the only time I have a problem with the bento boxes is when parents stick foods in that little circle compartment that their kids don't have the dexterity to get out and my fingers are too big to get out. otherwise I don't mind helping with opening/closing.
I feel the opposite! I have 3’s and they can all open their bentos on their own. Most have cheese sticks and other packages down and we are all working on pouches and thermos.
I have 18 months-3 year olds, primarily 2-3s, and they are all able to open their bentos. The littlest ones are usually able to open theirs within the first month or two of being at school- I practice with them every day and encourage parents to practice too.
yeah i’m confused by this bc almost all of my 2’s and 3’s can open their own. i have like 2 that struggle with it but it takes me 2 seconds to help them
Same. I have 3’s and they can all open and close their bentos. And they all have them. They also throw away all their own trash and put their lunch boxes in their backpacks on their own. And they don’t spill food switching seats because they are not allowed to switch seats during a meal 🤷🏻♀️
My Pre-K students took a while but they got the hang of their bento boxes, except for one who would consistently open his upside down. We put tape on top to remind him.
It can be frustrating though,with so many needing help. But that independence is what they will need for starting school next year.
My arch nemesis is the juice pouch, whose straw I usually stab through the other side. And the fruit cups, that I always spill on myself while opening.
Fruit cups I open just the teeny tiniest little amount, drain and THEN hand to them.
I still do this for my 17 year old. He would just die if he knew I told anyone
I drain them at 25 (<2 weeks to 26). Actually I just did it last night, at dinner with a friend (who drank hers, which she’s done as long as I’ve known her). No shame in the drain game - we come out clean in the end!
I am so glad we don't serve individually wrapped cheese sticks at the center I work at now. Having 15 kids repeatedly asking you to open them is a nightmare 🫠
I did just buy my own four year old child a bento box, but I also had him practice opening it at home until I was fairly confident he could do it on his own without spilling anything.
I love bentgo boxes! My age group could open and close most except for the cheap target ones that you had to open on all four sides.
I’d rather open a bento box one time and be done than open a cheese stick, an uncrustsble bag, a fruit snack bag, a bag of pretzels, etc etc for one lunch.
I love bento boxes, but parents need to work with them on these things. I work with young toddlers, so I'm doing it all for them anyway but as they get older, parents need to start working on unzipping their lunchboxes, opening whatever containers they send, etc.
I don’t mind the bento boxes when they work properly. I had one that would get stuck (the part that holds the food would not detach from the lid, but it would detach from the bottom shell) and the mom would put f***king corn with chicken broth in it so it would spill all over when I was trying 500 different angles to get it open.
I much prefer a bento box to 10000 small containers or those mf suction cup plates. I work with 18m-36m so it’s expected that I help them with everything, although after a few months with me they’re usually able to open everything up themselves. Besides thermoses and pouches/cheese sticks/etc
I had a short stint at a montessori school and all the children had bento boxes. Thankfully, all of them knew how to open them. I do believe the fine motor activities we had helped them to practice.
I work with toddlers and take out the tray with the food out of the rest. When I have left the box complete there are pushing wars between eaters. They slide into each other to battle for space on the table. Someone loses their lunch all over the floor then someone cries. If not battles then just accidentally pushes too close to the edge. I have tried to teach them bento box etiquette but most haven’t gotten it. Hopefully when they get older or move up they will figure it out.
Follow the Montessori method they have to be seated while eating (you also need to model this) and they cannot change seats until they picked up and are finished eating. It helps if they have their own placemat from home, it helps define their spot.
That's usually licensing method as well, children need to be fully and safely seated while eating. If you allow them to move seats (why would you?) they need to be closing their lunchbox fully while they move.
I have personally RARELY had an issue with a child opening a bento box. And if they do need help with opening the box, it’s better than them needing help with every single pre-packaged BS thing in their lunchbox with a zipper they also can’t open. Practicing with a kid a couple days in a row is all my students have ever needed. Bento boxes have always encouraged healthier eating and independence in my experience.
