Are you getting ready for school? I just bought school supplies today. Tis’ the season of sharpened pencils, and I have a few suggestions for eco-friendly back-to-school supplies.
Backpack
First, your child will probably need a backpack.
We love the colorful characters in our Dabbawalla collection of children’s backpacks. This season, we also have a new backpack from SoYoung Mother. The coated linen exterior is PVC-free. The interior is nylon lined with a zippered mesh pocket to keep gear separated. The best part about the SoYoung Mother backpack is the fully detachable, matching lunch box. It fits inside the pack, if the child has little to carry, but it can attach to the outside of the pack to give more carrying room. The pack is small (9″ x 11″ x 5″), so it isn’t overwhelming for a young child.
SoYoung Mother Linen Child’s Backpack
Pencils
Next, pencils are one of those iconic basics every student needs.
Our favorite pencils are made not from wood but from recycled newspaper. The unpainted pencils are great because you can see the newspaper the pencil is made from. They sharpen easily, and the 12-pack comes with a sharpener. These are premium pencils from Earthzone, a Canadian company. (Pencils are made responsibly in China.)
Earthzone Recycled Newspaper Pencils
Water Bottle
Also, it helps to have a water bottle.
Most kids won’t need to carry a lot of water if there are drinking fountains at school, but it helps to have a water bottle in the backpack for the walk to and from school. A small, 12-ounce Klean Kanteen water bottle is the perfect size. On a warm day, you can add ice cubes easily with this wide-mouth bottle. On a cold day, a hot drink will stay warm up to 6 hours. Leakproof and easy to clean.
Klean Kanteen 12oz Reusable Water Bottle
Snack Bag
Finally, a snack in the pack might leave your child less tempted to ask for the expensive, unhealthy snacks that a lot of schools have in vending machines.
There are a lot of great snack bags available now. Our newest is the Sling Sisters Snack Bag. These zippered snack bags have cute, cotton prints on the outside with nylon (laminated to be waterproof) on the inside. The 4″ x 6″ size is perfect for a cut up apple or a handful of grapes. These bags are also a good size to fit crayons or a cell phone. Clean in the washer on cold.
Sling Sisters Reusable Snack Bag
I’ll come back next week with reusable lunch boxes and lunch bags.
