How do I get my child to eat her packed lunch?

[missmoopy]

My dd (almost 6) takes packed lunches to school and most days eat very little of it. She likes the food I pack her, she comes home starving and grumpy but won't eat her packed sodding lunch!!
She says she "doesn't have time" as she is a slow eater.
Any bright ideas because I am sick of throwing food away and sick of grumpy, hungry child syndrome at 3.15!!

Can you change things to make them quicker to eat. Although dd (also almost 6) eats everything I have given her she moans if things take too long to eat.

I give her a round of sandwiches, then fruit - which she asks for cut up stuff like strawberries which are apparently quicker to eat and a frube.

She used to have a salad veg as well but have agreed to leave it out for quickness and this week we have trialled not having a carton of drink but her drinking all the water she has in her water bottle during the day instead. Am a bit dubious about this one as she doesn't drink enough but we're seeing how it goes !

Maybe ask her what would speed it up.

DD3 (6) finishes hers on the way home, it is a short walk, but the food has usually kicked in by the time we get home.

With DD1, I threatened to move her to hot dinners if she didn't start eating her packed, and it worked like a treat.

Escorchio - for us, dd wants school dinners as she says they are quicker to eat so she is allowed them once a week. (I don't personally believe they are as good for her as a healthy pack lunch so hence why she's not allowed them more often !).

Tried the hot dinners threat! Works for a day or two at most.

We live next to her school so she alwys eats when gets in BUT I want her to eat at school, at lunchtime.

She has a ham sandwich, raisins, yoghurt and a drink - can't think of any way to speed it up. She used to take houmous wrap but was the same. She is a veeeerrrrryyyy sllloooowwwwww eater!

You obviously haven't carried out the threat! If it only works for 2 days then you book her in for a school meal on the 3rd day.

Pisces, thats very true - I haven't. She's a very fussy eater and would eat nothing if I made her have school meals. But I may well have to do it soon...

zapo, sandwiches already crust free and in little squares. Little oik.

I expect that she knows that you don't mean it. Call her bluff.

Why not swap her on to school lunches? They're not that bad nowadays.

pisces, very true. bluff does need called.

framey, she is fussiest eater in world. would eat less.