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Kids who turn up their noses at cafeteria food have another choice.

Evos offers a Healthy School Lunch program at some public and private schools in Hillsborough and Pinellas counties.  The meals cost between $5 and $6 and the restaurant chain donates a portion of each lunchbox sale back to the student’s school.

The entrees include baked chicken strips, chicken wraps, soy burgers, and cheeseburgers and hotdogs that are hormone and antibiotic-free.

Here is the list of schools that are taking part already.  If you’re interested in having your child’s school added to the list, go to www.evoslunchroom.com.

Participating Schools:
Christ the King
Academy at the Lakes
St. John’s Greek Orthodox Day School
Montessori Children’s House
AT. Jones Academy
Hand In Hand Academy
Montessori House Day School
Montessori Preperatory
Montessori Academy of Temple Terrace
Montessori Academy of New Tampa
Montessori Academy of Tampa Bay
Congregation Shaarri Zedek Preschool
The Goddard School

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A friend of mine up north finally thought she had won the battle against head lice.  All summer, her kids could not invite friends over as she made sure the little bugs were gone for good.  Then the bad news: she spotted one on her youngest boy. 

Sound familiar?  Here are some tips to help stop the spread, and also why one expert says there’s no need to pull your kids out of school.

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I went grocery shopping last week and as I got out of the car, I saw a former neighbor with his two kids.  Five years ago, he had everything.  Then, in rapid succession, he got divorced, got cancer, lost his job and lost his house.  As we went into the store together, we parted ways and I thought about how quickly life can change.

Millions of people who used to have good jobs and happy homes are hurting now.  And millions have to use food stamps or turn to food banks to get the most basic necessities to feed their families. 

One woman’s efforts just ensured 100,000 hungry people in our area would get a meal.

Northwestern Mutual Foundation named Tampa financial representative Melissa Powell its outstanding volunteer of the year.  The company gave $25,000 to Feeding America Tampa Bay, where Powell has been a board member for seven years.  The money will pay for 100,000 meals.

“We have about 600 agencies that work with Feeding America in the Hillsborough-Pinellas County area, including soup kitchens, Metropolitan Ministries, the kids’ café where we feed kids and the backpack program where we send kids home with food for the weekend,” Powell said. “We have 18 million pounds of food that went out last year.  That impacted a half-million people in our community and the need is even greater.  It’s twice that.”

Powell, 45, has a full-time job and is the mother of three boys, Joshua, 11, Jackson, 9, and Jarrett, 6.  I asked her how she finds time to also volunteer. “Just go do it,” she said.  “Put it on your calendar to pick up the phone and call a charity.  See what tugs at your heart. There are a lot of things that need manpower and brain power.”

Powell is teaching her kids to make a difference, too.  Her boys are in Cub Scouts, and two years ago her son asked the Council if the local Cub Scouts troops’ food drive could go toward Feeding America.  They put 700 paper bags in mailboxes, and collected 2,500 pounds of food.  Now, all Cub Scouts troops are donating to the same cause.

“It’s not the guy on the street corner begging for food. It’s somebody who is at church, somebody who has lost their assistance, somebody who just needs help after having a bad time (that benefits),” Powell said.

She told one story about a caregiver at a group home who started using Feeding America Tampa Bay’s services a few years ago, and is now saving $1,500 a month on her food bills. “That’s $1,500 she can now use for the kids, for soccer lessons, violin lessons, field trips.  She took them to see Tallahassee. That’s huge, because if you can’t take care of the most basic needs, everything else falls to the side. It brought tears to my eyes.”

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It’s a big day for parents in Pinellas and Hillsborough counties who saw their children off to school this morning for the first day of the 2010-2011 school year. Guest blogger Jeff Houck writes about sending his 15-year-old son, Brian, off for another year of high school.

My son Brian went back to school today. It’s 10th grade, which is not so nerve-wracking as ninth grade, but enough to make me anxious and unable to catch a full breath at the thoughts of another year of pushing and prodding and guiding him through the school year.

