often featured Lunchables, loads of cookies, sodas, and the like. So he had plenty of criticism all around, but I think he did want kids to eat school lunches because he could influence them more directly.

[nikkid]

This wasn't somewhere else. This was in the same school as the other incident.

 

This is not a public school program. This is part of a *state funded preschool* program for at risk and low income kids. How it is supposed to work is different than how this school is reacting. There was a link in the other thread that explained it. If the kid is missing a veggie (for example), then the school is supposed to *offer* (not force upon) the child a veggie.

 

Okay. Thanks for clarifying. Got too much going on this morning.

:tongue_smilie:

 

And I just saw the other post talking about this being a preschool program and I can understand how preschool programs are more strict.

[wonderchica]

 

 

 

So what exactly DO these people do about kids with allergies.

 

I have worked under these guidelines in NC. If your child has a note from a doctor stating they are allergic to something or are on a special diet (GFCF, for example) they are exempt from the regulation. Typically they keep a copy of the note in the child's file and in the cafeteria to show inspectors. No one is making an allergic child eat or take something they're allergic to.

[pqr]

 

 

 

This is not a public school program. This is part of a *state funded preschool* program for at risk and low income kids.

 

I understand that there are differences but it seems that both are government funded, they are both intrusive. If the Mother was initially charged for the meal than it is not "offer," it is "sell" or even "force" especially when we are speaking of a very young child.

 

This is not "homework", this is a *practice lesson that you will complete at home and have ready by Monday morning*

Edited February 19, 2012 by pqr

[FaithManor]

*snort* Chicken pushers. *snort*

 

A balanced meal does not look the same for every person, regardless of what guidelines the government has decided on. I mean, Zee needs extra protein; so if I feed him more protein at lunch and skip the grain, does that make his lunch unbalanced? Certainly not; it makes it tailored to his individual needs.

 

 

:iagree::iagree::iagree:

 

P, has weight issues, serious underweight issues and if it weren't for an endocrinologist that supports me 100% and knows I'm a good parent, I would have been accused of starving him by now. He has to eat 3500 calories per day and if he wants to exercise - this is a very active child - I have to try to cram more than that into him. He doesn't absorb omegas very well so in addition to his supplement, he has to eat a lot of healthy fats that are laden with omegas. What would the school do with him? Tell the doctor to stick it where the sun doesn't shine because they know better than he what ds should eat?

 

Today, my family is having a lovely potato and leek chowder with parmesan and big salads for lunch. However, ds will also have some leftover bay scallop scampi that was cooked in butter and coconut oil, he'll have a half cup serving of macademea nuts because yesteday he didn't quite hit 3500 calories - didn't realize it until I was totalling his food journal at 11:00 p.m. and he was already in bed - he'll want extra fruit on top of that and he'll be required to drink full-fat cow's milk from the farm and have a generous piece of cheddar cheese. Now, he'll have a lot of veggies and fruits, but no grains. We are under fairly strict orders from the doc about not stacking his diet with grains because those aren't going to help him regulate his ridiculously low blood sugar nor get the omegas into him. To the endo, in ds's case, grains are superfluous and might fill him up which would cause him to not eat enough of the other items.

 

The school would go bonkers! If I packed a lunch, it would contain, cheese and milk to eat, cashews or macademia's (in and of itself a problem because of nut allergies in other children but ds must have some nuts at every meal), grilled chicken with no bread, carrot and celery sticks, grapes and kiwi plus some avacado dip for the carrot sticks, and organic/no sugar peanut butter for dipping the celery sticks. He'd eat it all because he's trained to eat it all. If the school required a morning or afternoon snack, he'd have more nuts and sunflower seeds as well.

 

Sticking to this diet for months on end has netted a weight gain of two lbs. That's it! He's 5'4 and 79 lbs. But, I'm pretty certain his lunch would be confiscated and they'd hand him chicken nuggets.

 

It's insane...and I KNOW what hectic lunchrooms/cafeterias are like...I've taught in five different school districts. I can almost guarantee you that the lunch room inspectors are NOT getting every child's medical file out to see who has allergies, who has special dietary restrictions, etc.

 

The arrogance is scary!

 

Faith

[Snickerdoodle]

nm

Edited February 19, 2012 by Snickerdoodle

[elegantlion]

Can I just invoke Godwin's Law right now? :rolleyes:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Maybe the school is cahoots with the chick guy that Remudamom dealt with recently?

[Mrs Mungo]

I understand that there are differences but it seems that both are government funded, they are both intrusive. If the Mother was initially charged for the meal than it is not "offer," it is "sell" or even "force" especially when we are speaking of a very young child.

