-
Less than a month before school starts again for us.
Name: Gavin
Birth Month: August
Type of School: Public
Method of Transportation: VariedOur family moved this summer, leading to some last minute school changes. Fortunately the school of our choice, outside home district, was willing to take our boys. Other than final approval, it's mostly looking like a definite. Nothing we would have foreseen a mere three months ago.
What's great is the amount of family nearby, and the good things I've heard about the school and academic offerings. We've less than a month to go.
-
Name: Lu
Birth Month: March
Type of School: Public
Method of Transportation: WalkingAAAAH haven't been on this site for so long, but saw this thread and wanted to join after seeing familiar names from way back when. School starts mid August for us and I still need to grab supplies and more uniform options!
-
@erinbaderin: Ugh, that sucks!! I'm sorry!!
@tororojo: I remember you! Welcome to the group!
-
@erinbaderin: oh no!! I’m so sorry to hear that. Kids are super resilient so I’m sure he will love wherever he is. Does his new school offer immersion too? Out of zone requests in our province can be tricky as well, but if their zoned school doesn’t have immersion they are able to attend the closest school with the program.
Hope it all works out for you
-
@Charm54: His new school doesn’t offer immersion - in Ontario immersion doesn’t start until grade 1, so once he’s there he’ll be able to switch to the other school, but we were hoping to avoid having him go to one school for kindergarten and then switch in two years.
Does anybody have any good ideas for school lunches? I got a yumbox and now am trying to figure out a) does it need to go inside another bag? Do I need a cooler pack? and b) what to put in it other than sandwiches.
-
@erinbaderin: I believe yumboxes aren't insulated, so you would need an ice pack and to put it in a lunch box or something. Besides sandwiches, could you also do pasta salad or crackers/cheese/meat combos?
Here's some good ideas: https://www.100daysofrealfood.com/lunchbox-ideas-yumbox/
-
School is starting so soon for us! Just a couple weeks now.
We've gotten a welcome email from the two teachers of the elementary program where LO will be next year. It was a great summary of what their day/week will be like and the supplies they'll need. No school supplies were requested, just things like a backpack, lunch, water bottles, etc.
We will attend an open house/meet the teacher on 8/10 and I am hoping it will get LO more excited vs. anxious about her new class. It's mixed age K-2 and I think she's nervous about the older kids. We just keep reassuring her there will be lots of kids her age and talking to her about how she knows her teachers from the playground last year.Any other tips to sooth her nerves about starting something new (but not that new)? People love to ask about kindergarten right now too... "Are you excited?!?!" which makes her clam up and hide behind us and I feel like it does more harm than good even if they're welll meaning and it's a perfectly normal thing to ask a 5 year old
-
@erinbaderin: that’s a bummer. Hopefully all works out and he has a smooth transition to his new school!
I use bentgo boxes which are similar to yumboxes... I put them in a lunch can with an ice pack. I also put an extra snack in the lunch can for after school. I do sandwiches, wraps, or crackers/cheese/ham.
I’m intrigued by packit lunch bags - they go in the freezer overnight so the bag is the ice pack itself. If I hadn’t just bought a LL Bean one for DD I would probably buy one of those!
-
@Charm54: We have a Pack-It lunch bag and really love it. I like not having to use extra ice packs and I saw they were consumer tested to keep food at safe temps for 5 hours. I'm in the food science/safety industry so always a little extra dilligent about those things!
There is a design flaw where the velcro is not quite strong enough and where the handle is placed on the foldable bags so that the flap pulls when it's loaded up, but it wasn't a big enough deal for me not to buy. I will probably sew a snap on it for this school year, after using it for the last school year and thru the summer. -
@Adira: Thanks for sharing that link I haven't given much thought to what I'm going to be packing for lunches, and here we are just weeks from the first day! Our district announced last month that they will provide breakfast and lunch free to all students, but we still will mostly send, I think.
I still don't have a ton of info about K from our school. We take DD for testing on the 31st, bring her supplies to meet the teacher night on the 9th and then start school on the 13th. We don't even get to find out if we can get a spot in after school care or what time the bus picks up in the AM until the 9th - 4 days prior to school starting. Maybe it's just my anxiety and needing to have a solid plan for something so new, but geeeez. I feel like we are just leaving everything until the last second. So I'm choosing instead to get really excited for back to school shopping and DDs first haircut next weekend
-
We used a Bentgo through preschool, but I need to replace it. Do y’all think the Yumbox would hold enough food for a Kinder/1st grader? And are the compartments sealed enough for dips and such?
@lindseykaye: do you guys have some books about starting school/kinder? We’ve been reading Junie B Jones, and Allysaurus and the First Day of School is still a favorite from last year.
-
@lindseykaye I second the book idea. Our oldest was extremely anxious about starting Kinder and this is what we did.
