Also an ATS parent.

-Do kids have pencil cases these days?
We've had one come with the supply kit each year. The kindergarten teachers are amazing and will label everything for you (at least pre-covid times)

- Also is the food at school any good (this is for Arlington Public Schools)? Would love to not have to pack lunch
If your kids are not picky, school lunch is amazing for working parents.

- sneakers - for PE? What do kids wear for PE? Just sweatpants or something or just anything comfortable?
Jeans or leggings and sneakers for my kid. ATS has a dress code, though it is not too strict. Basically tucked in shirts, except when wearing leggings for girls. The handbook says no sweatpants and sports uniforms (and kids don't change for PE), though again I am not too familiar with what boys wear.

- water bottles. Got them new ones. Do they keep these in school or do they bring them home every day?
They bring home every day.

Isn’t school food free this semester for all kids?

Anonymous wrote:We use Sharpie pens. Sometimes need masking tape too, depending on the container. No idea what people purchase labels for. And when those run out, no Sharpie pen, oh dear. Buy multipack black.

Finding the right water bottles can be tricky. I hated running out of clean ones and hand washing one last minute. Buy several you like.

Buy jackets or coats now so you won't have to later.

Buy extra pairs of sneakers 1 size up for later too.

I've found the labels to be super helpful. Small enough to fit on a tag of a shirt, easier than a sharpie (which I keep out of reach of my kids). I keep the labels by the front door and will slap them on a new water bottle or a new winter coat or sweatshirt as we walk out the door. They weren't insanely expensive and it's a small step to make my life 45 seconds faster. It's hardly required. But I do recommend them if you want lost items to find their way back to your child at school.

I had one mom-friend who would spend 20 minutes searching the school for lost stuff, or a misplaced water bottle, etc. Just label their stuff and you're done.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Your kids’ teachers will send home a schedule regarding PE days. You only really need to keep an eye on it if you have kids who like to wear dress/nonsneaker shoes (usually this translates as girls).

Sit down with the calendar now and plug in all the early release days, holidays, teacher work days, etc. Mark off Back to School Night and book your sitter. Join the PTA. Designate a place for library books. Have a folder/clipboard/place in the kitchen for forms and school flyers. Complete as much of the September administrivia as possible.

OP here. Thanks. Will do this.

Pro tip: the first time that g*d-forsaken APS field trip permission slip comes home, make a copy/copies of the back of it. Use them for future trips.

-teacher

Anonymous wrote:Your kids’ teachers will send home a schedule regarding PE days. You only really need to keep an eye on it if you have kids who like to wear dress/nonsneaker shoes (usually this translates as girls).

Sit down with the calendar now and plug in all the early release days, holidays, teacher work days, etc. Mark off Back to School Night and book your sitter. Join the PTA. Designate a place for library books. Have a folder/clipboard/place in the kitchen for forms and school flyers. Complete as much of the September administrivia as possible.

OP here. Thanks. Will do this.

For our daughter at ATS last year, reading 20 mins at home was the homework. That's all. She was in 2nd grade.

How do you edit posts? That would sure come in handy for me!

Anonymous wrote:

Labels are helpful when you have multiple children and re-use, hand down, or sell items because you can remove and replace them. No idea how you can be so dumb as to not understand that.

Ah, DCUM, never change. Always escalate a minor issue to personal attacks.

NP and I read it too. It was edited. They sure did call someone dumb.

Anonymous wrote:Be ready for kids not having any homework.

Did ATS just change their homework policy? If not, nightly homework starts in kindergarten at ATS.

The person you quoted most definitively did NOT call you dumb. They said they had no idea what labels would be for, and you interpreted that as calling you dumb.

We use Sharpie pens. Sometimes need masking tape too, depending on the container. No idea what people purchase labels for. And when those run out, no Sharpie pen, oh dear. Buy multipack black.

Finding the right water bottles can be tricky. I hated running out of clean ones and hand washing one last minute. Buy several you like.

Buy jackets or coats now so you won't have to later.

Buy extra pairs of sneakers 1 size up for later too.

Anonymous wrote:

Labels are helpful when you have multiple children and re-use, hand down, or sell items because you can remove and replace them. No idea how you can be so dumb as to not understand that.

Ah, DCUM, never change. Always escalate a minor issue to personal attacks.

You do know that I was quoting someone who said something like "No idea how you can be so dumb..."? Way to delete out that stuff, LOSER UGLY PANTS!!!

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:We use sharpies and rewrite names when it wears off. This seems so much easier than labels.

Buy an extra lunchbox/bag if it’s forgotten at school or lost. I buy the cheapest on Amazon.

I send them with Gatorade water bottles. They are less expensive than the other kids and easy to wash. I write our last name on the side in huge letters.

Let me get this straight - you wash out gatorade bottles and send water in them? And you LABEL them because you're worried your child may lose an old gatorade bottle? Am I missing something?

I think PP was probably referring to the reusable Gatorade bottles used by sports teams.

https://www.target.com/p/gatorade-squeeze-32oz-plastic-water-bottle-green/-/A-54548401?ref=tgt_adv_XS000000&AFID=google_pla_df&fndsrc=tgtao&DFA=71700000012767052&CPNG=PLA_Sports%2BShopping_Local%7CSports_Ecomm_Hardlines&adgroup=SC_Sports_Local&LID=700000001170770pgs&LNM=PRODUCT_GROUP&network=g&device=m&location=9008168&targetid=pla-781232437092&ds_rl=1246978&ds_rl=1248099&gclid=CjwKCAjwi9-HBhACEiwAPzUhHMHSJyl69WUhO2zDtRWaoi0yTGORdoG22Q7k03cnbT8vQ4O4nWi63BoC-CQQAvD_BwE&gclsrc=aw.ds

Yes, these are the bottles I was talking about. Both of my kids used them last year without an issue.

You're so lucky that you can use those, my kids chew the hell out of bottles with tops like that

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:We use Sharpie pens. Sometimes need masking tape too, depending on the container. No idea what people purchase labels for. And when those run out, no Sharpie pen, oh dear. Buy multipack black.

Finding the right water bottles can be tricky. I hated running out of clean ones and hand washing one last minute. Buy several you like.

Buy jackets or coats now so you won't have to later.

Buy extra pairs of sneakers 1 size up for later too.

Labels are helpful when you have multiple children and re-use, hand down, or sell items because you can remove and replace them. No idea how you can be so dumb as to not understand that.

Or you can just write the last name and have it work for multiple children. No one is selling a used lunch bag or water bottle.

Why do you care so much how other people label their kids' stuff?

Be ready for kids not having any homework.

Labels are helpful when you have multiple children and re-use, hand down, or sell items because you can remove and replace them. No idea how you can be so dumb as to not understand that.

Ah, DCUM, never change. Always escalate a minor issue to personal attacks.