 

AGAIN, the school is absolutely implementing the intent incorrectly. The idea is to feed kids who are not being fed, NOT to be the food police. This program is for AT RISK kids. It is NOT compulsory schooling.

 

P, has weight issues, serious underweight issues and if it weren't for an endocrinologist that supports me 100% and knows I'm a good parent, I would have been accused of starving him by now. He has to eat 3500 calories per day and if he wants to exercise - this is a very active child - I have to try to cram more than that into him. He doesn't absorb omegas very well so in addition to his supplement, he has to eat a lot of healthy fats that are laden with omegas. What would the school do with him? Tell the doctor to stick it where the sun doesn't shine because they know better than he what ds should eat?

 

They would not care that your kid has extra fats in his lunch. That is not the intent of the inspections. The intent is to supplement, never replace. This school was doing it wrong.

[Shannon in TN]

I've shared both this thread and the other with DH and we both agree that if someone - anyone, really - tried to dictate what we, the parents, were feeding our children, there would be a "firestorm" at that school (dh's word).

 

Personally, I send rolled ham slices, yogurt, fresh fruit of some kind, and goldfish/chex mix/veggie straws-type "snack" to cover the grain if I don't use sandwich bread.

 

When I had my dd in ps, the schools did have a memo-letter explaining the state's requirement for lunches and what they need to include. It was a lot like the list for the preschool, but when you look at what's served in the lunchroom, it's not what the kids are eating when they buy their lunch. Sure, the school may be serving fruits and veggies and "healthy" fare, but it's not what the children are serving themselves. Their plates were very monochromatic and the color was yellow.

[Soror]

I have worked under these guidelines in NC. If your child has a note from a doctor stating they are allergic to something or are on a special diet (GFCF, for example) they are exempt from the regulation. Typically they keep a copy of the note in the child's file and in the cafeteria to show inspectors. No one is making an allergic child eat or take something they're allergic to.

 

And we'd be screwed here because we don't have official testing or note for ds. Perhaps after enough times of instant diarrhea they would get the point. Food intolerances is yet another reason we hs though.

[ktgrok]

Here in Florida some of the preschools actually are set up so that you cannot bring a lunch, period. They HAVE to eat what is provided. It IS healthy food. But...my coworker's son wouldn't eat it. He was picky, or maybe had issues, I don't know. But he wouldn't eat it. Period. He wanted a sandwhich from home. He went MONTHS not eating lunch. Just not eating, at all, from 7am when she fed him breakfast until 5pm when she picked him up from aftercare. He was losing weight, had sunken eyes, and his behavior was deteriorating, but they would not allow her to send food from home or they could lose their funding. I quit, so I don't know what the end result was. He was 3 years old.

[Zebra]

This is one more reason why I am soooo glad I homeschool.

 

I have no idea what my poor vegetarian daughter would do...if I sent in beans would they force her to eat nuggets? Are beans a "meat alternative"? Some people don't think so.

 

I'm LI, so would they force milk down my throat.....????? I'm all for people making their own choices about milk, but it's a nightmare for me. In this environment of "tolerance" I really don't understand the lack of tolerance for the many dietary issues people have.

 

My daughter has a Kosher friend and a daughter with serious allergies. I wouldn't dream of trying to pack them a lunch. I also wouldn't expect someone to pack a lunch for my vegetarian daughter. It's insanity.

 

AND, it drives me crazy how specific their regulations are. Maybe I ate 12 servings of veggies last night for dinner, and want more meat for lunch today....geez. Who are you to judge?

 

:confused:

[Mrs Mungo]

Oh my gosh. There is no need for all of the hysteria. They are supposed to *offer* free items to the kids to supplement what they already brought. They aren't forcing anything on anybody. Again, this particular school was implementing the program in a manner *not intended*. Both stories were from the same school. I am sure there will be some retraining happening.

[Jean in Newcastle]

Oh my gosh. There is no need for all of the hysteria. They are supposed to *offer* free items to the kids to supplement what they already brought. They aren't forcing anything on anybody. Again, this particular school was implementing the program in a manner *not intended*. Both stories were from the same school. I am sure there will be some retraining happening.

 

I don't think that the fact that this program is for at risk, low income kids means that the parent's rights should be usurped. And I don't think that pointing out that the lunches were not unhealthy even if they lacked carrot sticks is hysteria. Or that wondering what they would do with food allergies or other health problems which can show up just as much, if not more, in at risk kids in such a one-size fits all system, is hysteria either.