When he, his mother and I went to orientation last week, it was apparent how much the summer had changed him. Friends and classmates gawked at his height. (Eyeballing it, he looks as if he tacked on a couple inches.)

Girls squealed and pointed and giggled. Teachers marveled at the growth spurt. It was good to see the surprise my wife and I experienced at home all summer become manifest in other people’s expressions.

Last night, I asked if he had everything ready to go. He insisted that he did.

“I packed my gum and my earbuds…”

Not exactly what I was hoping my young student would say.

“Yes, father,” the fantasy would say to me. “I read all of my summer books. I have labeled all my school supplies. My backpack is ready, I am well-fed and immaculately healthy. I cannot wait for the challenge of cramming more knowledge into my skull.”

Okay, that’s a work of fiction no parent would believe - or hope for. Still, I’d like there to be more priortization than gum and iPods.

Which brings us to this morning.

There he is in his new Michael Jordan shirt with his friends Domenick and Shaun. They’re about to head to the bus stop down the street.

Would you believe the kid on the left got up at 4:45 a.m.?

Would you believe he ran a mile on the treadmill before breakfast?

Yeah. Summer changed the boy alright.

I insist on taking these photos every year. Mostly because I cannot believe how fast they fly by. And, on cue, he insists every year that he’s barely tolerating our tradition.

This was last year’s:

That was his friend, Gabe.

That was the first year of the Dark Walk To The Bus Stop.

It was less hospitable for photo taking, but I managed.

Improvise, adapt, overcome.

Eighth grade.

He wanted that photo shot before his friends Ketchie and Derek walked up.

Seventh grade.

That year, he walked with Robbie to the bus stop.

And so on.

Next year? He’ll probably be driving then.

And I’ll be fainting on the front lawn.

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As hundreds of thousands of students head back to school this week, police are monitoring school zones to make sure drivers stay within the posted speed limits.  Speeding carries the following fines:

  1-9 mph over the speed limit = $156.00
  10-14 mph over the speed limit = $306.00
  15-19 mph over the speed limit = $406.00
  20-29 mph over the speed limit = $456.00
  Over 30 mph = court appearance

Also, officers are patrolling bus stops to drivers are following warning lights and stop signals by school buses. Drivers must come to a stop behind the school bus when the stop signals are activated and the stop arm is extended.
Drivers must stop if coming from the opposite direction unless there is a raised median separating the two directions of travel.

If you don’t stop, you could face a $271.00 fine.

Officers will also be enforcing pedestrian safety including violating the right of way of a pedestrian in a crosswalk.

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I asked this question on Twitter, “What’s the worst part of going back to school?” Almost immediately, a mom replied, “Having to make two lunches every day.”

So I asked my friends on Facebook for some homemade school lunch suggestions other than PB&J.  Here are their ideas:

•  Cucumber and cheese sandwiches

•  Tuna and cheese wraps

•  Turkey-wrapped cheese sticks

•  Turkey and/or ham sandwiches

•  Mac & cheese

•  Mini-ravioli

•  Soup

•  Chicken nuggets

•  Cereal

•  Bagel flats and cream cheese

•  Fresh fruit or fruit cup

•  Carrot sticks, pepper strips or other veggies

•  Yogurt and granola

•  Go-gurt

•  Hummus and pretzels

•  Applesauce

•  Pudding

•  String cheese

•  Chips

•  Juice box or water

Parents Magazine has a list of forty more ideas, including pasta salad, veggie pizza and hard-boiled eggs. Check them out on www.parents.com. And don’t forget to use a cold pack or thermos!

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When you pick up your child from school, day care or camp, do you ask, “What did you do today?” 

You shouldn’t.

Laura Olson, vice president for education at Kiddie Academy and a child care expert with almost 20 years experience in education, put together this list of Do’s and Don’ts to help maximize your time in the car with your kids.

