How are school meals beneficial to you?
Save yourself time prepping meals
Save money. Put a little bit of cash back in your wallet.
Support our workers. Your participation in the free meal program helps support our food service program and our workers for the 2022/23 school year.
How are school meals beneficial to your student?
You may be surprised to know that in addition to being delicious, having a school lunch help improve student performance. There’s plenty of research that shows that eating breakfast and lunch is linked with a reduction in nurse visits, improved attendance, and better test scores. Not to mention that children who don’t eat tend to distract the rest of the class, affecting others’ learning experiences, too.
Provides a balanced meal
Students who participate in the school meal programs consume more milk, fruits, and vegetables, and have a better intake of nutrients than nonparticipants
Better focus and retention
74% of kids say school meals help them focus and behave in the classroom.
Improved performance on tests
71% of kids say school meals help their grades.
Fewer disciplinary problems
48% of teachers noticed better disciplinary behavior when students have breakfast.
Better food, better grades
Eating a healthy breakfast in the morning is linked to improved concentration, increased energy, and better test scores.
Good food is good medicine
A body’s immune system is enhanced with overall good nutrition. Students who struggle with hunger are also likely to be sick more often and slower to recover from illness, leading to missed school days. That matters because…
Attendance is important
Research shows that students who attend class more regularly are 20% more likely to graduate from high school.
ALL Downey Unified students can receive a free breakfast & lunch daily.
How does it work?
One free breakfast and one free lunch are covered daily for each DUSD student.* All a student has to do is pick it up and provide their ID number. There’s nothing to lose and everything to gain from grabbing a school meal.
*Please note that any additional food or meals will be charged to their student account and will be expected to be paid at the end of the year.
SOURCES:
- http://bestpractices.nokidhungry.org/programs/school-breakfast/how-school-breakfast-benefits-kids
- http://www.child-encyclopedia.com/sites/default/files/textes-experts/en/535/helping-children-develop-healthy-eating-habits.pdf
- https://www.nokidhungry.org/sites/default/files/HIOS.pdf
- https://www.cdc.gov/healthyschools/npao/schoolmeals.htm