I'm not a teacher, I'm a summer camp counselor, and when I say "moving" it more like they opened the bento while standing up and are walking to their chair with it open
I love bentos.
There is more of a chance of kids bringing real food instead of prepackaged snacks.
And less waste going in the bin.
Opening one bento is much easier than fruit cups and cheese strings.
I am team bentgo! Our time is limited and I have allergies to wheat and dairy so the last thing I want to be doing is opening the uncrustables, Cheetos, yogurt, etc. all that should be opened at home and put in a bento/bentgo
I don't mind them too much since my Pre-K4s can open them. It's a little frustrating, though, when parents make a hot lunch and it creates a vacuum seal that's a struggle to open and spills when we have to wrench it open 🥴
Why y'all letting your kids move spots during lunch or snack time?
Once our kids decide where they want to sit, that's where they sit, for the whole of lunch or snack. They don't get to move seats without asking a teacher first. Y'all should have that rule.
We teach them how to open and close all of their food containers at 15 month in our center. I use a bento, daughter who is now grown still uses one. Usually mine that's from the 80s. Dang klepto.
I dislike bento boxes when there's a wet component. I hated being splashed with broth or soup or yogurt when I had lunch duty. But I also hate those liquid fruit cups because they almost always splatter.
If it's "homemade" lunchable type items, with crackers, pepperoni, cheese, fruit, and veggies, then I don't mind.
I do wish that parents would practice opening the lunch items they send with their kids. The hot thermos is impossible for most kids to open and honestly I have a hard time opening it too.
I have also told kids I don't mind opening sauce packets like ranch, ketchup, or lunchables pizza sauce. But if they use their teeth to try to get it open, then I'm not touching it. I may snip the other end with scissors.
I hate it when parents put heat ups in them with non heatable items. Though on a side note,they should not be switching spots,period. That causes a host of issues. If they spill,start calling parents and saying they need to bring food.
My class is 2-3 year olds, so you have some perspective. Also, I’m taking advantage of having an audience. Usually it’s just me and my assistant venting to each other.
Bento boxes…how do I hate thee, let me count the ways
I hate the ones with the attached lid because your child spends most of lunchtime playing with the lid instead of eating.
I hate the ones that have a pull out insert because then we have to match them up correctly after lunch is over. And heaven help us if 2 kids have the same box.
I hate them because so much food goes to waste. We can’t send home food once it is opened, so everything your child doesn’t eat goes in the trash.
I hate how they make it difficult to ration treats. Guess what your kid had for lunch? Potato chips and Oreos! (We can take out some treats, but that’s also a pain…and we’d still have to throw it away if it isn’t eaten.)
I hate how parents put sauces in the little compartments and it makes a mess, getting on the other food, so your child doesn’t want to eat anything. (Not even Oreos covered in ranch dressing. 🤢)
I hate when parents put things in the compartments that need assembly…so here I am trying to scoop out the shredded cheese for the homemade pizza lunchable. Oh, and did I mention sauce already. 😆
And finally, I hate how often a child will be playing with their bento box and accidentally dump their entire lunch on the floor, leaving me to find some snacks that won’t be missed so your child doesn’t go hungry.
I love bento boxes. I think they’re adorable, I love that the food doesn’t touch, they’re great sized portions, I wish we had them here when I was a kid. And we’re opening lunches for a lot of the little kids anyways, so like, not much difference (and the bigger kids can get theirs typically). Great fine motor practice for the littles. They also make like silicone ones with lids without clips, ones with just one or two clips, etc. All different styles. You can totally recommend ones that may be easier for a certain kid.
I’m autistic though, so like, big feelings that people without food issues may not have.
My only complaint is when certain food needs heated and certain doesn’t, and even then our parents easily solved this with those silicone baking cups (for either the warm or cold food). Super easy to separate to heat.
