Back-to-School Breakfasts and Lunches

Seems hard to believe, but mid-summer is not too early to begin thinking about starting the school year off right with a great event in honor of your school's faculty and staff. It will take a lot of hands to make short work of a big affair so begin recruiting in mid-summer for parent volunteers to assist at the event and start seeking donations or discounted items from local businesses since many require a formal letter and approval from their corporate offices.

Need some ideas for exciting events to start your year off right and show your school that its parents are behind them 100%? Take a look at these:

1. Back-to-School Barbecue: Bring out the grills, set up some tables, and have a simple yet delicious outdoor meal for the staff during the initial workdays or after school. Serve traditional fare such as barbecue, ribs, burgers, and hotdogs or get fancy with chicken and sausage kabobs, grilled vegetables, and shrimp.

2. Back-to-School Breakfast: This can be as simple or as complicated as you are willing to make it. Simple might include a continental breakfast buffet with bagels, muffins, donuts, fresh fruit, and the usual breakfast beverages. You might also bring in your waffle irons and pancake griddles and serve up freshly made breakfast items. Have parents bring in their best breakfast casseroles and muffins to complete the meal. Go healthy with fresh fruit smoothies.

3. Lunchtime Buffet: The beginning of the school year is hectic and not all teachers want to feel obligated to attend events when they have other work to do. Keep it simple and unobtrusive by setting up a simple sandwich buffet in the staff lunchroom. Offer healthy breads, assorted cheeses, an interesting assortment of condiments, fruit kabobs, and individual desserts that teachers can grab on the go to enjoy at their convenience. A healthy alternative might be to offer a great salad bar.

4. Burrito/Taco Bar: This is an easy yet tasty meal to prepare. Prepare chicken or beef in advance. Offer fresh toppings, sour cream, salsa, tortillas, taco shells, and grated cheese. This is a simple, popular choice that can be set up easily. Reheat the meat as needed and heat the tortillas. Everything else simply needs to remain chilled until mealtime.

Pizza bar, Asian-inspired meals, French cafe, Italian ristorante - pick a theme and run with it. A theme will actually make the ideas flow more readily and will impress the school staff to no end. It's amazing what a little thing like a nice meal will did to set the tone for a productive school year. It's a kind gesture that simply reiterates that fact that we parents appreciate the people who devote their lives to teaching our children. Enjoy!