Breakfast Ideas for Kindergartner

It is importatn for him to eat breakfast, especially since he is now going to school. When I was a substitute teacher I could always tell when the children ate healthy breakfasts and when they either didn't eat at all or ate something full of sugar, as they always couldn't concentrate after noon.

If you are in arush, a simple smoothie made from Almond Milk, yogurt, bananas, blueberries, flax seed and a teaspoon of coconut oil will give him lots of nutrients. Protein is great in the morning so if you could do eggs or almond butter on toast (more nutritious than peanut butter)or even quinoa cereal which is loaded with protein!

Check out our website, www.bellysprout.com, as we will offer meal ideas, information on health and nutrition!

Good luck,
C. Funk
www.bellysprout.com

Try to feed him solid food - drinks are fine when you are in a hurry but taste buds and eating habits are formed early in life, give him the best start. The smoothies below however are a good meal replacement. Note: you may need to start eating breakfast too in order to get him on board. Here are some of my kids favorites;
Keeping in mind, every meal should have a lean protein, carbohydrate (fruit/veggie is best) and a healthy fat..

Turkey bacon (we buy Trader Joes Nitrate/Nitrite free)
Plain yogurt w/fresh blueberries or strawberries
slivered almonds (just a few - any nut will do)
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Fruit Smoothie
many variations here so if you don't like something in it, use something else, also if you are just making it for him, you'll make it smaller
about a cup of milk (almond, soy, cow, etc..)
1/2 cup - 1 cup of plain yogurt
cup of frozen berries - we use strawberries or blueberries or both
1 banana
You could stop here or add a little more...
about 2 tablespoons of ground flax seed (nutty flavor, does not taste bad at all - great to use in smoothies, muffins, pancakes)
handful of almonds
This smoothie will give him a great start to the day and it's a cinch to make. When I have extra I pour it in to popsicle molds for a cool treat. (don't save the extra in the fridge if you used the flaxseed, it takes on a weird texture - in my opinion).
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Whole grain pancakes (you can make the batter the night before, then just use what you want) for extra flavor and health I had cinnamon and ground flaxseed.
I'll slice the pancakes once lengthwise so they have about 4 strips, I pour a little bit of syrup in to a paper muffin tin then they dip and eat, it makes it more fun, plus they don't go overboard on the syrup, I do the same with french toast. On the side I'll serve turkey bacon or chicken sausage and fruit and sometimes yogurt.
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Strawberry waffles (Kashi Go Lean Strawberry Flax) with peanut butter on top or strawberry jam.
Side of fruit - usually strawberries and a banana or orange and apple, etc..
Turkey bacon or chicken sausage
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Protein Smoothie
2 tablespoons of protein powder
2 cups of milk
1 cup of frozen strawberries
1/2 cup of frozen blueberries
handful of cashews
blend and enjoy (you can eat the nuts on the side if you prefer)
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Breakfast sandwich
scrambled or fried egg
bread of your choice (ww eng. muffin or pita works nice)
cheese
turkey bacon
on the side apple and a few almonds or cashews
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On Sunday's (not every Sunday)I try to make zuchini or pumpkin muffins (I make them quite healthy but they are good), put them in to freezer bags and just take them out as you need them, these are great for a quick breakfast - I'll do the muffin a lean meat and maybe a yogurt.
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After reading another response I had to add hard boiled eggs - I forgot how much we eat these! My kids love the white. We buy the organic with omega 3 added. Make sure your little guy is getting plenty of Omega 3 - best to have him on fish oil if he isn't already, you can buy flavored chewables - my kids love them.
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There are a few ideas for you. These food ideas work for pre K, kindergarten all the way up to adult. I never feed my kids "special kid food" we all eat the same thing. I may use cookie cutters or fun plates to make it more fun but what I eat they eat. If I sit down with a plate of raw veggies, what do you think they want? What I'm having of course! LOL! I was never big on breakfast either until I had kids. Now I sit down with them at every meal and we eat together. I know breakfast can be tough when you either aren't hungry or are in a hurry, but as you already know, it really is very important.

Also, let him help if you think that will get him to eat. My kids love adding all the ingredients to the blender for their smoothies or mixing the pancake batter. They also enjoy setting the table. They get their cups with ice water, napkins, silverware and vitamins out while I'm prepping everything else.

