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It’s back to school time, almost. The other day, when I spent two hours in Target I couldn’t believe the back to school supplies. Backpacks, pencils, markers, crayons, scissors and the list goes on. I miss that part of being a teacher AND a student. The back to school excitement was like Christmas day to me, I loved how it felt and I loved all the new supplies.
The problem, most of the products are wasteful, toxic and far from earth friendly. How many trees are cut down so we have pencils and paper? To actually sift through the bins of back to school supplies and waste time figuring out what is recycled, what is non-toxic and then keep track of not spending a fortune or giving into the begging child wanting this or that folder and pens…
Who has time for that? Exhausting and guaranteed, you’ll end up spending more money then you want.
Oh, and the products won’t be “green”!
So what’s a green mom to do and one on a budget? What about a teacher wanting a non-toxic classroom? Go to, The Green Office and buy the back to school green kits! Yahoo! When I saw this, I was so excited because this is exactly what my aunt has been looking for. With four kids heading to school, this will save her some time, she can be earth friendly and save money.
Check out The Green Office Back to School Kits that are packaged by grade and age level. A kit for K-2 grade, 3-5 grade and 6-8 grade…plus a teacher kit and the kits start at only $16.99! Free shipping on all orders over $49 and all G&CM readers can buy a kit and save an additional 10% on their first order using this code at check out: TGOWelcome10
Think of all the good you’re doing when you green your kids back to school supplies. Shoosh, and the money and time! The Daily Green touched on how consumers are cutting back but are still choosing green. This would be me and probably most of you! By choosing to green back to school time you’re setting an example for your children and making a difference! Here are some other great tips to green your back to school supplies this year without going broke:
1) Recycle last year’s school supplies. Do you have perfectly good pencils, markers and folders left over from last year? Use these and mix them with some new stuff from The Green Office Back to School Kits.
2) Does your child really need a new backpack? If it isn’t torn it might just need a good wash. Make it like new with some iron on patches and decorations.
3) Visit a local resale shop and do some shopping to save yourself money for back to school clothing. It’s still yard sale season so start shopping around and you’ll get some great gently used items.
4. Buy a safe lunch box that needs zero baggies. This will save you money and help the environment. For some really cute lunchboxes, try the Land of Nod.
5. Help your child stay organized with Kids Klutter Katchers verses plastic storage containers or wasteful plastic baggies.
6. Don’t buy juice boxes but use reusable water bottles that are BPA free. Using a Foogo by Thermos will keep beverages nice and cold.
7. Donate some non-toxic cleaning products to your school or your child’s classroom. Help the room stay germ free and clean without the chemicals.
8. If your student is in college or high school and uses a computer make sure you help them green their school year with some eco-friendly USB drives and other computer accessories.
9. Stock up on healthy treats for lunches and snacks from Yum-Yum Snacks. Buying in bulk helps save money and time.
10. Help keep the kids healthy this up coming school year by using good vitamins! My children love these vitamins and I know they’re getting what they need without the sugar and the toxic ingredients.
Top photo courtesy of: morguefile.com
How awesome, thanks for all these amazing suggestions!
I have another to add: I myself recently got a my son a most spiff messenger bag from Act2GreenSmart. It’s all made from recycled bottles, is nicely designed, and tells you right inside how many bottles were used to make it, how much energy that saved, and how long your average laptop would run on that amount of energy. I love how that makes your positive impact really tangible, something I want to instill in my son.
If you’d like to check them out yourself, go to http://www.act2greensmart.com They also have small shoulder bags, totes (that could double as diaper bags) and shopping bags.
Thanks for the article – I really like the Green Back to School Kits. Our school purchases the supplies the supplies in bulk – maybe I can convince them to do something like this.
I was in Target the other day and was actually impressed with the amount of green supplies I was able to find. Still a LONG way to go, considering the overwhelming majority of wasteful plastic products and packaging, but SOMETHING is better than nothing. The one thing I was most surprised by was a kid’s backpack made from recycled plastic bottles!
@PsychMamma, do you know who made the backpack? That’s awesome to hear!
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Using coupon codes is a great way to save money. I like to recommend KindCoupons.org for more coupon codes. It also supports green ideas.