I think that if you are going to raise children and GSDs, that you need bomb proof dogs, dogs that know from day 1 that the kid can run, scream, stumble, play with your food.
Ok, who wants to let a baby play with a dog's kibble -- ick salmonella -- everything goes into a baby's mouth, everything. Kibble. Hands that touched kibble certainly. But, on the other hand allowing a dog to be irritating with a kid around a dog's food, well, yeah, you can certainly teach your toddler to respect the dog and leave its food alone when it is eating, leave it be when it is sleeping.
But you cannot ensure that every child that comes into your home will have that type of respect for animals. Yes, you can be right there every moment, but with three adult dogs and a child or more children, how can you afford a dog that is snarly when any kid comes up near him when he eats? Will you sprint to the window, "Oh, it's the McFarlands, and their brood of 7 monster kids! Quick throw Brutus into his kennel downstairs and Molly into her crate in the bedroom! Lock the bedroom door!"
With toddlers, usually you have a parent or two per child, so it might be manageable, but as kids get bigger, sometimes friends come over and parents don't. That is called a normal childhood. Every child should be able to have a normal childhood. And no, they should not have to put the dog up to have a couple of kids over. Kids are unpredictable. Even the most responsible kid might forget to tell their new buddy not to go near Buddy when he is eating -- can't have that.
So, having the child right there in the room with the adults, and everyone totally clear that the child can move freely around them and their food, is probably, given the dogs are good dogs, a responsible thing to do.