Back to School Essentials

I am in complete denial that we are in our final moments of summer vacation. However, it's hard to be in denial when so many people around the country have already sent their kids off for their first day of school. One of my favorite parts of going back to school when I was a kid was the back to school shopping. I started putting together a list of my favorite school supplies last year. I decided to do it again this year but added some of my new favorites alongside some of the old standbys. Starting the year off with fresh supplies helps a child to feel more excited about all the new things that are about to happen to them in a new school year.

American Tourister Backpack-one of my favorite things to shop for as a child was my backpack. Even if my old one was in good condition, we were always allowed to start the year off with a new bag. There's something about a fresh backpack that makes you feel more confident. Many of the kids I work with have a hard time keeping their things organized so finding a backpack with lots of pockets and compartments is something I recommend to parents of those children. I am a big fan of this American Tourister Keystone bag. Not only is it an affordable option, it has multiple pockets that will help a child keep their supplies organized. For some children, I even recommend that parents label what each pocket is for as they are putting everything in with their children.

See Through Pencil Pouches-this is especially important for children who may have difficulty with visual perceptual skills. In addition to having different color pouches for different kinds of supplies, make sure that your children can easily see what is inside. This makes it easier for them to be able to reach into their bag or desk and find out what they need. It's important that if you have seperate supplies at home that you keep your system consistent. For example, if you have all your writing tools in a blue pencil pouch for school do the same at home. I recommend having 3 pouches: one for writing tools (pens, pencils), one for coloring supplies (markers, crayons, colored pencils) and one for miscellaneous items (scissors, glue, etc.). Another important tip: don't fill them too much. Just put in what you need and nothing extra.

Fiskar Scissors-good scissors are an essential for me. This is especially important if you have a child who has delays for the acquisition of fine motor skills. Over the years I've tried a variety of different scissors but always go back to the child-sized Fiskars. I find they are the most comfortable and the sizing is perfect for those little hands. Not only do they have a large variety of colors, they have different sizes for larger hands and also have left-handed scissors.

Cadoozles Mechanical Pencils-I prefer mechanical pencils for a variety of reasons. The first one is that sometimes kids can't get to a pencil sharpener or have difficulty manipulating one due to fine motor delays. The second reason I am a fan of mechanical pencils is that they are a great way to get kids to use a proper amount of pressure when writing. If they press to hard, the lead will break. After a while, kids start to understand just how hard they should press down when they are writing. There are a lot to choose from but I tend to recommend these. They come in a variety of patterns and colors and are super affordable....you can get a pack of 28 for $8! For children who need to use a pencil grip, many of the grips that I recommend fit on these pencils.

Ooly ClickOit Erasers-for some reason, my daughter loses erasers more than any other school supply. She also has this terrible habit of chewing the eraser off of her pencils (it makes me cringe just thinking about it). I have been on the hunt for an eraser that might be a little more difficult to lose and was psyched when I discovered these erasers. One of the things I like about these is that they are shaped like a pencil (just thicker) so kids who have difficulty with fine motor and manipulation skills have an easier time holding them.

Do-Overs Erasable Highlighters-highlighters are great for helping kids with organization, especially when studying. I have found with my own daughter, that she tends to over-highlight so have to go back and help her figure out what is most important to highlight. That's why I am obsessed with this set of erasable highlighters from OOLY. There are no such thing as a mistake when you have these. If they happen to accidently highlight something, they can easily fix it.



Just Getting Started 17-Month Large Planner-as kids get older, we expect them to be able to keep track of their own schedule. This includes being able to keep track of their homework assignments, when projects are due and when they have tests. One way to help school age children do this is to have them have carry around a daily planner and help them fill it out the beginning of each week. Working together, you can fill in all of the things that remain the same each week and then talk about any special events that may be occuring. At the end of each school day, you can look through their homework and see if they have tests or reports.