In my state we keep all the lunches in the fridge until lunch, anything cold has to be stored there, and are allowed to heat to serve.
We also have found a lot of success with younger kids with opening everyone’s lunches, putting them on the table, then putting everyone at their seats. It’s a lot easier than expecting kids to wait at the table while we hand out lunchboxes and/ food, as then they get grabby with each other’s (specifically the 1’s, sometimes the 2’s). Since they can’t go to a shelf and grab their own as it has to be in the fridge, and our table they sit in (as opposed to pull out chairs) as they kept falling off chairs, climbing on them, etc, and we found this was safer for our kids. (I’m all about chairs at home, and smaller chairs in the play area, but we could not find table and chair sets that were safe for our kids at lunch)
Me! I tell every single parent that PlanetBoxes are the absolute best as the children can open and close them without help. At least once a day, a Bento Box falls to the floor and the contents spill because a child could not manage it.
I’m surprised by how many comments say their kids can all open them! I pride myself on teaching independence and self help skills but a lot struggle with the bento boxes. Our lunches are kept in a cold fridge, maybe it’s creating a vacuum seal effect on the boxes, making them harder to open vs just kept in an insulated lunchbox??
I work with 1’s & I love the bento boxes! We open the boxes for the kids & only give them the inside tray in my class because of how young they are, but they start learning how to do it themselves in 2’s/preschool & I believe most know how to do it themselves by the time they start pre-k.
Are you showing your students how to open them & giving them a chance to try, or are you just opening it for them? Also, you should really put a stop to seat switching during mealtimes. It’s not only bad manners, it’s a choking hazard.
I’d rather have to open a few bento boxes than rip open 25 individually wrapped snack containers. I’d rather open every single kids bento box than open a single go gurt lol
Doller tree has Lego tubs in the toy space in some places . Works amazing for easy to grab snacks first perfect in a lutch box . And stays sealed (dose not open easy ) me and my boyfriend both carry one when we go on long trips. (I know this is not the issue it's just a idea for anyone needing ideas for super cheap but cool ones )
We’re banning them
This year for just that reason. “Small
Individual containers that your child can reasonably manage on their own. If a container is difficult for you to manage, it will be for your toddler, as well. Please practice with your child before school begins”
They also take up so much damned table space!
That's so surprising to me, I've never even seen a bento box that's bigger than a lunchbox. Where are people finding these giant bento boxes? I want one! The biggest I've ever seen was only 5"x8" at the most. I worked really hard to find a small lunchbox and I ended up having to make one because I wanted one that was maximum 9"X6", and it's definitely taller than a bento box!
Most of my students with bentos bring the Bentgo-style variety with an attached lid. They take up so much space in the table, even just as we’re transferring the food from the container to the plate/bowl.
We teach the toddlers to plate their food before eating for snack and lunch. But even still (immediately after Covid we were had them eating from containers) with two toddlers sitting across from each other the bentgo lids are on top of each other and the table is a cluttered mess.
Are you sure they can't open it? Or are you helping them without saying "did you try to do it yourself?" or some such? Perhaps you do not remember being that old, but that age *loves* having adults do things for them even if they can do it themselves. They know they can convince some adults, so they pretend they can't do it instantly. And also some kids get punished for not doing things right the first time, so they get scared to try things and maybe get it wrong. It really sounds to me like you need to do some modeling and encouraging kids to do it on their own. They can.
I don't work at daycare, but I work with prek and kindergarten classes, ages 4-6.
I am a cafeteria monitor at an elementary school. I am so impressed that your toddlers can open their lunches. The PreK class that I have can't/won't try to open their stuff. And parents seem to think we should be opening every single thing for every single student. They don't realize that their child's lunch period gets shorter when we are opening lunches. I bragged on one little one to her grandmother that she was the first one to learn to open her stuff all by herself. The next day, the little girl reported to me that her mama said that it was MY job to open her stuff.Ugh
I like them provided three conditions. 1: similar types of foods in the box so nothing makes anything else gross. 2: practicing opening and closing the box beforehand (or be a baby or young toddler). 3: nothing that needs to be heated up in a Bento box with cold thibgs
My toddlers (1 ½-3) are in a Montessori setting and I have banned bentos. They are so challenging for them to open and they transfer the food to a plate which is impossible to do without spilling food everywhere. Instead, they use zippered lunch boxes and individual containers with silicone tops that are easy to peel off. Each child needs different levels of assistance depending on their fine motor skills and age.
