elementary school backpacks buy cheapie or good one

[meemee]

curious what you mamas do.

my dd is going to go into 3rd grade.

and here is my question.

i notice she really likes to get new stuff before she starts school. we dont have a school list so we dont have to buy anything.

at K i got her a good quality matching lunch pail and backpack. but she wants a new one every year. so i took her k backpack and now buy her cheap ones from target.

what do you do.

i notice though we might have to change next year. i see how many books 4th graders have to carry and we will have to have the talk of getting a good quality wheelie.

[whatsnextmom]

After dissapointements with other brands DD's first year, we settled on LL Bean bags with the expectation that the kids will use them for years. DD's going into high school and has had 2 bags (the first replaced due to needing a larger size... it's still in use as an overnight bag.) DS is going into 5th and has only ever had the one bag. We'll likely replace it due to size for the fall. The kids have always loved their bags and appreciated being "green" by getting full use out of them. A trip through the wash and they look brand new. In fact, I still use my LL Bean bag from high school and it still looks great!

Check with the school about wheeled backpacks before you purchase. Many schools are starting to ban them!

[MCatLvrMom2A&X]

I buy cheap because every year we get new ones. Gets boring carrying the same bag year after year.

[TiredX2]

We go for good quality. I let DS pick out a character backpack in kinder and the zipper was broken by November. I then got him a Jantzen and he's been using it for the past three years. I made the same mistake with DD (letting her get a random one at Target for 3rd grade, it was trashed within a year--- the next one lasted for three years and she'll get a new one this year for junior high).

This is the backpack he is getting for next year:
http://www.llbean.com/llb/shop/62776?from=SR&feat=sr

He wanted a red cammo backpack so I was thrilled to see that. For us, we've done a K-2 backpack, a 3/4-6 and we'll see what happens progressing. DD originally wanted a messenger bag for junior high, but she needs to take her violin every day so she is reconsidering if she actually wants to deal with two things she carries to the side.

For us, it's not a money issue (though one good backpack, IMO, is way cheaper than 3-4 "cheap" ones) but a resource issue. I just don't like the idea of the kids going through at least 7 backpacks in elementary school when they could use 1-2.

[34me]

A couple years ago I waited until about 2 weeks after school started and got really good backpacks on clearance at Target for $5. If we hadn't had a fire and lost everything my kids would still be using them. As it is they have still only ever had 3 (my 11th grader) and 2 each for my boys (9th and 6th). I just can't spend the money every year - buget wise or concious wise.

[Mom2M]

We buy backpacks that are the best ergonomically. Some of the cheaper ones may be fine but I feel that it is really important to protect her back and more expensive ones seem to be designed with better weight distribution.

[ollyoxenfree]

We buy good quality with the expectation that they will be used for a few years.

They get new clothes before school starts, and new binders, notebooks, pens, and other school supplies. That satisfies the urge for pretty new things.

I like reinforcing the message that it's better to buy quality and durability for things that you should expect to last a while (extend the lesson to furniture, appliances, cars etc. when they are grown) but okay to splurge a little on things that get consumed quickly.

[CarrieMF]

I've done both. When they were in K-1/2 I usually bought them the character backpacks for $4-5. They lasted the year. When my oldest was in Grade 2 I bought her a $40 backpack with a 3year warranty. It didn't last 4months. It was worn through on the bottom & they only carried lunch, library books(sometimes by that grade my kids kept them at school most of the time), snowpants in the winter, the odd duo tang(3 pronged folder) if there was homework. I ended up buying her another cheap one to finish the year out.

2 years later I splurged again & bought 2 Roxy & I can't remember the brand of the other one on clearance. I spent $40 each. The younger 2 will use theirs again this year, it'll be their 3rd year. My oldest is going into Grade 7 & wants a different style.

[Owen'nZoe]

We went with a plain red LLBean backpack. This will be our second year using it, and even though my son is rough on it, it is still in excellent shape. Early on, he was sad that he didn't have a character backpack like some of the other kids. We bought some character pins to personalize the bag, and I figured we could just replace those each year as he grew out of characters. Halfway through the school year, though, he took the character pins off, and never asked for new ones, so I think we are good.

[Alyantavid]

We've bought cheaper ones in the past and they didn't even last all year. So last year, we bought a more expensive, higher quality one and it still looks brand new.

[mommy2maya]

My two school aged kids have jansport bags, my going into 4th has had hers since k, and it has developed a tear at the zipper- probably from being overstuffed with jackets and such. It has a lifetime guarantee, so we will probably send it in to get repaired. Ds got his last year in first, but it doesn't really hold a lot, so it will probably only last til third grade before he needs a bigger one.

I refuse to buy cutesie new backpacks every year- it is such a waste. Plus if you get character bags, they get sick of it, and want a new one. No thank you.

