Get Crafty & Healthy with a Kid-Friendly DIY Snack!

Healthy, Kid-Friendly DIY Snack

Classroom celebrations for elementary and middle school, though fun, can be a bit tricky. In this day and age, many schools limit the items that you can bring in based on an item’s sugar content, its potential mess, possible allergies within the classroom and/or school as a whole, and then some. Of course, though this can be a bit of a nuisance when planning and shopping for such celebrations, it is done with the best intentions, our children’s safety, and the staff’s sanity in mind. While it may have become a lot harder than simply picking up or baking a tray of cupcakes, I love that it has allowed us (parents and children alike) to get our creative juices flowing. And, certainly, fun websites like Pinterest are always around to help.

This school year, for my little one’s class, we’ve already made a slew of goodies for all of the usual classroom celebrations and more. Everything from pink and red, nut-free trail mix and an alphabet themed goodie bag for Dr. Seuss week to character fun fruit cups and winter holiday-themed pretzel buttons, the kids (and the parents) get a kick out of the exciting things our little one brings in. We’re already in the process of getting some great goodies together for the upcoming Easter holiday (keep your eyes peeled for an amazingly fun post – hint, hint!) but, tonight, I wanted to share with you one of the all-around favorites that we’ve pulled together thus far.

Meet Mr. Fruit Head Tootsie Box Robot Man, the ultimate healthy kid-friendly DIY snack!

Yes, the kids named him.

Here is what you’ll need:

• Juice Boxes (we opted for Motts for Tots because it has far less sugar than many of its competitors
• Dole Fruit Cups (or Motts applesauce cups)
• Sun-Maid Raisins Mini Snacks (two mini boxes per child)
• Tootsie Rolls (to per child)
• Plastic spoons
• Glue (we used E-6000 because, though strong, it is still pliable)
• Thin ribbon (not too much thicker than balloon string)
• Sharpie marker

Once you’ve gathered all of your supplies it’s time to build your little robot! This is pretty self-explanatory after looking at the above image but I’ll walk you through it.

The juice box will become the body of your robot so start there.

The raisin boxes will give your little dude some feet and help for stabilization as you continue your build.

When we got to adding on the arms – the Tootsie Rolls, of course – we did have a few casualties due to the wrappers untwisting themselves so, yes, snacking was done (shhh!). I found it a bit easier to lie the robot down on its “back” until the glue for the arms fully dried.

Once the glue has tried completely over the entirety of your robot, stand him (or her, if you prefer!) back up and break out those spoons. I didn’t want to coat the spoons with glue considering the forethought that little hands would soon be all over them so, instead, I opted for some extra ribbon we had on hand. I tied the spoons to each robot’s back just tight enough to keep them secured.

From there, the kids and I drew on some quick silly faces with dark permanent marker and that was that!

I will admit that transporting nearly thirty of them to school was a more of a hassle than I had planned for but I managed. Our little ones, the entire classroom, the teachers, the parents, and even the principal were all in absolute awe of this nifty little creation and it certainly got the day off to a wonderfully fun and exciting start. Now, I’m all for some tasty cupcakes to celebrate the occasional hoorah but, after all, there is a time and a place for everything. In school, much like at home, adults try to do their best to teach children about healthy eating and good-for-you snacking options. I’m incredibly blessed to have little ones that love such foods but, more often than not, kids are likely to choose the tasty junk over the healthier options. Well, problem solved. With a couple of Tootsie Rolls thrown in for a bonus surprise, these little robots will surely entice kiddos everywhere to eat a little healthier.

If I have to get my mind into creative mode to encourage that, so be it.

Heck, it’s fun anyway!

I really hope that you enjoy this fun little DIY Kid-Friendly Snack  – not only eating it, but making it; right alongside your own children.

And, with that, Mr. Fruit Head Tootsie Box Robot Man and I bid you adieu!