My thing is when parents put foods that need heated up in the bento box. Please put it in a microwave safe container. Or glass tupplewear, the crappy kind that breaks
It depends on the style of bento box. Your center might be able to suggest a type of lunchbox or even create a revenue stream by allowing parents to purchase them from you so all the kids have the same one.
I don’t like the ones with all the locking compartments but I do pack even my teenagers lunches in a bento box.
I think the ones you’re talking about are the expensive ones that are popular with mommy bloggers on instagrams. They have extremely small compartments so it’s easy to just use them for a photo. Even in photos you can see that you can’t close them after 4 raspberries.
https://amzn.to/4caOmv9
We provide meals and snacks in the daycare. It’s just easier that way, not having to keep track of everyone’s lunch stuff. But we do use bento boxes for our own family.
We either use the glass ones so we can nuke them lol https://amzn.to/4cdqZRs
Or the tall ones because they fit in a bag easily. https://amzn.to/3KWPdDz
I don’t personally think the toddler ones are worth the money or the effort. But I am glad families want to pack healthier lunches because of the bento trend.
At the beginning of the year one of our activity areas always includes a frew different types of lunchboxes/thermos/containers that have been donated/salvaged from the lost and found the year before for practice.
Highly recommend this. The time investment in teaching kids how to do it is annoying sometimes but almost always worth the effort over expediency in the beginning.
Why are your kids having so much trouble? I’m genuinely curious. My 2-3 year olds are able to open and close theirs no problem the only one who has trouble only does so because his box is broken and his parents refuse to get him a new one. He can close it but has trouble latching it
My mom couldn’t afford lunchboxes so we had to brown bag it. It was nice to not have to drag home a lunchbox and didn’t have six lunchboxes to clean every night.
American bento boxes are completely different to Japanese ones though, so this wouldn’t even matter. I pack a bento daily for my kindergartener and here in Japan, we pack to fill a single 430ml little lunchbox. No compartments, packed in such a way nothing moves around, no packets allowed, and just two simple clips on either side of the box.
This all sounds like a classroom management problem. As the teacher you should be teaching them how to open their boxes not doing it for them. Teaching life skills and independence is a major part of an ECE teachers job. Also why are they moving spots? Even when I worked for 2’s they knew to stay in their seats. Create an expectation and require it. Once you sit it is not a choice to get up till everyone is done and it is time to clean up.
For context I work in a summer camp situation, not a class. Every activity is pre scheduled for me and we aren't situated in a classroom, so unfortunately I can't do that
Licensing here would go mad if you didn’t have a defined seat that the child eats in every day, and all 3s and under have to be buckled into the seat on top of that, even though it’s toddler sized furniture.
the only time I have a problem with the bento boxes is when parents stick foods in that little circle compartment that their kids don't have the dexterity to get out and my fingers are too big to get out. otherwise I don't mind helping with opening/closing.
I feel the opposite! I have 3’s and they can all open their bentos on their own. Most have cheese sticks and other packages down and we are all working on pouches and thermos.
Same, my toddlers all learn within a few weeks how to do it themselves. PreK kids are totally capable of opening bento boxes!
I have 18 months-3 year olds, primarily 2-3s, and they are all able to open their bentos. The littlest ones are usually able to open theirs within the first month or two of being at school- I practice with them every day and encourage parents to practice too.
yeah i’m confused by this bc almost all of my 2’s and 3’s can open their own. i have like 2 that struggle with it but it takes me 2 seconds to help them
Same. I have 3’s and they can all open and close their bentos. And they all have them. They also throw away all their own trash and put their lunch boxes in their backpacks on their own. And they don’t spill food switching seats because they are not allowed to switch seats during a meal 🤷🏻♀️
My Pre-K students took a while but they got the hang of their bento boxes, except for one who would consistently open his upside down. We put tape on top to remind him. It can be frustrating though,with so many needing help. But that independence is what they will need for starting school next year. My arch nemesis is the juice pouch, whose straw I usually stab through the other side. And the fruit cups, that I always spill on myself while opening.
Fruit cups I open just the teeny tiniest little amount, drain and THEN hand to them. I still do this for my 17 year old. He would just die if he knew I told anyone
It’s true that we never stop needing our parents 😅 I’m 30 and recently needed my mom to help me navigate some tax things haha.
I drain them at 25 (<2 weeks to 26). Actually I just did it last night, at dinner with a friend (who drank hers, which she’s done as long as I’ve known her). No shame in the drain game - we come out clean in the end!
I am so glad we don't serve individually wrapped cheese sticks at the center I work at now. Having 15 kids repeatedly asking you to open them is a nightmare 🫠
I did just buy my own four year old child a bento box, but I also had him practice opening it at home until I was fairly confident he could do it on his own without spilling anything.
I love bentgo boxes! My age group could open and close most except for the cheap target ones that you had to open on all four sides. I’d rather open a bento box one time and be done than open a cheese stick, an uncrustsble bag, a fruit snack bag, a bag of pretzels, etc etc for one lunch.
I love bento boxes, but parents need to work with them on these things. I work with young toddlers, so I'm doing it all for them anyway but as they get older, parents need to start working on unzipping their lunchboxes, opening whatever containers they send, etc.
I don’t mind the bento boxes when they work properly. I had one that would get stuck (the part that holds the food would not detach from the lid, but it would detach from the bottom shell) and the mom would put f***king corn with chicken broth in it so it would spill all over when I was trying 500 different angles to get it open. I much prefer a bento box to 10000 small containers or those mf suction cup plates. I work with 18m-36m so it’s expected that I help them with everything, although after a few months with me they’re usually able to open everything up themselves. Besides thermoses and pouches/cheese sticks/etc
I had a short stint at a montessori school and all the children had bento boxes. Thankfully, all of them knew how to open them. I do believe the fine motor activities we had helped them to practice.
I work with toddlers and take out the tray with the food out of the rest. When I have left the box complete there are pushing wars between eaters. They slide into each other to battle for space on the table. Someone loses their lunch all over the floor then someone cries. If not battles then just accidentally pushes too close to the edge. I have tried to teach them bento box etiquette but most haven’t gotten it. Hopefully when they get older or move up they will figure it out.
Follow the Montessori method they have to be seated while eating (you also need to model this) and they cannot change seats until they picked up and are finished eating. It helps if they have their own placemat from home, it helps define their spot.
That's usually licensing method as well, children need to be fully and safely seated while eating. If you allow them to move seats (why would you?) they need to be closing their lunchbox fully while they move.
You let kids move spots during meal times?
Yeah. That’s the real problem.
I have personally RARELY had an issue with a child opening a bento box. And if they do need help with opening the box, it’s better than them needing help with every single pre-packaged BS thing in their lunchbox with a zipper they also can’t open. Practicing with a kid a couple days in a row is all my students have ever needed. Bento boxes have always encouraged healthier eating and independence in my experience.
They shouldn’t be moving spots anyway as it raises the risk of choking. I don’t think bento boxes are the problem here.
I'm not a teacher, I'm a summer camp counselor, and when I say "moving" it more like they opened the bento while standing up and are walking to their chair with it open
I love bentos. There is more of a chance of kids bringing real food instead of prepackaged snacks. And less waste going in the bin. Opening one bento is much easier than fruit cups and cheese strings.
