Lunch Supervision
Lunchroom supervision is available for students in Grades 1 to 4, who have registered in the Lunch Supervision Program. Students bring their own lunches from home. Please ensure your child brings nutritious lunches that DO NOT require heating or refrigeration. As a number of our students have life-threatening allergies, we request that you help minimize exposure by sending lunches and snacks that do not contain peanut butter or nuts. Please visit our Lunch Supervision page for more information.
To reduce our carbon footprint and to increase safety during the global pandemic, Hidden Valley School has moved to litter less lunches. Please consider this when creating lunches for your child. He/she will be required to bring home any food/drink that he has not finished.
Lunchroom students are not permitted to leave the school grounds with anyone other than a parent unless the office receives written permission. Parents need to sign out their children if they usually stay for lunch. These guidelines have been designed to ensure a safe and secure place for students to have lunch.
Students who wish to stay for lunch, but who are not registered for the lunchroom program, may pay a drop-in fee of $5. Please advise the office in advance if your child will stay for lunch and the fee will be applied to your MyCBE account.
Children who go home for lunch regularly are to return to the school through the front doors, just prior to the bell ringing.
Spirit Days
Spirit Days are to celebrate our school as a whole and all of the amazing students that make it such a great place to learn and grow. Spirit Days help build school and community spirit. Students are encouraged to wear their school shirts, or alternately a blue shirt, as a show of school spirit.
Allergies
At Hidden Valley School, we have a number of children with severe allergies, especially to peanuts and other nuts. To minimize exposure, we prefer if you send lunches and snacks that do not contain peanut butter or nuts. Kindergarten students are not allowed to bring any snack that contains peanut butter or nuts. Read more on our Illness & Medical page.
Home-Packed Lunch Tips for Parents
Lunch is an important part of your child’s day at school. Here are some tips to help you provide a lunch that is safe and nutritious with less waste.
Food Safety
- Keep cold food cold by using an insulated lunch bag and 1-2 ice packs.
- Keep hot food hot by using an insulated container. Preheat your container with boiling water before adding hot food. Microwave ovens are not available for elementary students.
- Pack non-perishables, such as granola bars and whole fruit, that can be kept at room temperature.
- Most CBE schools are nut-aware, please check with your child’s teacher for more information on nut allergies and other allergies in your child’s classroom.
Help Reduce Waste
- Bring a reusable water bottle.
- Pack just enough for a child to eat during lunch.
- Many schools participate in “boomerang lunches” (pack in/pack out), where all leftover items are returned home.
Tip: Pack a sealable bag or container labeled ‘garbage’ for uneaten food or open containers to avoid mess in the lunch bag.
In 2024, ten CBE schools participated in a waste audit conducted by Green Calgary. Here are a few suggestions from the audit to help minimize waste produced by packed lunches:
- Send less selections of food. Younger children have difficulty deciding what to eat when there is a lot of choice and sometimes end up not eating.
- When possible, use reusable containers for foods such as crackers and cut up fruits or vegetables.
Other Tips
- Make sure your child can open all packages by themselves.
- Involve your child in packing their lunch. Children involved in food preparation may be more likely to try new foods and eat what is packed, minimizing food waste.
- Aim to include a food from each food group – lean proteins, whole grains, and fruits and vegetables should be eaten daily (as per Canada’s Food Guide 2019).
- Some items, such as sandwiches, can be made ahead and frozen to save time. Note that some fillings such as fresh vegetables do not freeze well.
- Designate a shelf in the fridge/pantry at home for lunch items. This may help make packing lunches quicker and encourage independence for children packing their own lunches.
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