Study Wall Organizer-another great way to keep kids organized, especially if they have a busy schedule, is to have a wall calendar that you can fill out as a family before the school week begins. I recommend this one from Pottery Barn because in addition to having just 7 days to fill out (as opposed to the entire month), it has a cork board that you can put announcements from school, birthday party invites or other pieces of important information. I have found with my own daughter, who has a very relaxed schedule compared to others, that if we fill out her schedule together on Sunday night, she feels less anxious about the upcoming week. We write down days that she has gym/art/Spanish, what after school activities she might have, play dates, birthday parties and any other important things she needs to know about (tests, 1/2 days, etc.). If you have multiple children, I highly recommend assigning each child their own color so they can quickly look at the calendar and know what their week is going to be like.

Desk Organizer-many of the kids I work with struggle with keeping things organized. This can lead to homework time being a stressful and anxiety-producing part of the day for not only children, but the parents or caregivers who need to help them. One thing that I started doing with my daughter is to set up a homework station with all of the supplies she needs. This means that when we go school supply shopping, we buy an extra of everything and set it up in a desk organizer so she doesn't have to take anything out of her bag other than her homework folder. This helps in preventing her forgetting to put something back that she needs during her school day.

Yoobi Folders-I didn't realize how important a sturdy school folder was until I began working with school age kids who had a hard time with keeping their backpacks organized. I can't tell you how many folders I have seen stuffed to the gills and ripped from being shoved into the bag by their owners. This leads to frustration from parents, teachers and the kids when they can't easily find what they are looking for. One way to avoid some of this is to assign a specific color folder to each subject (be sure to label the front of the folder). Another little trick I learned is that you should avoid buying cardboard/paper folders as they rip easier. I LOVE these poly covered folders by Yoobi. They are the only ones I use with my daughter and they last us all year long. They hold up to 100 pieces of paper (although we weed through her papers a couple times a month) and can take a beating. Another great thing is that this company does an amazing thing: for every Yoobi item you buy, a Yoobi item is donated to a classroom in need somewhere in the US. Certainly makes me feel good about doing as much of my school supply shopping from them as possible.


Many of the recommendations on this list are ones that will help with children becoming more organized and independent. As kids get older and the expectations increase, I have noticed that they can become more disorganized which leads to all kinds of other problems. Providing children with simple strategies for organization will lead to increased success in school and at home when doing homework. It also leads to increased confidence and self-esteem, which is one of the most important things to ensuring that a child has a good school year. The other school supplies recommended are ones that I have used for years and years in my private practice and with my own daughter. They are affordable and easy to find in local stationery or office supply stores.

Do you have favorite school supplies? Things that help children with organization or lead to improved fine motor skills? I love finding new supplies, especially ones that have been tested out by others. Be sure to send me your ideas. I am always a click away and love hearing from you all.

Wishing everyone out there a very happy, fun and organized school year!

These Are A Few Of My Favorite Supplies!

I have been procrastinating getting myself and daughter ready for the new school year.  For some reason, no summer seems to have gone by quicker than this one and I am not quite ready for the demands of a new school year.

One of the most exciting parts of a new school year, even as a parent, are the new school supplies.  There is something about the look of brand new supplies that makes me feel giddy!  As a therapist, parents ask me for advice about the best supplies for their children and I love being able to recommend ones that I have used at the gym and with my own daughter.  Some kids need a different kind of school supply in order to be most successful.  Whether it be a particular kind of writing instrument that helps encourage a proper grip or tools to help during homework time, it's important that we find what works for each child.  Below, I share some of my favorite school supplies and how they can help children.

See Through Pencil Case-for kids who have a difficult time with keeping track of and organizing their supplies, you can get a transparent pencil box or case.  If you put supplies in a box, you can sort pencils, crayons and miscellaneous items into smaller Ziploc bags so they can grab what they need without having to waste time on digging through everything.  Tiger Brand makes some great (and sturdy) zippered pencil cases in two different sizes which is another great option.

Colored Folders-another way to help kids as organized as possible is to assign different colored folders to each subject.  If your school requires a certain kind of folder, than you can place colored labels on top of the folders in order to help the kids find their folders easier.  Make sure you are consistent with the colors you use to label each subject.
*I tend to suggest plastic folders for the kids I work with as they don't rip as easy.  Kids I work with are prone to shoving lots of papers into their folders which can lead to them ripping.  Plastic ones have a bit more give and can handle a bit more wear and tear than the cardboard ones.  I love the Yoobi brand of folders for my own daughter; they are sturdy and offer a variety of colors for different subjects.  Even better, for every sale, Yoobi will donate supplies to classrooms in need all across the country.


