Free lunch box notes printables

Forty lunch box notes on five pages, each note about the size of a playing card (roughly 3.4 by 2.2 inches) with dashed cut lines between them. The set covers the whole span of a school lunchroom: picture notes a kindergartner can "read" alone, encouragement for the child who is nervous about a test, and jokes and riddles for the third grader who would rather share a note with friends than be told you are proud of them. Every note has a bold outline and a flat-colored icon, so the pages print well in color or black and white, and the fonts are large enough to read at arm's length across a cafeteria table.

What's in this set

1. Encouragement lunch box notes. Eight notes with a message and a matching picture: "You've got this!" (star), "I'm so proud of you" (trophy), "You make me smile" (smiley), "Have a great day!" (sun), "Be kind. Be brave. Be you." (rainbow), "Reach for the stars" (rocket), "You are my sunshine" (flower) and "Can't wait to hear about your day" (heart). A "Love," line to sign.
2. Lunch box jokes. Eight clean, food-friendly jokes (why did the banana go to the doctor, what do you call cheese that isn't yours, what do you call a sleeping dinosaur). The punchline sits below a dotted fold line, so the child reads the question, guesses, then unfolds the note.
3. Blank lunch box notes. Eight notes with a double border, a small corner picture, a "Dear" line, two writing lines and a "From" line, for your own messages, a question of the day or a doodle.
4. Lunch box riddles. Eight easy riddles (what has hands but can't clap, what gets wetter the more it dries, what kind of room has no doors or windows). The answer is printed upside down at the bottom of the note.
5. Picture lunch box notes for kindergarten. Eight notes for pre-readers: one big icon and one short capital word. Heart LOVE, smiley SMILE, star STAR, sun HI!, apple YUM, rainbow WOW, thumbs up YES! and hug HUG.

What's useful about them

• A note in the lunch box is a small, reliable way to check in during the school day without a phone.
• The jokes and riddles give a shy child something to share at the table, which is often how lunchtime friendships start.
• Picture notes let a four or five year old decode a message independently and feel like a reader.
• Blank notes keep the habit going once the printed messages have all been used.
• Cutting the notes out is itself a good scissor task for younger children.

Frequently asked questions

What age are these lunch box notes for?

Roughly ages 4 to 12. The picture notes suit pre-readers in preschool and kindergarten, the encouragement and blank notes suit any age, and the jokes and riddles read best from about age six or seven.

How big is each note?

About 85 by 56 mm (3.4 by 2.2 inches), the size of a credit card or a playing card, so a note fits flat in a lunch box lid or a bento compartment.

Can I print them in black and white?

Yes. Every icon is drawn with a solid dark outline and the text is dark gray or a single accent color, so the notes stay clear on a mono printer or a photocopier.

Are the jokes and riddles appropriate for school?

Yes. The eight jokes and eight riddles are the classic food, animal and school kind with nothing to worry a teacher, and the answers are all single familiar words (an egg, a towel, a clock, a mushroom).

Is this set free for home and classroom use?

Yes, for non-commercial use: your own lunch boxes, a class treat bag, a PTA event or a church group are all fine.

More printables

The reading log printable and the chore chart printable are two more fridge-door helpers for the school week. Children who enjoy the riddles will like the I spy worksheets, and you can make a personalised puzzle for the lunch box with the word search maker or the maze generator. Younger children who cut the notes out themselves can practice first on the cutting practice worksheets.