Every school day I sit down for lunch from 12-12:24. Also, every school day after lunch I am still hungry. This occurs every day with me and other people that I talk to at my table. Most lunches at the minimum need the main food that they serve, and a fruit or juice. They also have optional milk and sometimes have an optional side to go with the main food. The main food is never enough for me to be full. The most filling thing they serve would probably have to be the popcorn chicken bowl, however, most of the meals they serve come in small portions. My friends and I sometimes find ourselves asking people who pack for an extra lunch because they can use their code since they pack.
They do have pizza every day, but the pizza that they serve is not made well. The cheese falls off, and the tomato sauce has chunks of tomato in it. Also, one time I found a bone in my pizza crust and I don’t know how that is possible. They have a chicken sandwich and cheeseburger line, but they never seem to fill me up because they are so small in portions. I usually get the chicken sandwich and put hot sauce that the school provides on it. The cheeseburger I never get because it is drenched in grease and has no flavor. The school also provides snacks at the snack bar located in the cafeteria that cost money. They sell snacks like chips and cookies, but they don’t sell anything that is an actual meal that will fill you up. You can also get a second lunch, however, it costs money. Yes, you can get an extra lunch, pack a lunch, or get something from the snack bar, but they all cost money and no one wants to spend extra money every day.
If you don’t eat enough it can cause brain fog, which is not being able to concentrate and pay attention. According to a study from Boston College, 28% of fourth grade students reported that they arrived at school hungry. Forty-one percent said they “sometimes” did. Just under one-third (31%) reported that they “never” arrived at school hungry. Frequent hunger was a somewhat bigger problem in eighth grade, with 33% of students reporting that they arrived at school hungry “every day or almost every day.” Forty two percent of reporting that they did so “sometimes.” Only 25% said they “never” arrived at school hungry.
There was a direct relationship between the frequency of arriving at school hungry and average achievement in both grades and subjects. For example, in fourth grade science (Exhibit 10.6), students arriving at school hungry “every day or almost day” had an average score of 478, compared with 497 for students who did so “sometimes” and 504 for students who “never” did. So from this we can see that many students are hungry throughout the school day. It’s hard enough to sit around in a chair for six and a half hours, so all I’m asking is for our school to increase the quality and quantity of what they serve for lunch if they want our students to meet their full potential at school.
