Packed lunch untouched two days in a row.

[OnaPromise]

DD started school and has had her first two full days this week. Yesterday she ate barely anything and today really nothing of her packed lunch. Is this normal? Will it get better? School dinners instead perhaps?

Anyway it has annoyed/worried me today and I did exactly the wrong thing and had a go at her about it.

Did you ask her why she didn't eat it?

Let the school know, they will pass on msg to DL (assuming you have dinner ladies). We wouldn't let the under y4s go without checking they seemed to have eaten.

What did she say when you asked why she didn't eat it?

How is she in herself? I'd have a chat with her and make sure she's ok.

It's not unusual for new starters to take a couple of days to get used to eating at school. It may be..

She can't undo her sandwiches and doesn't want to ask anyone to help her (or doesn't know who to ask).

She doesn't like what you've done for her, or it's not the same as her friends are having.

They don't get much time to eat and she runs out of time, or she'd rather play than eat!

I used to teach a little girl who refused to eat and drink at school. It turned out she didn't like the school loos and decided if she didn't eat or drink she wouldn't need to use them.

If you can't get to the bottom of it with her have a word with her teacher who will pass a message to the dinner ladies.

thanks all. I asked her (calmly) and she said she was too busy playing 'I spy' with a new friend. This is good news, I suppose! But I'll let the teacher know if it carries on as you have suggested.

Thought as much. The lunch room tends to be chaotic and overwhelming for smallies. When I was on lunch supervision for the infants I spent the entire time being told random stories by overexcited little ones and saying "That's lovely/great/so exciting now eat your lunch!" With time they learn to inhale gobble the food as fast as possible before starting on their oh so important never ending stories. Hold off on telling the teacher for a while they tend to start cracking down on this later in the term when the children are more settled.

I worked as DL and the Little Ones barely got any playtime they spent so long eating. We checked everyone's plate or lunchbox. But every school is different.