Most children in the United States eat their lunches at school everyday, this is opposed to children around the world who go home for lunch and then either stay at home because their school day is over or return to school for more instruction after lunch.  Because children in the United States eat their lunch at school, they either have to buy a cafeteria lunch from their school or bring a bag lunch from home.  Children who brings a bag lunch from home each day are very likely to have had a Little Debbie snack cake in their lunch at least once or twice in their life, if not every day.  When I was little girl I used to bring my lunch to school everyday, but I was not lucky enough to have a mother who bought Little Debbie snack cakes. My mother always made homemade cookies.  I was so disappointed by this as a child!  Every once in a while though I was able to trade my mother’s homemade cookies for the store-bought Little Debbie snack cakes with friends.  When this happened I was so ecstatic*.   I think eating Little Debbie snacks as a child is a staple** of the American experience.  One of the reasons I say this is because children in the United States have been eating these snack cakes for many generations.  My parents ate them when they were children, I did (sometimes) when I was young, and my nephews eat them now.

Little Debbie Snacks are cookies or cakes that come in individual wrappers, which are perfect for putting in lunch boxes and lunch bags. They come in dozens of varieties, but some of the best-known varieties are called: Swiss Cake Rolls, Nutty Bars, and Oatmeal Creme Pies.  Little Debbie snacks were named after the young granddaughter of the founders of the company that makes these sweets.  There really was child named Debbie and a picture of the real little Debbie is on the packaging of all these snacks.

You can find out more about this classic America snacks on the Little Debbie website, where you can also see all the different varieties of snack cakes the company sells: http://www.littledebbie.com/

Also, here are two commercials for Little Debbie snacks from two very different times in American history.  These two commercials show how these snacks have been an American classic for some time.  Below each video I have transcribed what is said in the commercial so you can check your comprehension.

I like school. I take a Little Debbie in my lunch box everyday, but I don’t like it when a big dinosaur eats it.  Maybe mom should pack two.  Hahahah.  [Little Debbie, America’s number one snack cake.]

Ah, ah Mary we’ve been seeing each other for years now. Yes. And I think it’s about time, we…Yes…tried Little Debbie single packs.  I mean they’re so handy, the Nutty Bars and the Fudge Brownies….[Little Debbie Snack Cakes, by the box or single pack, Little Debbie has  a snack for you.]…Swiss Rolls, Oatmeal Creme Pies, oh I nearly forgot, would you marry me, well think about it, just take your time.

* ecstatic = a feeling/expression of overwhelming happiness or joyful excitement
** a staple of = of prime importance or a main part of