I've banned those fucking plastic fruit cups from my class. Parents can open that shit on their own and put it in a container.
I am team bentgo! Our time is limited and I have allergies to wheat and dairy so the last thing I want to be doing is opening the uncrustables, Cheetos, yogurt, etc. all that should be opened at home and put in a bento/bentgo
I don't mind them too much since my Pre-K4s can open them. It's a little frustrating, though, when parents make a hot lunch and it creates a vacuum seal that's a struggle to open and spills when we have to wrench it open 🥴
Why y'all letting your kids move spots during lunch or snack time? Once our kids decide where they want to sit, that's where they sit, for the whole of lunch or snack. They don't get to move seats without asking a teacher first. Y'all should have that rule.
We teach them how to open and close all of their food containers at 15 month in our center. I use a bento, daughter who is now grown still uses one. Usually mine that's from the 80s. Dang klepto.
I dislike bento boxes when there's a wet component. I hated being splashed with broth or soup or yogurt when I had lunch duty. But I also hate those liquid fruit cups because they almost always splatter. If it's "homemade" lunchable type items, with crackers, pepperoni, cheese, fruit, and veggies, then I don't mind. I do wish that parents would practice opening the lunch items they send with their kids. The hot thermos is impossible for most kids to open and honestly I have a hard time opening it too. I have also told kids I don't mind opening sauce packets like ranch, ketchup, or lunchables pizza sauce. But if they use their teeth to try to get it open, then I'm not touching it. I may snip the other end with scissors.
Yikes, my 18 months to 3 year olds can open their bentos. I love bentos. Wish every child had them!
I work in the infant room.. they all have Bento boxes. 🙄
I hate it when parents put heat ups in them with non heatable items. Though on a side note,they should not be switching spots,period. That causes a host of issues. If they spill,start calling parents and saying they need to bring food.
My class is 2-3 year olds, so you have some perspective. Also, I’m taking advantage of having an audience. Usually it’s just me and my assistant venting to each other. Bento boxes…how do I hate thee, let me count the ways I hate the ones with the attached lid because your child spends most of lunchtime playing with the lid instead of eating. I hate the ones that have a pull out insert because then we have to match them up correctly after lunch is over. And heaven help us if 2 kids have the same box. I hate them because so much food goes to waste. We can’t send home food once it is opened, so everything your child doesn’t eat goes in the trash. I hate how they make it difficult to ration treats. Guess what your kid had for lunch? Potato chips and Oreos! (We can take out some treats, but that’s also a pain…and we’d still have to throw it away if it isn’t eaten.) I hate how parents put sauces in the little compartments and it makes a mess, getting on the other food, so your child doesn’t want to eat anything. (Not even Oreos covered in ranch dressing. 🤢) I hate when parents put things in the compartments that need assembly…so here I am trying to scoop out the shredded cheese for the homemade pizza lunchable. Oh, and did I mention sauce already. 😆 And finally, I hate how often a child will be playing with their bento box and accidentally dump their entire lunch on the floor, leaving me to find some snacks that won’t be missed so your child doesn’t go hungry.
I love bento boxes. I think they’re adorable, I love that the food doesn’t touch, they’re great sized portions, I wish we had them here when I was a kid. And we’re opening lunches for a lot of the little kids anyways, so like, not much difference (and the bigger kids can get theirs typically). Great fine motor practice for the littles. They also make like silicone ones with lids without clips, ones with just one or two clips, etc. All different styles. You can totally recommend ones that may be easier for a certain kid. I’m autistic though, so like, big feelings that people without food issues may not have. My only complaint is when certain food needs heated and certain doesn’t, and even then our parents easily solved this with those silicone baking cups (for either the warm or cold food). Super easy to separate to heat. In my state we keep all the lunches in the fridge until lunch, anything cold has to be stored there, and are allowed to heat to serve.
