CCSS

R.1, W.2, W.7

School Lunches Around the World

It’s nearly noon and your stomach is rumbling for lunch! Do you grab a slice of pizza from the cafeteria? Unwrap a sandwich from home? Here’s how kids around the globe chow down at school.

Shutterstock.com (All Images)

1- In Japan, you’ll help serve your classmates lunch. While everyone eats—often rice, fish or meat, vegetables, and soup—teachers share lessons about nutrition or manners. And when lunch is over, everyone pitches in to clean up!


2- In France, eating slowly and enjoying your food is important. That’s why a school lunch period can last up to two hours! (In America, it’s closer to 30 minutes.) The extra time is helpful since lunch comes with a fresh salad, cheese, bread, and dessert. 


3- In Brazil, a law says at least 30 percent of school lunch ingredients, like rice, beans, and tomatoes, must come from local family farms. Why? This helps support the country’s many farmers. It also helps kids learn about where their food comes from.


4- In Argentina, many students eat lunch at home. This is because classes take place in either morning or afternoon sessions. A lunchtime favorite? Empanadas. These are fried or baked dough filled with meat, cheese, or vegetables.

WRITE ABOUT IT! 
Choose a country that is not mentioned here, and research what lunchtime looks like for students there. What do they usually eat? Do they eat together in the classroom, in the school cafeteria, or at home? Write a paragraph about it on a separate piece of paper

Skills Sheets (1)
Text-to-Speech