Hope this helps. If nothing I listed suits your taste, email me directly with what you guys like and I'll give some other suggestions.
Best wishes,
M.

I totally understand not feeling ready to eat right after getting up but having a PROTEIN filled breakfast before school is vital. I'm a teacher and I can easily pick out the students who didn't eat breakfast every day. Try boiled eggs (you can make them ahead of time and they are super cheap!), toast with peanut butter (& jelly if too dry), oatmeal with fruit he can mix in, yogurt, bananas, healthier cereals (Life, Cheerios, etc.), Trader Joes has whole grain frozen waffles I think, etc. It's all in the protein. Stay away from sugar packed items. You can always pack him a healthy snack for his morning recess too but it's soooo important to have something before school. Thanks for being so on top of it... Your son's teacher will thank you! hehe

My daughter is like that and still is.
Its usually good to give them something "protein" in the morning. (if something is too 'sugary' it makes them tired afterward, and does not keep the blood sugar levels consistent). But some kids, well, anything they will eat is fine.

I give my girl a protein breakfast bar, or yogurt, or a deviled egg (which she likes), or a PB&J sandwich on whole grain bread. That is all my girl will take, in the morning. Otherwise it is moot, getting her to eat before school. AND, I prepare these things the night before, so I don't have to rush around in the morning and she can sleep in a little later that way too.

And I also send my girl to school with a healthy snack& water... which her school allows. Kids need it. Its a long day for them, to just make due with school lunch, which many kids do not always eat, nor fully.

ALso inquire if his school serves breakfast? My daughter's school does, and the parents can eat too. Many kids arrive at school early, to eat breakfast at the school with their Parents. The parents pay for their portion. And the kids have their meal accounts.

Good luck, I know its tricky,
Susan

Hi, J.! I have a similar kindergartner! She has 3 things usually, even when she says she'd not hungry! First she has her Juice Plus gummy bear vitamins. Then she will have a yogurt. And then she'll have either a whole grain bagel with smashed fruit and cream cheese OR pancakes or french toast that I make ahead of time. I put fresh ground carrots in the pancake and french toast mixture along with a mixture of almonds, pumpkin seeds and sunflower seeds that I grind up into a "flour." I am going to post the recipe on my website really soon (www.findthefun.org) with videos on how to prepare a large batch ahead of time. You can also add blueberries, strawberries, etc. For Halloween I put either the carrots or pumpkin in there and push organic dark chocolate chips into them to make a jack o lantern, or just put them in a mickey mouse shape!

But my daughter is always interested in anything that involves whip cream or syrup! I just pop them in the toaster from the freezer and it's an incredibly nutritious delicious breakfast. Sometimes I also add yogurt to the recipe. I should have this video up there by the end of September. I have a crazy few weeks before I can get to it, but it will be there soon. But if you don't want to wait, just add these things to your regular pancake mix. I use an organic non-gluten or whole grain mix to start. I just add the carrot puree, yogurt and almond/sunflowerseed/pumpkinseed flour or regular flour until the batter looks the way it should again. They cook up perfect!

My 2 year old (and his father) can't resist pumpkin pudding. The recipe is on the Libby's website, but essentially you make pumpkin pie filling with less sugar and bake it in a pan instead of a piecrust. The pumpkin counts as a veggie and it also has some milk and eggs in it. My grocery store displays the canned pumpkin with the baking stuff - not in with the canned vegetables.

My son was in kindergarten last year. I found that between getting him up, dressed and ready to go breakfast was an on the go thing. His favorite is the french toast from the weekend (I always make extra and put it in the freezer). My on-the-go idea was to just barely defrost the french toast and then cut it into bite sized squares. Then I take the squares and put them on the wooden shis-ka-bob (sp?) sticks. I usually alternate french toast with sausage or ham (just for a little protein). Heat the whole thing up right before leaving add a few slices of orange or apple and a glass of milk and we are in the car. He eats while we drive to school. I also make breakfast sandwiches that he eats in the car (bread or muffin, egg and bacon). I have found that he can sleep in a little later and he still eats breakfast. Hope this helps, also remember to pack a good snack for morning recess (fruit, cheerios, yogurt etc..). If he doesn't eat a big breakfast the school will have a snack in the morning and hopefully he'll be more hungry by then! Good luck!