Back to School Shopping

“Back to School” as a spending season is second only to Christmas and its success (for retailers) is largely about tapping into kids’ emotional needs. Advancing to the next grade, particularly in elementary school, makes kids feel another year older, almost like their birthday does, and they want to move forward in style. During those BTS shopping trips, here is your child’s train of thought:

• I want the coolest looking stuff Mom or Dad’s money can buy.

• I want at least as much stuff as everyone else, preferably more.

• Having lots of great stuff will make me feel good about myself and about school in general.

• Other kids will judge me based on my stuff.

Parents want to send their children off to school with a smile on their face so, within reason, we will do what it takes. This makes it easy to say yes to the television-character pencils over the plain yellow ones, or the $10 battery operated pencil sharpener that fits in their desk rather than the little cheap ones with the razor blade-like mechanism. Throw in glittery glue, a multi-function calculator, fancy scissors that leave an edge suitable for scrap-booking, and a filing system in the form of a name brand, over sized, 3-ring notebook/pocket folder/loose leaf paper holder, then head for the cash register and prepare for sticker shock. And you haven’t even started on the clothing and footwear yet.
HOLD EVERYTHING! It’s time to teach your child as only you can. You should prep for this lesson by reading But Will it Make You Happy? by Stephanie Rosenbloom. Here’s your plan:

• Print it and highlight the best parts such as the phrases “work-spend treadmill” and “conspicuous consumption.”

• Give extra attention to the part about research telling us that spending $ on experiences brings more happiness than spending on things.

• Connect these ideas to your own life and encourage your child to do the same.

• Talk about how this fits into living a more green life.

• Remember, even the youngest child can understand the basic ideas in this article.
Ideally, this is an interesting, timely, intelligent conversation you’ll have with your child; not a locking of horns over what she wants versus what you’re willing to pay for. Remember, this is not about deprivation due to lack of money. It’s about not being manipulated by the commercial giants into making them rich at the expense of your family’s happiness and well-being. Now, in order to demonstrate what a positive experience this can be, identify some spending of your own where you really could make some changes. For instance,

• You could make coffee at home rather than buy it at the drive-thru.

• You could purchase a new lipstick or mascara at the drug store rather than the department store.

• You could pack your lunch for work every day rather than eating out.

Now, get out the calculator and figure out how much money you will save by making a couple of changes and what fun experience could be had instead. After you’ve established your own belief in the benefits of adjusting your spending, invite your child to join you.

• Independently or with your help, your child should make a list of BTS wants and needs.

• In-store or at home, using flyers or the Internet, check prices and do the math. What would be saved by purchasing bargain priced items rather than high end? What wants could be skipped all together? How much money will be saved by being a modest shopper?

• What will be done with this money saved? The younger your child, the more you’ll want to consider enjoying it right away. With older children, you may decide together to put it in the bank and keep adding to it in this way, delaying gratification for a larger reward.



Oh, and about those school supplies, here’s all you really need.

• A very ample supply of pencils and little erasers that fit over the end – but don’t bring them all to school at once. Dispense them from home, as needed.

• An inexpensive plastic pencil box or zipper pouch.

• A box of 16 crayons, at most. These will eventually reside in the plastic pencil box since the box they come in will fall apart.

• A couple of those small, cheap pencil sharpeners I mentioned earlier. Do spring for the kind that catches the shavings and can be emptied at a convenient time.

• A notebook in which to record homework assignments.

• A reusable something to carry lunch and snacks, because it’s expensive and much less healthy to buy the school lunch every day.

• A couple of pocket folders for transporting homework, notices, corrected papers, etc. back and forth in a neat and organized fashion. (Plain ones can be found for 10-15 cents each.)

• A backpack. Spend a little more money on this and get something sturdy since it will not be treated gently. It’s not a bargain if it doesn’t last the school year, or maybe two.



Beyond these basics, hold off for now. Those BTS sales will continue into early September so wait and see what else is really needed after the first few days of school.



I’d love to hear about the fun you’re having with the money you save.



Cielle