-
@MrsDynamiteGal: @rattles: Were your kids in school previously? I hadn't even thought of books since school isn't exactly new for her - this year she's at the same school just in a new class. But thank you so much for the reminder! I will take a look at the ones you suggested and see about snagging a couple at the library
-
@lindseykaye: Yes, my oldest will be in 1st this August. It's little brother's turn now.
-
I stocked up on some lunch boxes last week during Primeday and the other sites competing with Prime Day. So I got some extra lunchbots and planet boxes. Plus 2 more foogo jars. I've been experimenting with lunches for the last few months...heres what I've come up with...
1) Mini Pizzas (they stay warm until lunch in the foogo)
2) Mac n Cheese or other pasta (again stays warm until lunch in the foogo)
3) Homemade lunchables
4) sandwich roll ups (lunch meat & cheese in a tortilla)
5) lunch meat roll ups (just lunch meat & cheese)My kids are weird and wont eat a normal sandwich...they spend too much time picking it apart for some dumb reason.
I use a lot of 4 opening containers. So I aim for a Main, veggie side or two and dessert. If dessert is a "treat" I do two veggie sides, otherwise they get veggie & fruit.
Veggies: baby carrots, baby tomatos, sliced cucumber, roasted broccoli or cauli flower.
Desserts: Teddy Grams, dried fruit, homemade cookie/muffin, trail mix - nut free, yogurtNote: Our school is nut free, so I am toying with buying sun nut butter for PB&Js - since my girls love those. I'll know about pre-schools nut situation when we start.
-
It’s getting so close! We received a welcome letter from our school which included details about the parents orientation and the play date, but nothing about supplies. I don’t know if they won’t need anything or if they’re planning to tell us all that at parent’s orientation? That’s leaving it a little late for me since the orientation is 6 days before school starts.
My daughter attended a 2 week summer camp at her school-to-be and LOVED it! That’s definitely alleviated a lot of our nerves. My biggest concern is it’s a big leap in hours from preschool to K, but I’m not sure how to prepare for that? Camp was 30 minutes longer than K will be and she was exhausted at the end of every day. We did learn that we need to have a snack for her to eat in the car on the way home.
-
@Mrs D: We had to make the switch to sun butter and my daughter didn’t even notice! The very first day of camp the teacher asked her to make sure Mommy knew she couldn’t bring peanut butter and she was so embarrassed she wouldn’t eat her sandwich
I told her and the teacher afterwards that it was sunbutter and my daughter was happy again. Maybe send a note though and definitely make sure you kid knows what it is! Since it does look so much like peanut butter!
-
We were able to order a pack of supplies through the PTA which will be at school when the kids start. We'll get class assignments in late Aug and a meet and greet a few days before classes start. M'a been in town camp meeting more kids so she'll know a bunch once school starts. There's 8 classes so hopefully she'll know at least 1-2 kids in her class!
-
Anyone have a list of school supplies for home or school that they want to share. I want to pick up some stuff but we don’t get a list until a day or two before school starts!
-
@JCCovi: my daughter’s preschool was peanut free and I made sure to tell her it was “special peanut butter that is safe for everyone at her school”. Now she knows it’s sunbutter but we still call it special peanut butter.
-
@Adira: thank you! and thanks for the lunch ideas!
@Mrs D: my girls won't eat sun butter unless it's slathered in Nutella or a ton of jam
Loving your list of lunch ideas! We do homemade lunchables for their mother's day out program and it's always a hit.
@birdofafeather: from what I've seen, supply lists are pretty different between districts - ours looks like this though! (I need to shop)
-
I’m getting a little frustrated with the school we chose for DD. She’s going to a charter school (although I fought hard for her to go to dual immersion, Spanish...but DH wants Charter and I guess we can teach her Spanish at home, blah). She starts school in less than 2 weeks...August 8, and still we know nothing. They haven’t sent out a list of supplies, the school website says kinder orientation coming soon, no pictures (my niece went last year and had pictures, orientation and class assigned by now!?). My excitement is quickly turning to frustration.
Anyway, I’m so sad that shooting drills are a thing. I’ve been in classrooms when the drill was happening and a room of 1st graders knew to push their desks up against the door and hide on the opposite side of the windows. It’s heartbreaking and reassuring all in one.
Now that I’ve caught up I should have been following along from the beginning. We have to pack lunch and snack every day and the ideas posted here are so helpful!
-
@tororojo: You have to supply all that stuff to the school?!?! Wow! That blows my mind!
-
@birdofafeather: in contrast to the list above, our supplies are optional and include: one pack crayons, one pack markers, 3 glue sticks, blunt scissors, 2 erasers, box of Kleenex and box of large ziplock. All the supplies are communal and if parents can’t afford them, they still have plenty of supplies through those who can. This is in Canada (Ontario) though so it really depends on the school I guess.
-
For anyone who's already navigated the school stuff with older kids, is it typical to not hear anything about bus schedules and classroom assignments until just a few days before school starts? I just called our elementary school, because there's nothing on their website about when we might hear about who the teacher is, when bus pickup is, etc., and they told me we'd know the teacher assignment on the open house date, which isn't posted on their website, and is literally the day before school starts (glad we didn't schedule to be out of town that day!), and that bus info wouldn't be available until the Friday before school starts, and no one knew how it would be communicated. Is this typical for school systems?
