My ravenous child is only allowed fruit at snack time. I am furious.

[Avocadoes]

My 4 year old DD started Reception class last week. She seems very happy but also very hungry. She is not a great breakfast eater, no matter how hard I try, so at home she used to get a mid morning plate of toast to boost her energy. At school her mid morning snack must be fruit and nothing else. Is that normal?

On her first day I sent her in with sliced apple and raisens. She ate them all, ate all her lunch, but still came home at 3.30pm starving. She then consumed two slices of toast and ate three large plates of spag bol at dinner time.

The next day I put dry cereal (Raisen Wheats) in her snack box to give her some carbs. She came home and told me the teacher had told her she wasn't allowed to eat it. She was very embarrassed about this.

When I dropped her off on the third day I asked the teacher what I could give her to fill her up mid morning. The teacher said it had to be fresh fruit or veg.

AIBU to think a growing child should be allowed a proper energy boost mid morning? I am not suggesting chocolate or crisps, but a health bar, or crackers, or dry cereal should surely be allowed.

Same at our school too. I find dried fruit fills them up more than fresh. They do adjust, my dd now eats a larger breakfast and lunch than she used to.

Absolutely normal. No point in you being furious. Your daughter will have to get used to eating a proper breakfast, just like every other school child.

The previous government imposed lots of rules regarding what schools are allowed some schools are very strict as are some parents.

perfectly normal.

add in some extra fruit.

and its normal for littles to be 'starving mummy' after a long day at school as well just be ready with a healthy snack as they come out of the doors.

fwiw, my pockets are stuffed with cereal bars, oatcakes etc on the morning school run so that I can steadily feed the dc right up to the bell if they've been slow at breakfast etc

It's only 3 hours from the beginning of school to lunch time - sh won't starve in that time!

Gosh, I really didn't expect this to be normal. I guess I was remembering my school days when every child ate what they wanted at break time. In fact the school used to sell us hot pasties.

Its all very well saying she will have to learn to eat a proper breakfast, but I have some sympathy with her on this point. I have never, ever been able to eat within an hour of waking. It just can't digest until my stomach has woken up. She may take after me.

I don't understand why an oat cake or rice cake couldn't be consistent with a healthy eating policy.

Thanks for all your tips though. Much appreciated.

My dd used to be exactly the same re breakfast but she adjusted

dd1 is 10 and still doesnt eat much breakfast. but she survives. i am lucky if she eats one slice of toast in the morning.

The issue isn't that she is only allowed fruit at school it is that she doesn't eat a substantial enough breakfast.

Can you encourage her to eat more at breakfast- that is the time to get the carbs in. A child who has had a good breakfast will manage fine on fruit until lunch.

Blimey i send DD1 in with a jam sandwich for break time and no one has said anything. Will they call social services?

My dd was never able to adjust to eating breakfast. Otoh she never really came to any harm from being hungry until lunch time.

Because a rice cake can be stuffed full of salt or sugar. Even if the school stated plain rice cakes there would still be people who took the piss. Oat Cakes could be covered with chocolate etc. etc.

Ear - I don't get that logic. A strawberry/apple/banana/raisen could be dipped in chocolate just as easily as an oat cake. Plain fruit or plain oat/rice cake would be no more open to abuse than the current policy.

Why not get her up a bit earlier and offer something different for breakfast. Poached egg? Then a breaktime banana. Job done.

So schools want small children eating plenty of sugar at break times but no carbs?

So they are both ignorant and unnecessarily bossy.

And small children have to adjust to strict and pointless rules because school being flexible enough to treat them as individuals is too much to ask.

Lovely.

Will never inflict the English state system on my children. Is there any learning mixed up with all the dysfunction?

Give her a banana for her snack.
Agree with others that she will have to get used to eating a breakfast.

I don't make the rules Avocadoes! As spidookly says - schools are about pointless rules and breaking children's spirits so they can go work in pointless jobs and buy pointless shit for the rest of their lives.

She could have a banana? That's filling. Chopped veg can also be very filling.

I bet you could get a doctor to write a note saying she needs complex carbs and not just simple sugars mid-morning.

GGrrrrr dont get me started on what the school dictates children eat at break time, while the teachers have choc hob nobs in the staffroom.

My eldest Ds takes a small kit kat in an quickly stuffs it dwon him in the locker room.
They are allowed to take 'cerealbars' in which are higher in fat and sugar than a small kit kat.

Bananas are full of carbs as are all fruits really (fruit sugars).

She will adjust, I am sure . And who knows, she may even start to have more of a breakfast...

Oh, ffs. Yes of course telling children they have to eat a banana rather than a mars bar is an infringement of their human rights, will break their spirits and cause major dysfunction.

You exercise your right to let your child eat Penguin biscuts whenever they want- how DARE schools try to impose pointless rules like getting children to eat healthy food? How very dare they?

Seeker - I never suggested a penguin bar. I suggested rice cake, oat cake or dried cereal. Why so aggressive? It just seems an pointlessly inflexible rule.