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mystify them out the doorway and back to school does n’t have to be a whole fight any longer .
1.A high-qualitylunch boxthat keeps food separate and — thanks to an ice pack that goes in the bottom — fresh by the time it gets to lunchtime. Plus you’re going to save money on plastic bags since you don’t have to individually wrap each item.
2.A set of joke-filledlunch box notesfor writing down an encouraging word while your little one gets used to the school routine.
3.A set of funsandwich cuttersbecause cute lunches are more-likely-to-be-eaten lunches. If you’re going to be making lunch after lunch after lunch, you might as well have a little fun with it.
4.And a set offruit slicersto help you cut up fruit for lunch quickly and with zero hassle. Slice apples and oranges without feeling like you’ve finished a cardio workout. This set even includes a slicer for the always-time-consuming mango!
5.A set ofreusable storage bagsto help reduce the amount of plastic you’re using every day for snacks, but at a low enough price point to not stress if they’re forgotten at school every now and then. They’re also leak-proof, and they wash easily, saving you from unfortunate spills in the backpack.
6.Apantry organizerto help you quickly find what you need when you’re throwing together lunches and snacks for a long school day because you do NOT want to figure out that you’re out ofGoldfishexactly when you need them.
7.A set of durable,no-iron labelsfor all of the times your forgetful kid needs to scour lost and found for their jacket they left on the playground. Seriously — I’ve lost count of how many times I’ve had to dig through the lost and found.
8.ACat and Jack backpackbecause they do not need a super expensive backpack in the earlier grades. They aren’t lugging around heavy textbooks, their interests change from year-to-year anyway, AND choosing a new backpack is a fun back-to-school activity.
9.A large supply oftissuesfor the classroom because fall colds are coming, most teachers have to pay for tissues out of their own pocket, and the alternative is brown paper towels. Buy the tissues you want your kid to have access to — because they will 100% be using them all year.
10.A sleek,dry-erase wallcalendar to help keep everyone’s appointments, practices, and due dates in one central location. Sure, your phone’s calendar CAN work, but there is something really helpful about having a visual reminder around for everyone to see.
11.Aleak-proof water bottlethat can withstand the daily abuse of a kid in school. Their water bottles will go everywhere — recess, lunch, snack — and they need to hold up against your kiddo haphazardly throwing them into a lunch cart as they run to the playground.
12.Apencil sharpenerfor at-home use because there’s nothing quite as humbling as realizing you have absolutely zero tools to help them do their homework, you know, at home.
13.A two-pack ofscissorsfor small hands because if your child comes home with a project that needs cutting, your kitchen shears are not going to cut it. Keep a pair of them-sized scissors around to ensure there’s less struggle when homework comes.
14.A pair of volume-controlledheadphonesto help them get rid of distractions while working — or making sure you’re not hearing whatever it is they’re working on.
15.A classicpencil boxthat can fit pencils, markers, crayons, glue, scissors, or whatever else needs to be kept close-at-hand.
16.A pack oflarge erasersbecause the ones that go on the end of the pencil — or even worse: novelty erasers — are more trouble than they’re worth. Your kid is going to be making a lot of mistakes — have something that will actually erase.
17.A bottle of pre-mixedbleach cleaning spray— look, when it comes to stomach viruses, vinegar (or other household cleaners) and good vibes aren’t going to kill that virus and prevent it from spreading and completely ruining your next 24-36 hours — depending on how many are in the household. Bleach. Bleach will kill it. This is a helpful cleaner to have on hand anyway, but key for stopping germs from spreading.
18.Atouchless thermometerbecause back to school means back to viruses and you need to know if your kid is staying home without the wiggly, spitting out, angry thermometer dance of a regular thermometer. Just point, get the reading and make the call.
19.And a package ofsaline nose wipesto keep on hand when they do bring home a cold. These are so gentle on the nose and help clear it, too! A little extra comfort is 100% worth it.
20.A set ofmulticolored pencilsto keep at home because I don’t recommend bringing anything to school that your kid would be upset at losing — lots of kids are still learning impulse control in taking things they like. However, having cool writing utensils at home makes actually using them much more appealing.
21.A set ofPost-it flagsso they can highlight important concepts in books without the dreaded dog ear in a borrowed book.
22.Athree-hole punchto help all of those handouts store easily rather than becoming a jumbled pile in the bottom of their backpack. This one is pretty enough to be kept out but small enough to store in a drawer if that’s more your style.
23.And astaplerso your kiddo can keep multi-paged assignments together rather than standing in a long line of kids trying to staple before the bell rings.
24.Abook binto help keep books borrowed from the school library in good shape and easy-to-find.
25.Anelectronic toothbrush setwith a built-in timer so you can give them a little more independence while getting ready for school without wondering if they actually brushed their teeth in 15.5 seconds flat. Since you have enough to deal with getting everyone out of the house on time, giving up even one job on the to-do list is a major help.
Reviews have been edit for length and/or clarity .