-
@Mrs. Carrot: I don't have previous experience, but teacher assignments are posted on August 9, and the first day is school is August 13. The kindergarten info session is August 9 (other grades are after school starts), and meet the teacher is August 10. I am not sure about bus info, because we are walking to school. We do have a few earlier playground socialization events, one back in May and one on August 4 (we will be out of town for that one).
-
@Mrs. Carrot: We don't find out teachers and bus information until 2 days before school starts. So yeah, I think that's typical.
@erinbaderin: How heart breaking! So sorry that didn't work out. We also have to buy a ton of supplies because our state doesn't fund our schools very well at all. Education is not a priority everywhere unfortunately. -
I have no idea when we're finding out anything! There's a serious lack of information and it's driving me crazy!!!
Here's our Kindergarten Supply List:
1. Backpack (labeled with student's first and last name)
2. Crayola Crayons - box of 24
3. 2 Pocket Folder (labeled with student's first and last name)
4. Pencil Box
5. 1.5 inch BinderOther Supplies:
6. Glue Sticks
7. Dry Erase Markers
8. Tissues
9. Clorox Wipes
10. Baby Wipes
11. Ziploc Baggies (all sizes)
12. Paper Towels
13. Self-Adhesive Velcro
14. Spiral Notebooks
15. Wooden Clothespins
16. Jumbo Popsicle Sticks
17. Popsicle Sticks
18. Colored Pens -
We're in a similar boat. Boys are going to a new school due to our relocation. Still waiting to hear back on whether they've been accepted into their school. It starts in less than 2 weeks! Until then they've advised to hold off on the application. I still have to get their supply list and go shopping .
-
In terms of teacher assignments and bus schedules I'm sure it's because they will be making adjustments up until the start of school and want to minimize how often they have to update info. Frustrating, yes, and as a teacher and parent I would hope that they would do a better job of communicating when and how that info will be pushed out.
This year we are part of the "problem" - we are just completing a move and while we started the enrollment months ago it won't be official till I go in in-person on with my ID, birth certificate and proof of residency. So in terms of class assignments (and busing, if we were riding) that's just one child that will cause adjustments.
-
Some of this lists are huge!! Any idea why so much stuff?
We only have
-backpack
- indoor runners
- change of clothing
- 1 small bottle of white glue
- 3 lg glue sticks
- 2 white erasers
- 3 pencils
- 1 set markers
- 1 box crayons
- 5 large ziplock bags
- 1 box kleenex
- 4 containers playdoh -
@erinbaderin: our list is about the same - I was surprised we had to supply things like crayons and tissues! But I guess each district does things differently.
-
We also won’t know classes until right before school starts - I tried to call the new school to get some information and their message says the office reopens on Aug 27 and teachers will be announced Aug 30 - school starts Sept 4.
I’m also in Ontario and as far as I know, we just have to send, like, a backpack and a water bottle. No supplies.
-
@Mrs. Carrot: In our district the teachers aren't even offered jobs until August when enrollment is confimed. Enrollment is growing so it is likely they will get their jobs but they don't know for sure yet. My DD will start K not knowing who her teacher is. They will do two weeks of 11am dismissal while the teachers use the aftetnoon evaulate the kids in groups of 3. After two weeks the kids will be assigned a teacher. Seems weird to me but I’m not an education expert. I do know this system costs me $300 extra in after school care fees in those two weeks. But I am glad there is after school care available.
-
@Corduroy: That’s insane! This seems like it would be so hard on the teachers and kiddos to not be able to establish routines until the 3rd week of school!
We’re going private this year but I’m definitely going to ask around about how our public schools handle teacher assignments. It never occurred to me it could be so last minute!
-
@fancyfunction: I know our schools aren't very well funded, so the supplies they need for projects often comes out of the teacher's own pockets. That's why they ask parents for additional stuff, but on our list, they aren't mandatory, just requested.
I'm planning on keeping the list and bringing in a couple things every month to try to help keep them supplied.
-
I'm starting to freak out that we are in the last month of summer. We have so much transition happening in early September...my anxiety is going to skyrocket!
-
I always assumed the teacher assignments were so late so parents would not have time to request having their children moved.
-
@Mrs D: I feel you!! I've been having anxiety about Kindergarten since LAST year, and the closer we get, the more anxious I am! Not having all the information isn't helping either. I'm going crazy here!
-
Ladies, can i join you? I've been lurking around forever, but this Kindergarten transition makes me feel like I really need a support group!
Here's our info:
1) Child's name: B
2) Birth month: March
3) Type of school: City public
4) What method of transportation? Walk a block!
- Google Plus
- Stumbleupon
- Twitter
- Facebook
- Pinterest
- Favorite0
417 comments