Explore many responses – both in the comments section of this post and in the embedded tweets!

What are your rules about students eating in class?

I’m raising this question because it’s come up in the student evaluation of my IB Theory of Knowledge class – several students thought I should be more liberal about it.

These are what my rules have been:

* If it’s after lunch, and you didn’t have a chance to eat during the lunch hour (which is very short) because of a school-related activity, you can eat in class.

* If we’re doing a small group activity with talking and moving around, feel free to eat.

* Other than those times, eating can be distracting to you and to people around you, so I ask that you do not eat.

In my other classes with younger students, I have a blanket “no-eating” policy.  It has been my experience that – in those situations – students eating has generally been very distracting to the “eater,” it’s distracting to others who want the person eating to share their food with them, and they there is more of a tendency to leave a mess.

Of course, I also maintain an ample stock of graham crackers, trail mix and fruit snacks that I give out to students who miss the free breakfast or who continue to be hungry, and often will give out a snack to the entire class.  In those cases, the regular rules do not apply.

I’m eager to hear from other teachers about your policies and what grades you teach!

ADDENDUM: Here are some responses I’ve received on Twitter: