In part three of our Back To School series we are taking a look at nutrition in schools. It turns out most kids are getting a pretty square meal at school, but there is more parents can do when they think about healthy snacks.

Matthew Tormey is a teacher in Stoughton and the father of one. He says ,"We try to preach make the right choices." Tormey's daughter Hannah is going into the fifth grade. Not only is he concerned about how she's doing in the classroom, he's also concerned about her nutrition. Tormey says, " We just make sure that Hannah has I guess the information she needs when she's on her own." Something the school district is taking all of the guesswork out of. Frank Kelly says, "What we're doing now is where we used to try hard to hide fruits and vegetables, get students to eat them without knowing it, we're a little more out front today than we used to be." That gives kids a better sense of what's in a balanced meal. Frank Kelly is the Food Services Director and says the Madison School District has been working toward creating healthier meals for it's students for several years. Kelly says, "I think I can say that honestly no parent would have to worry about their child's diet based on what they're getting at breakfast and lunch."

Kelly says every aspect of student's meals are planned out so students get proper nutrition and portions. "The USDA has food guidelines we have to follow and we do a nutritional analysis, which is a computerized analysis of all the ingredients in each menu. There's different requirements for elementary, middle school and high school, primarily the calories go up as the grade level goes up."

In elementary school, kids can only chose between a hot and cold lunch, but as they go up in grade, so do the number of items to choose from. Kelly says, "We're offering the students the right things to eat." But the right choices aren't always the easiest to make. Kelly says, "Yes a student can pick a meal and not eat it all, but the original meal is set up to meet those guidelines."

That's why it's important for parents to talk to their kids about nutrition and set a good example at home. Parents can also make healthier choices at the store. Instead of chips or cookies, try trail mix or veggies with dip. Instead of Popsicles or sweets, try frozen fruit or dried fruit, yogurt, a yogurt smoothie or even a cottage cheese parfait. Those are simple substitutions that add up to keeping kids like Hannah healthy in and out of the classroom. Tormey says, "We can make the choices for her when she's at home, but when she's on her own it's nice to at least give her the information that she might need to be a healthy person and lead a healthy life style."

There is a link on this page with more ideas on healthy snack alternatives and recipes.