Back to School Game Changers

Just because I homeschool doesn’t mean that I’m not on the lookout for Back to School hacks. You already know which pencils, notebooks, bookbags, water bottles, and lunch boxes your littles like and want. I can share my picks (cough, click the links, cough) but the reality is those are already purchased or at the least picked out in your littles heart and mind. I’m here to share those things that you didn’t realize would make your life easier getting your little ready for the year. Most of these things will help your little and you to have a successful, less stressful time. And that is what I want for us all. We know we got enough stress happening without adding more for things that can be avoided.

Handzies – You know I take Hanzies with me when I travel and that I carry them in my bag but did you know that they are the perfect thing to pack in bookbags? JustaBXgirl doesn’t always like using hand sanitizer and there isn’t always a sink around for her to wash her hands so I make sure that she doesn’t leave home without these. She really likes having them individually wrapped so that she can share with her friends.

Mabel’s Labels – A quick search of the site will show you that I am obsessed with Mabel’s Labels. Aren’t you? My current obsession is their book stamp. Save you, your little, and your wallet some money and just get the labels or/and the stamps.

Eco Lips Lip + Cheek Tint – My tween is obsessed with lip color. Eco Lips is a brand that I trust. They are the only lip balm we use. We gift it regularly. When I found out they have a lip tint I knew we needed to add it to our routines. How is this a Back to School hack? Our littles will experiment. If we don’t share healthy, safe options we will find them choosing what we wouldn’t choose for them. If you have a little that is getting into makeup, rather than fight it, help them make safe choices. Look for brands that you can trust. Guide them to appropriate vs inappropriate looks. And I challenge you to ask yourself what is appropriate and inappropriate and why!

Store & Go Easel – This easel is such a win in our home. I use it with HOPS because she wants to do school since she sees JustaBXgirl doing schoolwork daily. Children learn what they live. We use it to draw. We stick alphabet magnets to the board (not included). That’s not all though. JustaBXgirl uses it just as much. She uses it when we are on the go to doodle with while in the car. She uses it to work out math problems. She even uses it to leave me messages! I really enjoy that it has the chalk side and the dry erase side so that we have options.

Typesy – When our littles were sent home in 2020 most of them didn’t have typing skills. Yet, they were expected to jump on the computer and figure it out regardless of what grade they were in. Children have been proven to be resilient even when they shouldn’t have to be. We as a society failed them in many ways including not taking the time to give them proper typing lessons. I shared my thoughts on Typesy here. I’m aware though that sometimes you traditional school readers skip my #HiHomeschool posts so I’m talking about it again as you get your babies ready to head back to school. They still need to learn how to type properly and they need to learn it now, not in high school like us old folks did.