I share essential Back to School Do’s and Don’ts with anchor Marissa Bailey.

The first day of school is right around the corner. We’ve been back and forth to camps and squeezing in Back to School shopping when we can. In these final days before school begins, I share my 5 top Do’s and Don’ts. After all, we parents aren’t perfect!

 

Don’t waste precious time and money buying your essentials in small quantities.

Do: Buy in bulk without setting foot in a store with Boxed.com. You can order the kids’ snacks and school supplies, as well as cleaning and paper products, all from your favorite brands. I like to order from the app on my smartphone and my goodies arrive within 2 days with no membership fees or shipping fees!

 

 

Don’t turn a blind eye when they’re on their screens. Kids have more access than you think.

Do: use a monitoring app to manage their internet access. Our Pact is a free app that

can manage and even block access to Internet and apps on your kids’ mobile devices either on demand or through automated, recurring schedules. It’s especially great for bedtime (so there’s no sneaking under the covers!).

 

Don’t assume that screen time is all bad. Use it to teach your kids!

Do: Introduce them to an educational tool that pairs with their iPad, like the Osmo Coding Kit ($75 at PlayOsmo). It has three different games, which will teach them programming, drawing and physics, but they won’t have any idea that they are learning! As kids progress, the games become more challenging, keeping kids engaged.

 

Don’t assume your kids are getting all the nutrition and hydration they need

Do: If your kids play sports during the day, they need extra protein to keep them going. Put a bottle of BiPro Protein Water ($3.99 at BiPro.com) in with their lunch, to give then 20g of protein and essential hydration.

 

Don’t pay full price if you don’t have to!

Do: Before making any purchase, check Slickdeals.net or the Slickdeals app for coupons or offers. They have 10mm deal seekers hunting for the best deals around the clock. The top 30 are on their home page and you can also search by retailer or category.