[mommy2maya]

oh lands end has $5 off backpacks and lunch bags right now, with free shipping!

[Ruthla]

I don't like to encourage commercialism- we don't buy new backpacks every year just for the sake of having new backpacks. I'll buy the sturdiest backpacks we can afford.

DS was homeschooled last year and will be returning to school this September. If his old backpack is too small, then I'll buy him a new one in a size that will work for him for years to come. He had a cheap one for preschool (we still have it but it's too small to be practical), a small regular backpack for kindergarten (land's end- very sturdy) but then I got him a wheelie backpack either in the middle of 1st or 2nd. That one didn't hold up quite as well because it got heavier use. So, I expect he'll either use the wheelie backpack or the "small" backpack from kindergarten. When he outgrows that one, I'll buy him a "big kid" sized backpack- either this year (4th grade) or I might encourage him to use the old one now and get a new one when he starts middle school in 5th. In any case, when he gets a larger backpack, it's with the expectation that he'll have it for years. The backpacks I got the girls in 4th and 5th grade are still in use for 9th and 10th coming up.

I'll probably buy myself a new backpack though, as I've found it's useful for carrying home groceries when I walk to the store, and I can't use one of the girls' packs if they both have them at school!

[happysmileylady]

Regardless of how much I have spent on her backpack, I have never had DD be able to use one more than a year and a half. It's not that she doesn't take care of them, they just get used HARD. So, I quit buying them new all together and just get them at Goodwill. This year, in May we found a super cute denim one, I think it's LL Bean, for $1. It's in perfect condition, so that should last her at least this year. I am hoping maybe now that she's in high school, we might be able to get it to last a little longer, but since she's planning to play soccer, I bet not.

[Emmeline II]

I was worried about my ds loosing things so I went with a cheap character back pack which I repaired once before it died; I got him another cheap character back pack which I had to repair once but it survived.

For 1st grade I just bought an LLBean wheeled backpack (hopefully they won't get banned) to avoid him dragging a heavy load along the ground. LLBean has a guarantee on theirs.

[Linda on the move]

I think it depends on whether or not they are going to be carrying any text books back and forth. If they are carrying text books, they need a VERY sturdy bag.

[journeymom]

Originally Posted by TiredX2

We go for good quality. I let DS pick out a character backpack in kinder and the zipper was broken by November. I then got him a Jantzen and he's been using it for the past three years. I made the same mistake with DD (letting her get a random one at Target for 3rd grade, it was trashed within a year--- the next one lasted for three years and she'll get a new one this year for junior high).

This is the backpack he is getting for next year:
http://www.llbean.com/llb/shop/62776?from=SR&feat=sr

He wanted a red cammo backpack so I was thrilled to see that. For us, we've done a K-2 backpack, a 3/4-6 and we'll see what happens progressing. DD originally wanted a messenger bag for junior high, but she needs to take her violin every day so she is reconsidering if she actually wants to deal with two things she carries to the side.

For us, it's not a money issue (though one good backpack, IMO, is way cheaper than 3-4 "cheap" ones) but a resource issue. I just don't like the idea of the kids going through at least 7 backpacks in elementary school when they could use 1-2.

Agreed, agreed, agreed.

Though I was pretty disappointed with the wheeled back pack I got from LLBean. Zipper broke within a couple months.

[journeymom]

Just a tangent, but I notice that around here at least, it's the little kids who like the wheeled backpacks, but they have very little to put in them. But the big kids think the wheelies aren't cool, but they're the ones carrying 20 pounds or more.

Dd's high school doesn't have lockers. Last year her back pack averaged 40 pounds. I offered to get her a wheelie. No way. No one else does it. She'd rather get a sore back.

[whatsnextmom]

Dd's high school doesn't have lockers. Last year her back pack averaged 40 pounds. I offered to get her a wheelie. No way. No one else does it. She'd rather get a sore back.

I agree. At DD's middle school, the rolling bags were a problem. They were always getting caught on things and people in the hallways. The classrooms weren't really set up to store the large size. DD said that kids were always harrassing those with the rolling bags because they were always in the way. That said, this middle school always gave kids a home copy of the texts or the book on CD so they never HAD to drag them back and forth. Still, all the binders and paper was heavy enough.

Unless it's a zuca, rolling bags aren't particularly sturdy no matter who you buy it from. We researched them and basically found that your best bet was to buy from a company that had a guaruntee so they'd replace it when it went bad (because it WOULD.) We have a Zuca but it's really not built for school use... more for sports.

[rabrog]

DD's had the same bag for two years now and it wasn't expensive at all. It's in great shape (she's using it for nature camp this week). If she asks for a new one, we'll let her get one this year. She's getting a new lunch bag, too.

Jenn