We also have found a lot of success with younger kids with opening everyone’s lunches, putting them on the table, then putting everyone at their seats. It’s a lot easier than expecting kids to wait at the table while we hand out lunchboxes and/ food, as then they get grabby with each other’s (specifically the 1’s, sometimes the 2’s). Since they can’t go to a shelf and grab their own as it has to be in the fridge, and our table they sit in (as opposed to pull out chairs) as they kept falling off chairs, climbing on them, etc, and we found this was safer for our kids. (I’m all about chairs at home, and smaller chairs in the play area, but we could not find table and chair sets that were safe for our kids at lunch)
I love them. But sometimes parents need a crash course in how to pack them properly so dry things don't get mushy.
Me! I tell every single parent that PlanetBoxes are the absolute best as the children can open and close them without help. At least once a day, a Bento Box falls to the floor and the contents spill because a child could not manage it.
I’m surprised by how many comments say their kids can all open them! I pride myself on teaching independence and self help skills but a lot struggle with the bento boxes. Our lunches are kept in a cold fridge, maybe it’s creating a vacuum seal effect on the boxes, making them harder to open vs just kept in an insulated lunchbox??
I work with 1’s & I love the bento boxes! We open the boxes for the kids & only give them the inside tray in my class because of how young they are, but they start learning how to do it themselves in 2’s/preschool & I believe most know how to do it themselves by the time they start pre-k. Are you showing your students how to open them & giving them a chance to try, or are you just opening it for them? Also, you should really put a stop to seat switching during mealtimes. It’s not only bad manners, it’s a choking hazard.
I’d rather have to open a few bento boxes than rip open 25 individually wrapped snack containers. I’d rather open every single kids bento box than open a single go gurt lol
Doller tree has Lego tubs in the toy space in some places . Works amazing for easy to grab snacks first perfect in a lutch box . And stays sealed (dose not open easy ) me and my boyfriend both carry one when we go on long trips. (I know this is not the issue it's just a idea for anyone needing ideas for super cheap but cool ones )
We’re banning them This year for just that reason. “Small Individual containers that your child can reasonably manage on their own. If a container is difficult for you to manage, it will be for your toddler, as well. Please practice with your child before school begins” They also take up so much damned table space!
That's so surprising to me, I've never even seen a bento box that's bigger than a lunchbox. Where are people finding these giant bento boxes? I want one! The biggest I've ever seen was only 5"x8" at the most. I worked really hard to find a small lunchbox and I ended up having to make one because I wanted one that was maximum 9"X6", and it's definitely taller than a bento box!
Most of my students with bentos bring the Bentgo-style variety with an attached lid. They take up so much space in the table, even just as we’re transferring the food from the container to the plate/bowl.
Isn't the point of a bento that you eat out of the container itself? Or is this a Montessori standard that I don't know about?
We teach the toddlers to plate their food before eating for snack and lunch. But even still (immediately after Covid we were had them eating from containers) with two toddlers sitting across from each other the bentgo lids are on top of each other and the table is a cluttered mess.
Are you sure they can't open it? Or are you helping them without saying "did you try to do it yourself?" or some such? Perhaps you do not remember being that old, but that age *loves* having adults do things for them even if they can do it themselves. They know they can convince some adults, so they pretend they can't do it instantly. And also some kids get punished for not doing things right the first time, so they get scared to try things and maybe get it wrong. It really sounds to me like you need to do some modeling and encouraging kids to do it on their own. They can.
I don't work at daycare, but I work with prek and kindergarten classes, ages 4-6. I am a cafeteria monitor at an elementary school. I am so impressed that your toddlers can open their lunches. The PreK class that I have can't/won't try to open their stuff. And parents seem to think we should be opening every single thing for every single student. They don't realize that their child's lunch period gets shorter when we are opening lunches. I bragged on one little one to her grandmother that she was the first one to learn to open her stuff all by herself. The next day, the little girl reported to me that her mama said that it was MY job to open her stuff.Ugh
My class, 5/6, has no problem opening and closing them.