Dry Erase Weekly Calendar-one way to keep your family organized is to have a calendar visible for all to see.  This is not to keep track of homework, but more about keeping track of after school activities, parties, appointments, etc.. I typically suggest doing a weekly calendar and not a monthly one as it can get too overwhelming for kids, especially if you have a child who has organizational difficulties.  If you have more than one child, assign a different color dry erase marker so they can easily spot their activities.  Sitting down as a family on a Sunday and filling out the schedule together is a great way to get the whole family ready for the upcoming week and to discuss any plans or changes that might be happening.  This is particularly important if you have a child who presents with anxiety.

Mighty Zipper Pouch-I love this large pouch from OOLY for keeping things organized, especially for older kids who might have more and larger supplies (think calculators, rulers, etc.).  The pouch has 3 compartments with one of them being see-through making it easy to see some of the more important or most used supplies that your child may need.  The three compartments means you can organize writing instruments in one compartment, larger supplies in the other and miscellaneous supplies in the third.
**if you have a child who has a tendency to forget things in school, you can have one for home and one for school

Do-Overs Highlighters highlighters are an important school supply, especially as children get older and the demands increase.  They can be a helpful tool for organization during homework time.  I am a particular fan of the Do-Over highlighters by Ooly because it allows for kids to not get stressed out over making mistakes.  Highlighters can be used for lots of different things.  Obviously, highlighters are needed when reading and having to keep track of information.  For some kids, I have suggested that they use a highlighter to keep track of what homework they have completed; once they finish an assignment, they highlight it.

Weekly Planner- a good weekly planner is an essential tool for kids to help keep them organized.  As my own daughter climbs her way up in the grades, she is becoming responsible for having to write down her homework assignments and not count on a handout from her teacher with all of the assignments.  She is still too young for a full-on daily planner, but I have been on the lookout for them just in case it might help her or any of the other kids I work with.  I have fallen in love with the weekly planners by Yoobi as each week is on a side-by-side two page spread.  There is lots of space for them to write their assignments and room for extra notes when necessary.  In addition, there are coloring pages for the kids to fill in at the end!

Triangular Crayons-the triangle crayons by Crayola are my favorite, especially for younger children who are working on developing a proper grip on writing instruments.  The triangle shape and thicker width of the crayon encourages a tripod-like grasp.  I encourage parents and teachers to break the crayons into two or three smaller pieces because the smaller the crayon is, the less likely they are to hold onto it with a fisted grip.

Sticky Note Tabs-over the years, I have been asked to help kids with their homework during my sessions.  One of the things that I have observed is that for some kids, trying to ruffle through folders or workbooks to find their homework can be an incredibly disorganizing and a stressful way to start the homework process.  One method I have used is using sticky note tabs to mark the homework before leaving school could help homework time be less stressful at home.  That way they can reach into their folder and easily see what needs to be done.  Once they are done with the homework, they can remove the tab and put the paper back in their folders. For younger kids, I love the variety of sticky tab packs by OOLY (I actually had a hard time making a choice!).   For older kids, the Post-It Flags (which come in a variety of colors and sizes) are a great way for kids to organize their homework folders.

Accordion Folders-I don't know about you, but one of the things that I struggle with each year is what to do with all the assignments and art projects that my daughter comes home with.  One of the things we will be doing this year is getting a great big accordion folder that we can fill up at the end of every week or two with old assignments that she wants to keep.  For her, this 7-pocket folder by Five Star is plenty big enough as it will expand as we add things to it each cleanup and it will keep her homework folder and her backpack from getting cluttered and disorganized.

Some things to keep in mind:
* if you find something you love, make sure that you stock up on them just in case your child loses it, breaks it, etc.
*if you know you have a kid who has a tendency to leave things behind, be sure to have a backup stash at home; this is particularly important for a pencil case with all of the necessary supplies for homework.

So, these are a few of my favorite supplies.  Have you found special school supplies that have helped your children be more successful at school and at home?  I would love to hear what kinds of supplies and strategies have been helpful to be able to recommend them to my clients.

I hope that everyone has a wonderful, successful and organized school year!