Are backpacks with wheels cool or uncool?

[Anonymous]

Wondering if I should get these for my kids as I expect that they will be lugging laptops to and from school. I have one in elementary and one starting middle school.

[Anonymous]

Check with your school as wheeled backpacks are not allowed at our elementary. (Tripping hazard)

[Anonymous]

Very heavy. If the kid has to lift it up it is quite heavy.

[Anonymous]

Should I get them laptop bags instead?

[Anonymous]

My kid had one back in ES. We replaced it after less than a year because you couldn’t roll it in the hallways (that was both impossible and again school rules) and it was heavier and bulkier than a regular backpack.

[Anonymous]

They're like heelies. Kids initially think they're cool but they're a pain in the classroom and often banned.

[Anonymous]

They are a huge back saver. Banning them probably violates the ADA at least for some kids. The idea that they represent a unique tripping hazard is preposterous. I think the hate is mostly because of people who think “we didn’t need those in MY day” because they are envious that students now have access to helpful devices those people didn’t have.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:They are a huge back saver. Banning them probably violates the ADA at least for some kids. The idea that they represent a unique tripping hazard is preposterous. I think the hate is mostly because of people who think “we didn’t need those in MY day” because they are envious that students now have access to helpful devices those people didn’t have.

If a kid has a specific disability, and can't carry a backpack, they need to get a 504.

Speaking an teacher, there are some things that work well in many contexts, that don't work in crowded hallways when large numbers of people with the average maturity of an 8 year old are trying to move from place to place in a timely fashion. This is one of those things. It's not preposterous, it's a recognition that elementary school hallways present different challenges than other locations.

[Anonymous]

To directly answer your question, not cool. They were not cool in the past and the same parents that know they are not cool will buy regular backpacks.

I’m an immigrant whose parents bought a wheelie backpack when I started 8th grade in America, and I got made fun of. Not cool.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:They are a huge back saver. Banning them probably violates the ADA at least for some kids. The idea that they represent a unique tripping hazard is preposterous. I think the hate is mostly because of people who think “we didn’t need those in MY day” because they are envious that students now have access to helpful devices those people didn’t have.

A properly fitted and worn backpack isn’t going to do any damage to your kid’s back. Dragging a wheeled bag behind them is likely worse.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Should I get them laptop bags instead?

um, no. Most backpacks have a laptop sleeve these days. The standard Jansport book bag you can buy anywhere. It’s really not that complicated.

[Anonymous]

As a high school teacher, they aren't something the "cool" kids use, but that shouldn't be a reason to choose or shun them.

The bigger concern is that they are a irritating to those around the kid who has one. When others are trying to navigate a classroom or move from one place to another, it is annoying to have to wait for or go around the kid towing the wheeled backpack.

[Anonymous]

Uncool, but that's not the best reason to do or not do something. They're also banned at my kids' schools. But I hate how much weight my kids carry in their backpacks--multiple binders, laptop, lunch, water bottle ... it's way too much, yet the high school doesn't offer lockers and the middle school does but they can only go once during the day.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:They are a huge back saver. Banning them probably violates the ADA at least for some kids. The idea that they represent a unique tripping hazard is preposterous. I think the hate is mostly because of people who think “we didn’t need those in MY day” because they are envious that students now have access to helpful devices those people didn’t have.

+1

Adults need to pay attention to where they are walking.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:They are a huge back saver. Banning them probably violates the ADA at least for some kids. The idea that they represent a unique tripping hazard is preposterous. I think the hate is mostly because of people who think “we didn’t need those in MY day” because they are envious that students now have access to helpful devices those people didn’t have.

+1

Adults need to pay attention to where they are walking.

The majority of people in an elementary school are not adults.