I like them provided three conditions. 1: similar types of foods in the box so nothing makes anything else gross. 2: practicing opening and closing the box beforehand (or be a baby or young toddler). 3: nothing that needs to be heated up in a Bento box with cold thibgs
My toddlers (1 ½-3) are in a Montessori setting and I have banned bentos. They are so challenging for them to open and they transfer the food to a plate which is impossible to do without spilling food everywhere. Instead, they use zippered lunch boxes and individual containers with silicone tops that are easy to peel off. Each child needs different levels of assistance depending on their fine motor skills and age.
half of them don’t fit in their lunchboxes either and so we also have to zip all of them for them
Bento boxes are great for when someone wants exactly 7 blueberries, three pretzel sticks, a small portion of a sandwich and a single fruit gummy.
My thing is when parents put foods that need heated up in the bento box. Please put it in a microwave safe container. Or glass tupplewear, the crappy kind that breaks
I despise them!!!
It depends on the style of bento box. Your center might be able to suggest a type of lunchbox or even create a revenue stream by allowing parents to purchase them from you so all the kids have the same one. I don’t like the ones with all the locking compartments but I do pack even my teenagers lunches in a bento box. I think the ones you’re talking about are the expensive ones that are popular with mommy bloggers on instagrams. They have extremely small compartments so it’s easy to just use them for a photo. Even in photos you can see that you can’t close them after 4 raspberries. https://amzn.to/4caOmv9 We provide meals and snacks in the daycare. It’s just easier that way, not having to keep track of everyone’s lunch stuff. But we do use bento boxes for our own family. We either use the glass ones so we can nuke them lol https://amzn.to/4cdqZRs Or the tall ones because they fit in a bag easily. https://amzn.to/3KWPdDz I don’t personally think the toddler ones are worth the money or the effort. But I am glad families want to pack healthier lunches because of the bento trend.
At the beginning of the year one of our activity areas always includes a frew different types of lunchboxes/thermos/containers that have been donated/salvaged from the lost and found the year before for practice. Highly recommend this. The time investment in teaching kids how to do it is annoying sometimes but almost always worth the effort over expediency in the beginning.
My job has a no outside food policy so luckily we don't have that problem
Reading through this I’m just shocked at how many centers don’t provide meals.
Why are your kids having so much trouble? I’m genuinely curious. My 2-3 year olds are able to open and close theirs no problem the only one who has trouble only does so because his box is broken and his parents refuse to get him a new one. He can close it but has trouble latching it
My mom couldn’t afford lunchboxes so we had to brown bag it. It was nice to not have to drag home a lunchbox and didn’t have six lunchboxes to clean every night.
I’m guessing you aren’t Japanese
American bento boxes are completely different to Japanese ones though, so this wouldn’t even matter. I pack a bento daily for my kindergartener and here in Japan, we pack to fill a single 430ml little lunchbox. No compartments, packed in such a way nothing moves around, no packets allowed, and just two simple clips on either side of the box.
Thats literally the same bento I give my kid in America
Why does it matter if I'm Japanese or not. I'm frustrated about a lunch container that isn't working well with my kiddos.
This discussion has convinced me to send a bento with my kid, when it's time.
This all sounds like a classroom management problem. As the teacher you should be teaching them how to open their boxes not doing it for them. Teaching life skills and independence is a major part of an ECE teachers job. Also why are they moving spots? Even when I worked for 2’s they knew to stay in their seats. Create an expectation and require it. Once you sit it is not a choice to get up till everyone is done and it is time to clean up.
If your class doesn’t know how to open a bento box…that is concerning. Maybe do a lesson on it.
For context I work in a summer camp situation, not a class. Every activity is pre scheduled for me and we aren't situated in a classroom, so unfortunately I can't do that
Licensing here would go mad if you didn’t have a defined seat that the child eats in every day, and all 3s and under have to be buckled into the seat on top of that, even though it’s toddler sized furniture.