5 ways to celebrate National School Breakfast Week

The first full week of March marks National School Breakfast Week (NSBW), and school nutrition teams throughout the country are serving special menu items and hosting fun activities to spotlight the morning meal.

Here are five ways schools are celebrating NSBW, which runs from March 6-10.

1. Filling the menu with student favorites

Throughout the week, Deer Valley Unified School District in Phoenix will be serving student favorites, such as confetti pancakes and flatbreads with bacon, sausage, egg and cheese. Students can also enter an essay contest where they share how eating a good breakfast sets them up for success.

2. Student-created smoothies

The nutrition team at Prince William County Public Schools in Manassas, Va., is celebrating NSBW with some friendly competition. Middle and high schoolers can submit a smoothie idea for the chance to have it served at breakfast. All who participate will be entered into a prize raffle, and the student with the winning smoothie idea will receive a grand prize.

3. Special menu items and samples

Students at Austin Independent School District in Texas will enjoy special menu items in honor of NSBW this year. On Monday, the nutrition team will serve breakfast for lunch, and on Friday, the morning menu will include a cinnamon twist with a chocolate-chickpea spread. Students will also have the chance to sample a mango smoothie during the week.

4. A visit from a pro athlete

Indiana Colts cornerback Stephon Gilmore will pay a visit to students at Richmond High School in Richmond, Ind., during the morning meal. The school will also receive a breakfast cart from the team in partnership with American Dairy Association Indiana.

5. Dirt cups for breakfast

The Flagler Schools nutrition team in Bunnell, Fla., is embracing this year’s NSBW theme, “Dig In to School Breakfast,” by serving a “dirt cup” made with yogurt, chocolate pudding, cocoa puffs and gummy worms.