I hope to offer you some alternatives on how to handle this situation with sensitivity and kindness. Teachers can and do use a variety of items as incentives for their students. Teachers of older students may have a ticket system, or may even use play money to entice their students to behave appropriately and stay on-task in the classroom. Younger children, however, need the quick, on the spot reinforcement that small prizes give them. Food is one of the items that teachers choose time and again as an incentive for their young students.
Children respond positively toward food.
They like to eat and enjoy tasty snacks that can curb their hunger until their next meal. I regularly use pretzels as an incentive for my students. I buy them in bulk at a warehouse store for very little money and all of the kids like them because they are filling. That's not to say that I never gave them candy. I usually give out the candy of the season, such as conversation hearts, jellybeans, and mini candy canes.