The Do’s:

Do take advantage of learning opportunities. When you are stopped at a red light, count the number of cars that pass by or search for a certain color car. You can also engage your children by having them guess where people in their cars are going, and make up stories based on what they see happening around them. 

Do pack a snack. If your child has been at school all day, bring snack if you have a commute longer than 15 minutes. Something as simple as apple slices and water will help stave off hunger and buy you some time to make dinner once you arrive home.  Since we’re in Florida, you may want to pack everything in a little cooler to keep it fresh.

Do make them comfortable. For younger children having something they can snuggle with, such as a favorite blanket or stuffed animal, can help them get comfortable and unwind during the ride.

Do have structure.  “Kids love to know what’s going to happen next,” Olson said.  “If you can prepare them ahead of time, that will help you get through the day, too.”

Do let them lead the conversation. “You can learn a great deal about your child’s likes and dislikes, and probably learn more than you want to about their friends and their families,” Olson laughed.

Do know their personality.  “My little one is willing to talk from the moment she wakes up until she goes to sleep.  But my older girl is not as verbal,” Olson said.  Follow their cues during your ride home.

The Don’ts:

Don’t force the issue if your child isn’t being talkative. Sometimes children need time to decompress after being around other kids and teachers all day, or like to relax in a calm environment before school.

Don’t always listen to the news. Occasionally playing music that the child likes, such as the Wiggles, Kidz Bop or the Jonas Brothers, can help them chill out after school. If you give them headphones, make sure they don’t have the volume turned up too high, which could cause hearing damage.

Don’t always refuse games. “It’s not good for our kids to be in front of a Nintendo DS or handheld computer game for a long period of time,” Olson said “But if that’s their way to be by themselves after being with 30 loud children, that’s fine for 15 minutes while you’re commuting.”

Don’t just ask, “What did you do today?” Find out from your child’s teachers what they did so you can ask specific questions. “ If you can be more specific, it’s going to help them with their storytelling and language skills,” Olson said.  “What book did you read?  What was your favorite part of the story?  What was your favorite character?”

Don’t forget to tell them about your day, too. Kids love to know what is going on in your life too: what people you work with, what types of activities are part of your day. This also shows them how to tell stories and helps develop their oral language skills.

 

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I was bursting with pride as my husband and I took our four-year-old, Jay, to his VPK orientation last weekend.  It didn’t matter that it’s at the same day care center that he’s been attending since he was one.  He was a big kid now, a student. 

We saw his classroom and met his teacher.  Then we got handed THE LIST. 

I had no idea parents now have to buy all this stuff.  Plus, from what I hear, we got off lucky.  My co-worker had to even buy tennis balls to go on the bottom of the kids’ chairs so the floors don’t get scuffed.

Here’s what was on our list:

Backpack
Pencil box
Large grip pencils
Glue sticks and white glue bottles
2 packages of crayons
Watercolor paint
Children’s markers

Colored pencils
Box of tissues
Large used T-shirt for painting
Child’s scissors
Family picture
Wallet-size picture of the child
Line writing tablet
Journal Composition notebook

Copy paper (20 lb weight)
Play-doh
Construction paper
Lysol spray
Clorox wipes
Fun box of band-aids
Package of dry-erase markers

Other people had things like baby wipes, paper towels, sandwich bags, and two dozen sharpened pencils.  One list had four specific colors of duo-tang plastic folders with pockets, which sent the parents on a scavenger hunt to five stores before they finally got all the colors needed.

Some schools list their school supply lists on their websites: Hillsborough, Pasco, Pinellas, Polk

Stumped about where to fine an item?  Here are some teacher supply stores you can try The Teaching Store, 8218 West Waters Avenue in Tampa and Lakeshore Learning, 4501 W. Kennedy Blvd in Tampa.

If you’re really desperate, try teacherstoresonline.com.

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